- Angelique Bates starred on the first two seasons of the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series "All That."
- Since then, she's spoken about her negative experience as a child actor.
Various former Nickelodeon stars have weighed in after the release of Investigation Discovery's docuseries "Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV," but original "All That" cast member Angelique Bates has been vocal about her experience for years.
Bates, the first Black female cast member of "All That," was a series regular during the first two seasons of the sketch comedy show.
Nowadays, Bates continues to act on a less prominent level and regularly performs stand-up comedy. Even though it's been years since she worked at Nickelodeon, she still speaks out about her experience at the network.
Here's everything to know about Bates and what she's been up to recently.
Bates was one of the first people to speak out about Nickelodeon's toxic work environment
In a video for The Shade Room in 2016, Bates said she was 12 years old when her "nightmare" started.
"I was physically, mentally, emotionally abused in front of producers and cast members and sometimes they could even hear me yelling," she said. "But nothing was done to help me until approximately 1996 when [Child Protection Services] was called."
"And when CPS came, I was pressured by all the adults that were sent to protect me to stay silent," she continued. "I did, and I have. But I can no longer stay silent, and I won't. My name is Angelique Bates and I am an adult survivor of child abuse and this is my story."
Then in a 2017 video for Inner Warrior Bates said that the abuse she experienced affected her experience as a child actor.
"When I was pretty much released from my contract, I was 15 … I want to say probably downhill from that point," she said, calling the entertainment industry "very judgmental."
"I went through phases where I was told I wasn't light enough or I wasn't skinny enough," Bates said in the video, explaining that she tried diets, bleaching her skin, and other things hoping she'd land jobs.
Bates said that she "shut down even more" after she was raped and also ended up in a domestic violence situation. Bates said that she was overwhelmed and intended to swallow a bottle of pills, but her best friend saved her.
Bates, now a mother of two, said their unconditional love for her is "all that matters."
"That's what I live for, is to make sure that they're OK and they don't have to go through any of the things that I had to," she said.
Bates has spoken openly about her experience while working on the set of 'All That'
In a 2022 interview with 80's90'sand00'sVibes, Bates spoke about the behind-the-scenes politics that affected her experience as a cast member on "All That."
Bates said she was supposed to have more roles in season one, but many were cut because "they didn't want those characters to overshadow others." Similarly, she said she was told to adjust her performance to avoid overshadowing her scene partners.
Bates also said that she later found out through someone at the network that she was one of the cast members who received the most fan mail, but she didn't receive it because it was withheld from her.
In a Business Insider investigation published by Kate Taylor in summer 2022, Bates said that writer and producer Dan Schneider screamed at her after a sketch didn't go as planned, resulting in her running away and crying. Bates' mom corroborated the incident to BI. A person close to Schneider told BI that he "never screamed at anyone," but maybe Bates "got upset" by Dan's notes.
Bates said that she was asked to appear in 'Quiet on Set,' but she declined multiple times
"Quiet on Set" included interviews with former Nickelodeon actors and crew members from multiple shows, including "All That," "The Amanda Show," and "Zoey 101."
Considering how vocal Bates previously was about her experience at the network, people were surprised that she didn't participate in "Quiet on Set." However, "All That" actor Giovonnie Samuels referenced Bates when criticizing Schneider's silence over the years.
In an Instagram post shared days after the premiere of "Quiet on Set," Bates explained why she was a no-show.
"I was asked in the very beginning and I declined multiple times," Bates said.
She also said that she was "the first one" who spoke out and didn't get a positive reaction.
"I was ridiculed and shunned by a lot of my peers, industry, and the internet," she said.
Bates continues speaking out about her experience in Hollywood
Even though Bates didn't appear in "Quiet on Set," she's participated in some recent interviews.
In an interview with The Blast published in late March, Bates detailed an incident in which a cast member with whom she "was already having issues" went off-script during rehearsals and spit milk in her face. Bates said that she retaliated by throwing her milk at her costar, and in response, Schneider screamed at her.
"He proceeded to yell at me and yell all kinds of obscenities that was heard all over the Nickelodeon studio and building because the microphones were still on," she said.
Bates said that the guest director checked on her and Schneider apologized to her. She shared the same story during a separate interview with Rolling Stone.
In her interview with The Blast, Bates said that production retaliated against her more than once. She said one of the reasons she was punished was because her mom turned down sexual advances from a producer.
Bates also clarified that her mom didn't verbally and emotionally abuse her during her time on "All That."
"It was Nickelodeon that verbally and emotionally abused me," she said.
Business Insider reached out to Nickelodeon but did not receive an immediate response.