Ariana Grande has called for a major change surrounding child stars. The 30-year-old pop star, who shot to fame as a teenager on children's TV channel Nickelodeon, playing Cat Valentine on Victorious and later starring in the spin-off show Sam And Cat alongside Jennette McCurdy, reflected on her time on the shows following recent allegations of emotional and physical abuse on Nickelodeon sets by former child actors in the documentary series Quiet On Set: The Dark Side Of Kids TV. While not directly referencing the series, Grande expressed empathy with the "devastating" allegations that have recently emerged.
Despite having a "beautiful" experience on the TV sets herself, she stressed the need for a safer environment for child actors. Speaking on an episode of the Podcrushed podcast, co-hosted by US actor Penn Badgley, Grande proposed that therapy sessions two or three times a week should be included in child stars' contracts to help them cope with their sudden exposure. "There should be an element that is mandatory of therapy, a professional person to unpack what this experience of your life-changing so drastically does to you at a young age, at any age," she said.
She also revealed that she has been "reprocessing" her own experiences on the Nickelodeon sets, which she said are still evolving. "A lot of people don't have the support that they need to get through performing at that level at such a young age," she added. Alongside the mandatory therapy, Grande said that parents.
