Dan Schneider has cleared a legal hurdle in his defamation battle against Investigation Discovery’s Quiet On Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge recently ruled that Schneider’s lawsuit could proceed, rejecting an attempt by Warner Bros Discovery and Maxine Productions to dismiss the case.
“This is manifestly not a case brought by Schneider on frivolous grounds, simply to harass defendants,” Judge Ashfaq G. Chowdhury stated in the ruling, according to Deadline. The court agreed with Schneider’s claim that the docuseries and its trailer implied damaging accusations, including that Schneider had sexually abused children who worked on his Nickelodeon shows.
Schneider, 58, filed the lawsuit in March, calling Quiet On Set a “hit job” that he says destroyed his “legacy and reputation.” He is seeking unspecified damages.
Addressing the controversy, Schneider acknowledged his “regretful… behaviour” and apologised for his past “mistakes and poor judgement” during his time at Nickelodeon, but condemned the documentary’s portrayal.
“In their successful attempt to mislead viewers and increase ratings, they went beyond reporting the truth and falsely implied that I was involved in or facilitated horrific crimes for which actual child predators have been prosecuted and convicted,” the statement continues.
“I sadly have no choice but to take legal action against the people behind it,” he asserted.
