Josh Peck Supported Drake Bell After The Quiet On Set Revelations

Content warning: This article contains mentions of alleged sexual assault. ID’s four-part Quiet On Set docuseries exposed a ton of disturbing allegations about the dark environment on Nickelodeon sets in the 2000s and 2010s — the most alarming being Drake Bell’s confession that he had been repeatedly sexually assaulted by a dialogue coach working for the network when he was 15. Following the revelation, Bell’s Drake & Josh co-star Josh Peck posted a message of support for his on-screen brother.

“I finished the Quiet On Set documentary and took a few days to process it,” Peck wrote on Instagram. “I reached out to Drake privately, but wanted to give my support for the survivors who were brave enough to share their stories of emotional and physical abuse on Nickelodeon sets with the world. Children should be protected. Reliving this publicly is incredibly difficult, but I hope it can bring healing for the victims and their families as well as necessary change to our industry.”

The message came a few days after the doc aired, and fans of Bell had become concerned that Peck didn’t immediately show a sign of support for his former co-star. Even worse, Peck posted a TikTok angrily ranting about how someone he hasn’t “spoken to since 2023” doesn’t exist to him anymore on the day Quiet On Set aired. The video went viral, with users alleging Peck was deleting comments asking about Bell.

But it seems like that was just an unfortunate coincidence, because Bell later shared his own TikTok asking people to “take it easy” on Peck after he noticed the negative comments. “I just want you guys to know that he [Peck] has reached out to me, and it’s been very sensitive, but he has reached out to talk with me and help me work through this and has been really, really great,” Bell shared. “So I just wanted to let you guys know that and to take it a little easy on him.”

A big part of the interest in how Peck would respond to Bell’s story is the former co-stars’ rocky history. The comedy partners worked together for nearly a decade on Nickelodeon’s The Amanda Show and Drake & Josh throughout the 2000s, but they’ve infamously butted heads in the years since. In particular, Bell tweeted about being hurt that Peck didn’t invite him to his wedding in 2017.

Then, in a March 2022 podcast appearance, Peck confirmed he and Bell had grown apart. “We were kids, right? Obviously, there were times when we were closer than not, but when inevitably the show ended – I mean, we’re just totally different kids,” Peck said. “Drake & Josh is something I’ll be synonymous with forever, and I’m proud of it. And I want to like the guy that my name is attached to forever, but unfortunately, it just sort of worked out the way that it did.”

The pair may not have been close in recent years, but it sounds like they’ll still be there as a support system when they need one another most.