Daniella Monet, a former actor on Victorious, has claimed that she raised concerns to Nickelodeon over a scene that she felt was too sexualised.
The children’s programme, which ran from 2010 to 2013, starred figures such as Ariana Grande and Victoria Justice and was led by TV producer and former Nickelodeon collaborator, Dan Schneider.
In recent weeks, Schneider’s creations have come under scrutiny once again, following the release of Jennette McCurdy’s memoir, I’m Glad My Mom Died.
In it, McCurdy went into detail about her experiences as a star on Nickelodeon as a child, which has prompted others to come forward about alleged exploitation and other controversies.
Earlier this month, fans claimed Grande was both “infantilised and sexualised” in scenes on Sam and Cat. Now Monet, who played Trina Vega in Victorious, has spoken out about her experience as part of a longer investigation by Insider.
She recalls filming one scene in which her character ate a pickle while applying lip gloss.
The actor feared that the moment was too sexualised to air and expressed her concerns with the network. However, the scene was broadcasted as planned.
Monet noted that most of Victorious was “very PC, funny, silly, friendly, chill,” but stated that occasionally, the “male-dominated writers’ room” could result in some “hypersexualised scenes”.
“Do I wish certain things, like, didn’t have to be so sexualised?” she said. “Yeah. A hundred per cent.”
The Independent has approached representatives for Nickelodeon and Dan Schneider for comment.
