‘Quiet on Set’ Filmmakers Say Marc Summers Wasn’t ‘Ambushed’: ‘We Are Clear with Each Participant’

The filmmakers behind docuseries “Quiet on Set” are not staying quiet when it comes to allegations of misleading interviewees.

After former Nickelodeon game show host Marc Summers claimed “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV” directors Mary Robertson and Emma Schwartz were “unethical” in their interview approach and allegedly misled him as to what the docuseries was really about, the filmmaking duo on Friday issued a statement to IndieWire.

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“We are clear with each participant about the nature of our projects,” Robertson and Schwartz said.

Summers appears in the first episode of “Quiet on Set” and discusses hosting the game show “Double Dare” at Nickelodeon from 1986 to 1993. The show ended before Nickelodeon sitcom showrunner Dan Schneider joined the network. Schneider has been accused of toxic workplace behavior and mistreatment of child actors.

During an appearance on “Elvis Duran and the Morning Show,” Summers claimed that he did not know “Quiet on Set” sought to expose abuse allegations at Nickelodeon.

“They asked me what I thought of Nick, and the first 10 to 12 seconds, from what I understand, in this documentary is me saying all these wonderful things. But they did a bait and switch on me,” Summers said. “They ambushed me. They never told me what this documentary was really about. And so they showed me a video of something that I couldn’t believe was on Nickelodeon. And I said, ‘Well, let’s stop the tape right here. What are we doing?'”

After realizing that the docuseries was centered around Schneider’s behavior and vocal coach Brian Peck’s convictions for sexual assault, Summers walked out of filming; his partial interview was still used, however.

Summers added that “those people came in after and took over our studios. I never met the man [Schneider], I have no idea about any of those things,” in reference to the allegations against Schneider and the behavior he condoned under his TV reign.

As for filming “Quiet on Set,” Summers said, “I left. So I got a phone call about six weeks ago saying you’re totally out of the show. And I went, ‘Great.’ Then they called me about four weeks ago and said, ‘Well, you’re in it, but you’re only in the first part of it because you talked about the positive stuff of Nickelodeon.’ What they didn’t tell me — and they lied to me about — was the fact that they put in that other thing where they had the camera on me when they ambushed me. And so, now we get into a whole situation about who’s unethical.”

Summers then stated that he was speaking with ID and implied that he would take action against the “unethical” practices behind the docuseries. IndieWire has reached out to Summers for comment.

“Quiet on Set” recently released a new bonus episode on ID. The docuseries has led to further media commentary around the toxicity of child stardom in early 2000s, with Frankie Muniz, Kenan Thompson, and other stars reflecting on their respective experiences.

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