Kenan and Kel star Kel Mitchell has accused former Nickelodeon producer Dan Schneider of yelling “wild stuff” at him in a closet on the set of All That while Mitchell was still a teenager.
Mitchell, now 45, starred in the sketch show All That from 1994 to 1999, and in the sitcom Kenan and Kel from 1996 to 2000.
Speaking to Keke Palmer on her podcast Baby, this is Keke Palmer, Mitchell recalled that “the vibe of the show started to change a little bit” after the departure of original All That co-creator Brian Robbins.
“They left us with the head writer, Dan Schneider,” said Mitchell. “So he’s writing, and me and him kind of bump heads a little bit. I remember me and Dan had a big argument on set. He was like, ‘Let’s go over here to this room right here, in this closet.’ He closed the door and he just took off, you know, just yelling all this wild stuff.”
Mitchell said he would have been 18 or 19 when the incident took place. “Being an adult at this point, I had a decision to make, you know what I mean?” he said. “I was just like, ‘Okay, either we are going to fight or either I’m going to leave.’ And so that’s what I did. I left the situation.”
Schneider, 58, was recently heavily featured in the Investigation Discovery docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, which alleged that he had presided over a culture of abuse, harassment, racism and sexism on the sets of his shows.
Schneider is now suing the documentary makers, accusing them of misleading viewers into thinking he was a child predator to increase ratings.
The biggest bombshell to come out of the documentary was from Drake & Josh alum Drake Bell, who spoke out for the first time about the alleged sexual abuse he says he suffered at the hands of actor and since-convicted sex offender Brian Peck.
Following the release of the docuseries, Schneider released an apology video, saying that watching the documentary was “very difficult” as he faced his “past behaviours – some of which are embarrassing and that I regret”.
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However, a lawsuit filed by Schneider’s attorneys and obtained by The Independent reads: “Quiet on Set’s portrayal of Schneider is a hit job. While it is indisputable that two bona fide child sexual abusers worked on Nickelodeon shows, it is likewise indisputable that Schneider had no knowledge of their abuse, was not complicit in the abuse, condemned the abuse once it was discovered and, critically, was not a child sexual abuser himself.
“But for the sake of clickbait, ratings, and views – or put differently, money – Defendants have destroyed Schneider’s reputation and legacy through the false statements and implications that Schneider is exactly that.”
Schneider is seeking compensatory damages, punitive damages, legal fee coverage and for preliminary or permanent injunctive relief, including editing, taking down or removing all or a portion of the Trailer and/or Quiet on Set.
