Drake Bell 'completely understands' how people, including his mom, were deceived by abuser Brian Peck
Drake Bell has defended his mom against criticism she didn't protect him enough as a child, insisting abuser Brian Peck was so "calculated" when it came to covering his tracks.
Drake Bell has defended his mom against criticism she didn't protect him enough as a child.
The 37-year-old actor recently told of the "extensive and brutal" abuse he had experienced at the hands of Brian Peck over the course of six months when he was 15 years old and though Robin Bell Dodson - who divorced his dad Joe Bell when their son was five years old - has been slammed by fans for not doing more to help her son, the former Nickelodeon star insisted the dialect coach was so "calculated" when it came to covering his tracks.
Responding to the criticism, Drake said on the latest episode of 'Quiet On Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV': “If you were in that situation at that time, he was so good at what he was doing. He was so calculated, he knew exactly what to say, how to say it, what to do, the image to portray, everything.
“I completely understand how he just pulled the wool over everyone’s eyes. It’s tragic.”
The 'I Found a Way' singer also spoke in defence of his former 'Drake and Josh' co-star Josh Peck, who was widely slammed online for not publicly offering support to his friend in the immediate aftermath of the revelations.
Drake praised his pal as a "really great person" and stressed they had been in touch privately for some time before Josh issued a public statement.
He said: “I know what it’s like to have the internet attack you for really nothing.
"[Josh already] reached out to me and we had been talking.
“This is a really difficult thing to process.
"But, at the end of the day, we have such a close connection and unique bond that’s so rare in this industry that, I don’t know, it’s really special, and he’s a really great person.”
After the first episode of the docuseries aired, Josh did take to social media himself to share a message of support to all former child stars who spoke out.
He said: "I want to give my support for the survivors who were brave enough to share their stories of emotional and physical abuse on the 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."
In 2004, Brian - who is not related to Josh, despite their shared surname - pleaded no contest to a charge of oral copulation with a minor under 16 as well as a charge of performing a lewd act with a 14 or 15 year old. Drake was the plaintiff but his identity as the victim was not made public at the time.
The dialect coach spent 16 months in prison and was mandated to register as a sex offender.
