Not long after former game show host Marc Summers publicly slammed the Quiet on Set filmmakers for allegedly ambushing him during his interview, directors Mary Robertson and Emma Schwartz have officially addressed his claims.
“We are clear with each participant about the nature of our projects,” the filmmakers said in a statement to IndieWire.
Summers recently came forward about his experience being interviewed for the documentary series, claiming that he did not know it would address allegations about the toxic work environment behind the scenes.
“They ambushed me. They never told me what this documentary was really about,” he said during an interview that aired this morning on Elvis Duran and the Morning Show. “And so they showed me a video of something that I couldn’t believe was on Nickelodeon. And I said, ‘Well, let’s stop the tape right here. What are we doing?’”
Summers, who hosted the ’80s game show Double Dare, can be seen in Quiet on Set talking about the “wonderful” time he had working with the network. But, he claims, this portion of the interview happened before the filmmakers “did a bait and switch.”
“I left. So I got a phone call about six weeks ago saying you’re totally out of the show. And I went, ‘Great.’ Then they called me about four weeks ago and said, ‘Well, you’re in it, but you’re only in the first part of it because you talked about the positive stuff of Nickelodeon,’” Summers said.
He continued, “What they didn’t tell me — and they lied to me about — was the fact that they put in that other thing where they had the camera on me when they ambushed me. And so, now we get into a whole situation about who’s unethical.”
He appeared concerned that his interview made it seem like he knew Dan Schneider, who stands accused of harassing others at Nickelodeon, or the former Nick employees who were outed as registered sex offenders.
“Those people came in after and took over our studios. I never met the man, I have no idea about any of those things,” he said. “I mean, I know Kenan [Thompson] from Kenan and Kel, because we’ve done stuff together. But as far as anything that happened on that show with any of those people, I never met any of them. I didn’t know anybody.”
Summers’ time at Nickelodeon ended in 1993 though he later returned as an announcer when Double Dare was rebooted in 2018.
Amidst his outrage over the interview, Summers claimed he was expecting to speak to the people involved in a phone call later today.
A bonus episode of Quiet on Set is scheduled to premiere this Sunday (April 7) on ID and will stream on Max at 8/7c.
If you or someone you know needs to reach out about sexual abuse or assault, RAINN is available 24/7 at 800-656-HOPE (4673), or online at RAINN.org.
