Children’s television station Nickelodeon has come under fire in recent weeks for its alleged mistreatment of Jennette McCurdy, as well as her “Sam & Cat” co-star Ariana Grande.
After the explosive release of McCurdy’s new memoir ‘I’m Glad My Mom Died’ – in which the author details the abuse she allegedly suffered while working for Nickelodeon – many social media outlets took a critical look. on images of a young Grande in character as Cat Valentine.
Fans have accused the network of sexualizing and infantilizing Grande on screen. As a teenager, the actor and pop musician played the bubbly, space cat on Nickelodeon’s “Victorious,” as well as “Sam & Cat.”
In a viral Twitter feed, @VERONASFILMS recently compiled clips of a young Grande portraying Cat in vlogs for TheSlap, a fictional social media platform used by the “Victorious” characters. Filmed in Cat’s bedroom, the video shows the teenage star putting her toes and fingers in her mouth while staring at the camera; lying upside down on the bed, pouring water into his mouth and on his face; screaming and growling when trying to “squeeze” a potato; and shout “I’m soaked!” »
“Everyone keeps bringing Ariana Grande for the Stan vs. Jennette drama and I don’t know why. Let’s not forget, Ariana is a victim of the goose bumps herself. [‘iCarly,’ ‘Victorious’ and ‘Sam & Cat’ creator] dan schneider,” @VERONASFILMS captioned the video, which has amassed over 3.3 million views on Twitter since Thursday.
“that’s why she doesn’t talk about the valentine cat role anymore. they sexualized and infantilized her.
After sharing a few more “very uncomfortable” clips of Grande and “Victorious” costar Victoria Justice, @VERONASFILMS argued that former child stars “have every right not to talk about what happened on the victorious platter. it was crazy, uncomfortable and disgusting stuff. she doesn’t want to relive that trauma or discuss cat valentine’s if she doesn’t!
Much of the criticism seems to be directed at Schneider, who created and wrote dozens of episodes of “iCarly,” “Victorious,” and “Sam & Cat.” In her tell-all book, McCurdy recalls being emotionally abused and inappropriately touched by someone she anonymously calls “The Maker” – prompting many to point the finger at Schneider.
A representative for Schneider did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Nickelodeon is offering me three hundred thousand dollars in silent money for not speaking publicly about my experience on the show? My personal experience of Creator abuse?” McCurdy writes in his book.
“It’s a network with shows made for kids. Shouldn’t they have some sort of moral compass? Shouldn’t they at least try to conform to some sort of ethical standard?”
Posted Aug. 9, McCurdy’s buzzing memoir also mentions Grande, whom she says she envied and resented while working on “Sam & Cat.” Because the spin-off show conflicted with Grande’s burgeoning music career, the singer repeatedly absented herself from the set, which made McCurdy “pissed off” and “jealous” of her stage partner.
“I’m done being a good sport. I hate being a good sportswoman,” she wrote.
“If I wasn’t such a good sport to start with, I wouldn’t be in this predicament in the first place. I wouldn’t be on that s— show saying those s— lines about that s— together with that s— hairstyle. … It is what it is. Ariana takes time off work to pursue her music career while I play with a box.
Representatives for Grande and Nickelodeon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Los Angeles Times.