Victoria Justice believes Dan Schneider treated her 'unfairly'
Victoria Justice believes Dan Schneider treated her "unfairly" during her time on Nickelodeon.
The former Nickelodeon star has broken her silence on the tell-all docu-series Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, which highlights allegations of abusive and toxic workplaces on the sets of several Nickelodeon shows.
In an interview with Marie Claire published on Wednesday, Victoria opened up about her relationship with Nickelodeon producer Dan Schneider, who has been accused of fostering a toxic work environment and creating inappropriate sketches, among other things.
"Something that was very evident in the documentary is that Dan had a very large ego," the 31-year-old said. "And sometimes that ego clouded his better judgment and affected the way he treated people, and there were times I felt like I was being treated unfairly."
The Zoey 101 alum then went on to clarify that nothing sexual ever happened with the producer, although she noted that, looking back, there were some moments that were "in poor taste".
Victoria then acknowledged that Dan had addressed some of the allegations outlined in the documentary and admitted that he owed a number of people an apology.
"I would say I'm definitely one of the people on that list," she told the publication.
Victoria noted that she had not kept in touch with Dan since she left the television channel, apart from the occasional birthday message.
"I'm not condoning any of his behaviour," she insisted. "At the end of the day, my relationship with Dan is a very complex one: I met him when I was 12 years old, and he's the person that gave me this big break. He completely changed my life. Most likely I wouldn't be here where I am today if it weren't for him, and for him seeing something in me. For that I will always be grateful."
She added, "After watching his apology, I think he recognises that he did a lot of things wrong, and I think if he could step back into a time machine, he would do a lot of things differently."