Who Protects Our Child Stars?
The child actor pipeline and exploitation of beloved child stars
By Sarah Kirsch, Culture Assistant Editor
Illustrated by Mac Gale, Arts Curator
Content Warning: This article discusses instances of underage sexualization, abusive workplace behaviors, sexual assault and rape.
When I was young, all I wanted to be was a child star. I dreamt of being the next Selena Gomez or Miley Cyrus– being loved by many at a young age and having a fulfilling, exciting career ahead of me. To my younger self, it all seemed glamorous. However, being a child star isn’t as alluring as one may imagine.
Jennette McCurdy’s recent memoir, “I’m Glad My Mom Died,” covers several heavy topics, including her career as a child actor and experience with Nickelodeon, a channel known for its children-based content. Dan Schneider, a producer for the network who left in 2018, has been accused of sexualizing children, being verbally abusive to co-workers and behaving inappropriately on set (Truffaut-Wong, 2022). McCurdy often mentioned “The Creator” when speaking about her time at Nickelodeon, which multiple readers assume to be Schneider.
The release of McCurdy’s book has sparked other Nickelodeon child actor to speak out against Schneider. Alexa Nikolas, who played Nicole Bristow in “Zoey 101,” joined a protest outside of Nickelodeon’s California headquarters in August 2022. On an Instagram live, Nikolas stated, “I didn’t feel protected at Nickelodeon as a child.” She also called out Schneider specifically, saying, “I didn’t feel safe around Dan Schneider while I was working at Nickelodeon” and even calling him the “creator of childhood trauma.” Nikolas also demanded that networks stop using non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) to hold abusers more accountable (Corrigan, 2022).
Minors can technically sign NDAs, but many state and federal laws don’t enforce a contract signed by someone under 18. However, the legal aspect of NDAs can become complex when parents co-sign contracts or a minor voids it (Can minors sign, 2017). Ensuring that minors and their parents know child actors’ rights is necessary for the safety of child actors, especially if parents aren’t available on set or if child actors have no guardian looking after them.
Many children like McCurdy start their careers at a very young age and miss out on a lot of their childhood, such as regular schooling, extracurriculars or childhood freedom. Not only can that stress hurt a child’s mental health, but the added pressure of predatory wishes of producers, as McCurdy experienced when auditioning for roles, can have severe implications. When McCurdy was 15, she was pressured into wearing a bikini on set and drinking spiked beverages, two unfortunate examples of sexualization and inappropriate behavior that many child actors have endured (Grady, 2022).
Nickelodeon is not the only problem; many networks have been caught exploiting their child stars. Ricky Garcia, a former Disney star and member of the band “Forever in Your Mind,” filed a complaint against his manager, Joby Harte, for raping him throughout his adolescence. Garcia reported that Harte groomed him and pressured him into underage drinking and sexual activities (Trepany, 2019).
Demi Lovato, a famous singer who started her career as a Disney star, recently went on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast to talk about the pressure she faced. She said her management barricaded her hotel room door to stop her from ordering takeout amidst her eating disorder (Demi Lovato lays bare, 2022). Lovato was sexualized, put into stardom and experienced financial stress and mental health issues all at a young age. “I’ll always look at child stardom, at what I went through, as something traumatic for me,” Lovato said (June, 2022).
While many child actors have had harmful experiences with networks, it is not the same for everyone. Zendaya, a well-known actor and celebrity, spoke about how Disney is a part of her journey as an actress. “I’ve been very lucky, in the sense that every director so far that I worked with has been lovely,” she said (Nesvig, 2021). Zendaya has spoken about racism in the industry but never publicly shared information about any inappropriate behaviors. Despite these positive experiences, the harmful ones many child stars face should not be overlooked.
The many allegations against Schneider and Nickelodeon and numerous reports of similar incidents at Disney and other networks raise important questions. Who is looking after the safety of child actors? If these networks are employing young children to work for them, why aren’t networks doing more to ensure that they are protected, comfortable and not overworked? If we let children become stars, we must answer these questions first.
Sources:
Truffaut-Wong, O. (2022, August 31). Nickelodeon Alums Detail New Allegations Against Dan Schneider. The CUT.
Corrigan, J. (2022, August 26). Nickelodeon comes under fire from former child stars. HRD Magazine.
Grady, C. (2022, August 17). With I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette McCurdy lays bare the horrors of child acting. VOX.
Trepany, C. (2019, September 11). Disney boy band star Ricky Garcia alleges manager raped him. USA Today.
Demi Lovato lays bare horrific exploitation she faced as a Disney child star. (2022, August 24). Daily Mail Online.
Can minors sign non-disclosure agreements? (2017, November 16). EveryNDA.
June, S. (2022, September 22). Demi Lovato on Child Stardom. Nylon.
Nesvig, K. (2021, January 28). Zendaya Said She “Embraces” her Disney Channel Experience. Teen Vogue.