James Marsden praised Drake Bell’s alleged abuser Brian Peck in letter of support during child sexual abuse case – with fellow stars asking judge for probation for shamed dialogue coach

James Marsden and other celebrities wrote letters of support for shamed Brian Peck after he was accused of the child sexual abuse of Drake Bell in 2003.

In August 2003, Nickelodeon dialogue coach Peck – now 63 – was arrested and charged with nearly a dozen counts related to allegations that he had sexually abused an unnamed minor.

Peck subsequently pleaded no contest to performing a lewd act with a 14-or 15-year-old and to oral copulation with a minor under 16 – with Bell – now 37 – claiming he was the unnamed minor who was abused by Peck aged 15 when he appeared on The Amanda Show.

Now Investigation Discovery’s docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV has unsealed 41 letters of support sent to the judge in the case, revealing Marsden was one of the most prominent figures asking for probation – rather than jail time – for Peck.

Journalist Kate Taylor notes it is is ‘unclear how much Peck’s friends knew about the charges against Peck’ when they penned the letters.

Marsden wrote in the letter seen by USWeekly: ‘I can easily say that Brian is one of the reasons why I have been as successful as I have been in this industry. I was lucky enough to have been graced with Brian’s guidance, uncommissioned guidance I might add, and support in pursuing an acting career.

Saying Peck was his ‘mentor’ he added: ‘I don’t mean to dramatize this but I am speaking wholeheartedly about a man whose heart is pure and no matter what you’re talking about, his intentions are always good. He has such an amazing capacity to care about people. This, I find, is very rare. Especially in Hollywood. Brian genuinely cares about other human beings.’

He compared Peck’s suffering after his arrest to that of ‘a hundred men and wrote: ‘When I first heard the news of Brian’s arrest I couldn’t breathe. I could not believe what was happening. It was unimaginable.

‘I’ve known Brian for 14 years and never once did I ever see any sign of him being capable of something like this. I have lived at his house for months and shared hotel rooms with him and never once did he ever make me feel compromised or uncomfortable in any way. I don’t know what it would take to have something like this occur, whatever it is, it is extremely out of character for Brian.’

Marsden was also mentioned in  X-Men producer Thomas DeSanto‘s letter of support – Peck was Marsden’s best man at his wedding to Lisa Linde in 2000.

DailyMail.com has contacted Marsden’s representative for comment. 

Taran Killam, 41, also praised Peck in a letter writing: ‘Over the years, Brian has become one of my dearest friends. I know him quite well on both a professional and personal level. Brian has to be one of the most well liked people I have ever known. I think this has to do a great deal with his generosity, genuine concern for other’s well being, and especially his honesty.

‘When I found out about Brian being arrested I was shocked. Brian is the last person I would expect to be charged with criminal activities. My first thought was, ‘This is a mistake.’ I know many of our mutual friends had similar thoughts. I have seen the effects this situation has had on Brian and I know for a fact that he regrets any mistakes made and that this is certainly not something that would ever happen again.”

‘There has yet to be a set that I work on, where someone doesn’t know Brian, and also doesn’t think the world of him. He honestly is one of the most well liked, well-respected people in this business.’

Boy Meets World co-stars Rider Strong, 44, and Will Friedle, 47, who met Peck when he guest-starred on their show also wrote letters to the judge.

One read: ‘It was extremely disturbing to learn of Brian’s arrest. Maliciousness is so antithetical to his nature, it is impossible for me to comprehend a situation that would lead him to do something illegal or even inappropriate. I immediately called him and offered whatever support I could. Of course, Brian being Brian, he had already received numerous such calls.’

Strong revealed on his  Pod Meets World podcast last month that he didn’t know about the charges against Peck – who he says lied about the abuse.

He said: ‘He didn’t say that nothing had happened. So by the time we heard about this case and knew anything about it, it was always in the context of, ‘I did this thing, I am guilty. I am going to take whatever punishment the government determines, but I’m a victim of jailbait. 

‘There was this hot guy! I just did this thing and he’s underage.’ And we bought that story line,” Strong said. “I never heard about the other things because, back then, you couldn’t Google to find out what people were being charged with. So in retrospect, he was making a plea deal and admitting one thing — which is all he admitted to us — but it looks like he was being charged with a series of crimes, which we did not know.’

Friedle said he regretted attending Peck’s sentencing,  

Friedle, meanwhile, expressed regret at attending Peck’s ‘horrifying’ sentencing, saying: ‘We weren’t told the whole story, but it doesn’t change the fact that we did it. I still can’t get the words out to describe all of the things that I’m feeling inside of myself.’

Actor Alan Thicke, who died aged 69 in 2016 said Peck was ‘highly professional and nurturing’ towards young people on set of their show Growing Pains from 1985-1992.

He wrote: ‘Because he was never inappropriate in any way around children, including my own two young sons, I was shocked and saddened to learn of the trouble he was in.

‘Knowing him as I did, I also know beyond a doubt how remorseful he is and how dedicated and focused he will be on his rehabilitation. Brian’s integrity and self-respect have always been important to him and this turn of events has been mortifying to him in ways that will only make him a better, stronger citizen in the future.’

An excerpt of a letter penned by Thicke’s Growing Pains co-star Joanna Kerns, 71, and shown on the documentary read: ‘I can only believe there must have been some extreme situation or temptation exerted upon him to influence his actions.’

Kerns later issued a statement refuting the letter saying: ‘I have now learned that my letter of support was based on complete misinformation. Knowing what I know now, I never would have written the letter.’

Kimmy Roberston, 69, wrote: ‘I believe with all my heart that Brian was pressured and pushed beyond belief before he caved in.’

While directors Rich and Beth Correll who worked with Peck on The Suite Life of Zack and Cody two years after his conviction, also supported him via letter.

In the wake of Quiet on Set the couple released a statement saying ‘they had no input or involvement in the casting of Peck on the Disney show.’

Bell has said on the docuseries how several ‘recognizable’ faces packed into the courtroom on the day of Peck’s sentencing to show their support. 

He said: ‘I addressed my statement to everyone in the room. I looked at all of them and I just said, ‘How dare you. You will forever have the memory of sitting in this courtroom and defending this person. And I will forever have the memory of the person you are defending violating me and doing unspeakable acts and crimes. And that is what I will remember.’

DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for comment. 

In October 2004, Peck was sentenced to 16 months in prison and mandated to register as a sex offender. 

Peck served as a dialogue coach on Nickelodeon’s All That and The Amanda Show, the latter featuring Bell from 1999 to 2002. 

Subsequently, Bell took the lead in his own Nickelodeon series in 2004 with Drake & Josh.

A clip from Quiet on Set teases Bell coming forward to discuss Peck. 

A press release from Investigation Discovery reads: ‘The clip reveals that former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell will be sharing publicly, for the first time, the story of the abuse he suffered at the hands of Brian Peck, his former dialogue coach who was convicted in 2004 for his crimes against Drake and ordered to register as a sex offender.’

Bell has not provided details about the nature of the abuse he endured. 

However, it is anticipated that he may reveal more when Quiet on Set airs later this month

In 2015, DailyMail.com exposed that despite his conviction, Peck continued to work on a Disney show and a high school–themed horror film.

He faced restrictions only in direct contact with children, enabling him to be hired in alternative roles, even on projects prominently involving children and teenagers.

According to court documents obtained by DailyMail.com, Peck had visited the minor actor at his home for acting coaching during the incident. He was apprehended after the young actor’s parents reported the abuse to the police.

Peck eventually entered a no-contest plea to two counts from the initial 11 charges, as the rest were dismissed.

Throughout the 2000s and 2010s, he sustained minor acting roles and worked as a dialogue coach. His last credited acting appearance, according to IMDb, was in 2018.

It remains uncertain whether those hiring Peck were aware of his status as a convicted sex offender, though his IMDb page does acknowledge his criminal conviction. 

Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV is a four-part docuseries that exposes the toxic work environment prevalent in children’s shows during the 1990s and early 2000s. 

The focus is particularly on productions associated with Dan Schneider, the creator of cherished Nickelodeon series like iCarly and Zoey 101.

Child actors and crew members previously spoke to Business Insider about disturbing sexualized scenes that Schneider wrote for some of his series, and he alleged urged his young female stars to wear revealing clothing on camera.

The showrunner was also accused of repeatedly requesting massages at work, according to a 2000 gender-discrimination and hostile-workplace lawsuit from a writer on The Amanda Show. The suit was settled out of court. 

Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV airs on March 17 and 18 on Investigation Discovery.