Where Does Drake Bell And Josh Peck's Relationship Stand Today?
This article contains mention of sexual assault.
For a while, Josh Peck and Drake Bell were former celebrity besties who don't speak anymore. However, the former on-screen stepbrothers didn't let their differences stop them from supporting each other when it mattered the most. In the 2024 documentary "Quiet On Set," Bell accused "The Amanda Show" dialogue coach Brian Peck (who bears no relation to Josh) of sexually abusing him when he was 15. The comedy show was Bell's first with Nickelodeon and featured his future "Drake & Josh" co-star.
When the documentary aired, people flooded Josh's social media comments to ask him to stand up for his co-star and called him out for his silence. However, Bell soon cleared the air via a TikTok video. "I just want you guys to know that [Josh] has reached out to me, and it's been very sensitive," Bell explained. "But he has reached out to talk with me and help me work through this and has been really, really great. So, just wanted to let you guys know that and to take it a little easy on him."
The "Oppenheimer" actor released a statement to Instagram supporting Bell and all the other child actors who came forward with their allegations through "Quiet On Set." Although reaching out to a co-star after they've been through so much emotional turmoil seems obvious and right, fans were unsure if Josh would do so because he's changed a lot since "Drake & Josh" days and wasn't on best of terms with Bell.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
They had a rollercoaster relationship while working together
When Drake Bell spoke on the "The Speech Bubble W/ Butch Hartman" podcast in 2018, he shared that he wasn't too pleased when Josh Peck joined the cast of "The Amanda Show" because they didn't like each other from the get-go. He noted that their relationship improved after they bonded over their love for old-school comedy. However, even that rare connection wasn't enough to form a deep friendship. Speaking to Seventeen in 2018, Bell revealed that while filming "Drake & Josh," they often went through long periods without uttering a word to each other outside of their lines on the show.
"So there's moments where we're absolutely inseparable and we think every single thing that comes out of each other's mouths is absolute genius, and Josh is the most brilliant person I've ever met," he explained. "Then there are times I just wanna throw him through a wall. It's just like my little brother." While speaking on Dave Portnoy's "BFFs" podcast in 2022, Peck shared a similar sentiment when he explained that he couldn't form a close friendship with his co-star because their personalities were worlds apart.
The "Mean Creek" actor admitted that they drifted apart further after their iconic show wrapped. So naturally, when Peck tied the knot with Paige O'Brien in 2017, he didn't think to invite his on-screen stepbrother. The move greatly angered Bell, who took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to make a quip about loyalty and write, "When you're not invited to the wedding the message is clear," per E!
Josh Peck defended his decision to snub Drake Bell at his wedding
During Josh Peck's "BFFs" podcast talk, he explained that he didn't consider Drake Bell a friend anymore because they hadn't spoken in ages. He further compared their relationship to two teenagers who worked alongside each other at a cafe ages ago. Peck explained that he couldn't believe Bell believed that a distant connection like that would warrant an invitation to his wedding and called him out for putting him on blast on social media.
He also revealed that he confronted Bell at the VMAs and made him apologize to his wife, Paige O'Brien, for all the hate she received because of his tweets. In a 2022 episode of his "Drake & Janet" podcast, Bell denied Peck's claims that he hadn't spoken to each other since "Drake & Josh" ended and revealed that he had sent him a congratulatory text on his engagement. His then-wife, Janet Von Schmeling, recalled that she and Bell had been on a double date with O'Brien and Peck and had seen him multiple times.
Ultimately, she felt hurt that he had written them off as total strangers. In Bell's 2018 Seventeen Magazine chat, he shared that he had cleared the air with Peck and recalled how the conversation went, "I was like, 'Dude I'm just a little bummed,' and he was like, 'Honestly, first of all, I didn't think you'd wanna come, secondly, it was such a nightmare putting it all together, and scheduling and invitations, and then I just let my wife handle it all.'"