Some of Ariana’s Nickelodeon scenes have been reexamined in recent years amid the release of the 2024 docuseries Quiet on Set, which explored the dark side of children’s TV.
“I think that the environment needs to be made safer if kids are going to be acting,” she said on the Podcrushed podcast last June. “I think there should be therapists. I think there should be parents allowed to be wherever they wanna be. Not only on kids’ sets — I think if anyone wants to do this or music or anything at the level of exposure that it means to be on TV or to do music with a major label or whatever, there should be in the contract something about ‘therapy is mandatory twice a week.'”
Ariana has continued to advocate for the importance of offering young stars therapy — most recently this week, during a wide-ranging chat with The Hollywood Reporter.
At one point during the conversation, Ariana was asked if she ever felt “unsafe” on Nickelodeon sets. The journalist noted that Ariana appeared “uncomfortable” with the question, and avoided answering it directly.
“I’ve sort of talked about the protective measures that I think need to be put in place,” Ariana replied, with the journalist noting that she was “sidestepping” the question.
Ariana later continued, “I have dreams of a world where you’re not allowed to enter the entertainment industry without having [therapy] written in your contract, whether it’s with the record label or the production company, that there will be therapy multiple times a week and a support system. Being on a show that changes your life or releasing a song that changes your life exposes you to many forces, both love and hate, and there is no manual.”
Given how open Ariana has been about “reprocessing” her time on Nickelodeon, several internet users have called THR out for asking her about her time on the network so abruptly.
One person branded the question “inappropriate,” writing on X, “It’s Ariana’s choice to tell her side of the story and she clearly isn’t ready, so people need to give her space about this. Honestly a pretty inappropriate question, seems they were just trying to get a story out of her.”
“People don’t owe you their trauma. Guys, celebrities are human. It’s disrespectful to ask her about a potentially (most likely) traumatic experience and expect her to give an answer. Wow,” another user wrote.
“the continuous pressure on her to disclose the details about all of this is very bizarre. you don’t see any of the other victorious costars being asked constantly,” someone said.
One more user added, “I feel like… nobody should ask her about it. Let her come out and speak about it on her own when she’s ready.”
You can read Ariana’s full interview with The Hollywood Reporter here.