The mother of a former child star at the kid’s network Nickelodeon says the atmosphere on the set was strange and disturbing.
Sharon Palmer is the mother of Keke Palmer, who used to work on shows produced by Dan Schneider. He is the subject of a disturbing documentary called Quiet on the Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, which alleges that the producer made inappropriate humor and pranks, and forced the children to act out unnerving and erotically tinged skits for his shows. Former star Kel Mitchell blames his depression on incidents that happened on Schneider’s shows.
Keke Palmer’s mother Sharon said that the “whole atmosphere” on set was “very weird,” and “very cultish.” Not only that, but the culture around the shows seemed off, and she noticed it in other parents of child stars. Palmer described some of the other parents as “very secretive,” and said they seemed to take themselves too seriously. The entire experience was stressful and always felt tense, she said.
Palmer talked about the allegations made in the documentary by Drake Bell, who alleged that he had been sexually abused while working at the network. Palmer said that broke her heart, but that she felt for the parents, whom she said she witnessed being groomed.
Child stars are frequently mistreated in Hollywood, and naive parents are just as much a target of predators as the children themselves. “Grooming” refers to the process of a predator slowly gaining the trust of an entire family until they let down their guard. That’s when the abuse starts.
The late pop superstar Michael Jackson was the frequent target of accusations of grooming and inappropriate behavior with young fans, though allegations of abuse against those fans were never proven.
During the podcast interview with Sharon, her daughter Keke eventually joined the conversation and said she was thankful she did not experience any grooming or abuse herself. She said her mother guarded her early on in her budding career and protected her from the worst of what Hollywood can offer.
