Former ‘Zoey 101’ star and child actor Matthew Underwood shared his experiences of being sexually abused and assaulted, penning a lengthy Instagram post on Friday in the wake of the abuse stories coming to light in the new “Quiet on Set” documentary.
Underwood appeared to be reacting to pressure he and his family had received since the documentary’s release, writing, “I know many folks want me to respond to the quiet on set documentary.”
He added that people have been contacting him, saying hurtful things like that they “hope me and my mom die and that we burn in hell.”
Underwood said he wanted to make clear that just because he or other people aren’t coming forward to speak out about their experience in Hollywood, “that does not mean they don’t have their own reasons for staying silent, good reasons, personal reasons.”
In the post, he revealed that he was groomed and molested when he was 12 years old by the stepfather of one of his best friends, and that he was later sexually assaulted by one of his agents at age 19.
These experiences were both an extreme betrayal of trust, Underwood explained, saying the incidents ultimately led him to quit acting for a time.
“We all want to live in a better world. That requires all of us to treat each other with empathy and not make assumptions about people’s personal experiences,” he added in the post.
He also clarified in the caption that his current agents are “incredible human beings” and that the experience he had was with another unnamed person.
A Reddit thread was also included in the caption, which included a more lengthy response from Underwood to the documentary.
Underwood’s comments come amid a flood of responses from former child stars and Nickelodeon cast members in reaction to Investigation Discovery’s new docuseries, “Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV,” which was released on March 17 and 18.
Dan Schneider, a former writer and producer for Nickelodeon, has apologized for his past actions, which are currently at the center of the series.
Schneider said he watched both nights of the series and decided to come forward to address the controversy in a conversation with former “iCarly” star BooG!e.
“Watching over the past two nights was very difficult, me facing my past behaviors, some of which were embarrassing and which I regret,” Schneider said in the interview.
Meanwhile, actor Drake Bell, who claims in the documentary he was molested by Nickelodeon dialogue coach Brian Peck, has said Schneider was an ally to him in the aftermath of his abuse.
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