According to news reports, Drake, in an unsettling clip from the 4-part documentary, shared details about facing abuse as a child star.
“Brian and I became really close because we had a lot of the same interests, which looking back, I think that was probably a little calculated,” Bell says in the series, as reproted by People.
Recounting his first meeting with Brian, Drake said that he had booked a gig on Nickelodeon’s ‘The Amanda Show’ in 1999, at the age of 13 and met the coach on the first day of the second season. Peck, reportedly befriended Bell and invited him to his house for acting lessons.
Although his father, Joe Bell expressed concerns with the man constantly around his son, he revealed that Brian later became his manager. As his commute to LA was long, he then started spending nights at his manager’s house, until ‘everything changed’.
“I was sleeping on the couch where I usually sleep and I woke up to him… I opened my eyes and I woke up and he was…he was sexually assaulting me,” Drake said, who was 15 at the time. “And I froze, and was in complete shock and had no idea what to do or how to react.”
The actor went on to share that his experiences working with Peck only got worse after that first assault. “I somehow ended up back at Brian‘s house,” he said, recounting the work commitments that would lead him to the house, where he alleged, “the abuse was extensive and it got pretty brutal.”
Looking back at his teenage days, the actor shared his surprise about ‘surviving’ it all. He said, “I often look back at that time and wonder how in the world I survived.”
He further went on to share that the memories of his abuse often overshadow his other ‘great’ experiences on the sets.
“I remember all of the abusive events, but everything outside of that is very blurry to me, which is a bummer because I experienced a lot of great things in my life and my career during this time. But it was so overshadowed and ruined by what I was dealing with on the inside that it made it really hard for me.”
Eventually, Drake shared that he broke down and informed his mother about everything. Once his mother became aware of the abuse, he said that the police soon got involved and claimed that he got Brian to confess to the police on a recorded phone call.
In 2004, Brian pleaded no contest to a charge of oral copulation with a minor under 16 as well as a charge of performing a lewd act with a 14- or 15-year-old. Drake‘s identity as the victim was not made public at the time.
Brian spent 16 months in prison and was mandated to register as a sex offender, after which, he briefly worked on the ‘Suite Life’.
In the documentary, he disclosed a troubling period when celebrities rallied behind his abuser. Among the most shocking revelations was the abundance of famous individuals and friends who appeared in court to support Brian as he faced sentencing. Moreover, numerous stars went as far as writing character letters on his behalf, with some prominent names involved.
James Marsden and Taran Killam were among those who penned letters, along with ‘Boy Meets World’ actors Rider Strong and Will Friedle, who have recently expressed remorse over their actions.
Additionally, ‘Growing Pains’ actress Joanna Kerns admitted in the documentary that she wrote a letter for Brian based on misinformation. The late Alan Thicke and ‘The Suite Life of Zack & Cody’ directors Rich and Beth Correll also showed support by writing letters.
Nickelodeon provided a statement, via People: “Now that Drake Bell had disclosed his identity as the plaintiff in the 2004 case, we are dismayed and saddened to learn of the trauma he has endured, and we commend and support the strength required to come forward.”
Last year, he spoke about his mental health and said Internet trolls were going to “kill him.”
Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV | ID
