FILE – In this March 29, 2014, file photo, Dan Schneider, center, accepts the lifetime achievement award at the 27th annual Kids’ Choice Awards at the Galen Center in Los Angeles (Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP, File).
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge ruled that Dan Schneider, a former TV producer for Nickelodeon, can move forward with his defamation lawsuit against Warner Bros Discovery.
Schneider sued the network in May 2024 after the damning documentary series, “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV,” aired on Investigation Discovery in March. The series included commentary from several people who worked with Schneider during his tenure as an executive producer, and several allegations were made about his behavior toward women and the child stars on the shows he produced.
Investigation Discovery falls under the umbrella of Warner Bros Discovery, one of the parties named in the lawsuit, which tried to have Schneider’s suit thrown out. On Nov. 22, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ashfaq G. Chowdhury, rejected that effort.
“This is manifestly not a case brought by Schneider on frivolous grounds, simply to harass defendants,” Chowdhury wrote. “He’s suing defendants about a documentary they made about him, that focuses on his activities, and, which a reasonable viewer might conclude makes damning implications about his conduct.” He also wrote that Schneider’s legal team argued “persuasively that defamation can be implied, that the trailer and documentary state or imply Schneider sexually abused children who worked on his show and that Schneider was a child sexual abuser.”
Lawyers for Warner Bros. Discovery and Sony Pictures had attempted to get the lawsuit thrown out under California’s anti-SLAPP statute, which seeks to prevent the chilling of freedom of speech. They also argued that Schneider was not directly accused of committing sexual abuse.
Schneider’s team argued that the documentary made too close of a connection between Schneider and two people who were found to be abusers — Brian Peck, a dialogue coach for several Nickelodeon shows that Schneider produced, and Jason Handy, a production assistant.
In the lawsuit, Schneider called the series “a hit job” and denied knowledge of the abuse that was going on.
“While it is indisputable that two bona fide child sexual abusers worked on Nickelodeon shows, it is likewise indisputable that Schneider had no knowledge of their abuse, was not complicit in the abuse, condemned the abuse once it was discovered and, critically, was not a child sexual abuser himself,” the lawsuit said. “But for the sake of clickbait, ratings, and views — or put differently, money — Defendants have destroyed Schneider’s reputation and legacy through the false statements and implications that Schneider is exactly that.”
Shortly after filing his lawsuit, Schneider issued a statement about his portrayal in “Quiet on Set,” saying, “Recently the docuseries ‘Quiet on Set’ highlighted mistakes I made and poor judgment I exhibited during my time at Nickelodeon, most of which happened decades ago during my early career as a producer, working on shows for Tollin/Robbins Productions.”
“There is no doubt that I was sometimes a bad leader,” the statement added. “I am sincerely apologetic and regretful for that behavior, and I will continue to take accountability for it.”
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