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Hollywood Reporter may receive an affiliate commission. An apologetic and at times emotional has broken his silence after viewing Investigation Discovery’s a four-part docuseries that made claims about toxic workplaces for child actors and crews on series he created and ran. “Watching over the past two nights was very difficult. Me facing my past behaviors, some of which are embarrassing and that I regret. I definitely owe some people a pretty strong apology,” Schneider told BooG!E, who played T-Bo on , in a 19-minute video interview that was shot after the former Nickelodeon producer watched , which on ID and . Among the — who was once called the “Norman Lear of children’s television” in the — include that he tolerated toxic workplace conditions, and that he allegedly tormented and humiliated the cast and crew on his TV sets. “When I watched the show, I could see the hurt in some people’s eyes and it made me feel awful and regretful and sorry. I wish I could go back, especially to those earlier years of my career, and bring the growth and the experience that I have now and just do a better
Job and never, ever feel like it was okay to be an asshole to anyone, ever,” Schneider said in the video exclusively obtained by (watch, below). The prolific kids TV producer had stayed tightlipped in the weeks leading up to the ID doc series premiere. But in after the first night aired, Schneider, in part, responded to claims about sexualized content and toxic on-set behavior by saying that “everything that happened on the shows Dan ran was carefully scrutinized by dozens of involved adults, and approved by the network.” Now, he’s speaking directly and addressing specific allegations and stories of abuse. In the third episode of , the star of and in ’s
Sexual Assault case. Schneider in the new video claims he did not hire the Nickelodeon dialogue coach who was convicted of sexually assaulting a child
Actor in 2004, now known to be Bell. Bell’s name was never revealed in open court. “When
Drake and I talked and he told me about what happened, I was more devastated by that than anything that ever happened to me in my career thus far. And I told him, ‘I’m here for you,'” Schneider said in the video. At one point in the interview, Schneider teared up when recounting Bell’s mother coming to him for help to write a speech to read before the court at Peck’s trial: “She came to me at the time, and she said, ’Dan, I’m not good with words like you are. And would you help me with my speech for the judge? I said, ‘of course.’ I did and he (Peck) ended up going to
prison and serving his time.” Schneider also recounted Bell having to attend a sentencing hearing for Peck where the convicted predator’s side of the courtroom was filled with supporters. “A lot of them (were) pretty famous. Of course Drake was devastated that that happened. And even more disappointing, 41 of those people letters praising him for who he was and asking for leniency,” he recalled. Hollywood stars named in for having written such letters include James Marsden, Taran Killam, stars Ron Melendez and the late Alan Thicke. ( has reached out to those mentioned for comment.) “And yeah, that was probably the darkest part of my career,” Schneider said. “And here’s the kicker that I really don’t get. After he (Peck) got out of prison and was a registered sex offender, he was hired on a show. I don’t understand that.” has reached out to reps for Nickelodeon, the
Disney Channel and Bell for comment. Schneider’s recollections of his years at Nickelodeon — where he created hit programs like and follow his critics alleging online and in the that he was inappropriate to young females who worked for him and that he wrote inappropriate scripts for uncomfortable child actors to perform. With hindsight, Schneider agreed some jokes crossed a line and should be cut from episodes that continue to air or can still be streamed. “All those jokes… the show covered over the past two nights, every one of those jokes was written for a kid audience because kids thought they were funny, and only funny,” he argued. But that was then. “Let’s cut those jokes out of the show, just like I would have done 20 years ago or 25 years ago,” he says. “I want my shows to be popular. I want everyone to like (the shows), the more people who liked the shows, the happier I am. So if there’s anything that needs to be cut because it’s upsetting somebody, let’s cut it.” Among other revelations, Schneider claimed to have helped , star of the hit series who at age 16 or 17 years, he recounted, attempted to separate herself from her parents. At one point in the video, he recalled a
Late Night call from Bynes. “It was very late. Well, after midnight, or one or two in the morning, the phone rang. I answered it and it was Amanda. She was in distress. She had had some conflict with her parents, I think her father, and she called. I was immediately concerned for her safety,” Schneider claimed on the video. He added that he arranged for Bynes to be picked up for her safety. “I felt better. She ended up being taken to the
police.” During his run, Schneider helped launch the careers of Bynes, Kenan Thompson, Victoria Justice, Miranda Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy and many more. And while no sexual allegations involving child actors have been made against Schneider, he made several apologies in the video for young actors who said they felt uncomfortable or vulnerable on his TV sets. “There are definitely things that I would do differently,” he insisted, including having licensed therapists on set to oversee child actors and the filming process. “The main thing that I would change is how I treat people and everyone. I definitely at times didn’t give people the best of me. I didn’t show enough patience. I could be cocky and definitely over-ambitious, and sometimes just straight up rude and obnoxious and I’m sorry that I ever was.” He also said, among other things, that he was wrong to ask anyone on set to give him massages: “It was wrong. It was wrong that I ever put anyone in that position. It was wrong to do. I’d never do it today. I’m embarrassed that I did it then. I apologize to anybody that I ever put in that situation.” And he addressed inappropriate jokes told and pranks that he pulled in the writer’s room. “Let me just say, no writer should ever feel uncomfortable in any writer’s room, ever. Period. The end. No excuses,” he said. Schneider insisted he should never have taken part, especially when he was in charge. “I can tell you why it hurts really bad for me,” he continued when recalling early experiences in the entertainment business. “I was green. I was scared. I was excited. It meant the world to me that I was getting these opportunities. And I went in and I got lucky, because my first couple experiences were fantastic. And the fact that I didn’t pay it forward to every employee that walked through my door, it hurts my heart because I should have and I wish I could go back and fix that.” He also discussed what critics online and in the t series point to as inappropriate sketches, which Schneider agreed in some cases “went too far.” “When I was watching the show over the past two nights, I now know that there were kids who did have problems with the and I breaks my heart and I’m so sorry and I’m so sorry to any kid who ever had to do a dare or anything that they didn’t want to do or weren’t comfortable doing,” he said. On the making of the reaction video, a spokesperson for Schneider said BooG!e reached out to the TV producer to see if he could ask him some questions about the series. “BooG!e wants to make clear though that he is not a journalist and wasn’t trying to be. He was offering to provide a platform for Dan to confront a lot of his previous behaviors. BooG!e thought it was something worth doing if Dan was into it, so people could hear from Dan,” the statement continued. is now streaming on . THR Newsletters Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day More from The Hollywood Reporter