Nickelodeon kicks the hornets' nest, launches Zoey 102 movie with Jamie Lynn Spears
Zoey 102is the second Paramount Plus revival project based on the works of Dan Schneider, after the recent iCarlyreboot
Wading into a whole mess of controversies, apparently with blithe indifference, Nickelodeon announced today that it was launching a sequel movie to Dan Schneider-produced kids series Zoey 101, calling it, unsurprisingly, Zoey 102.
This’ll take a second to unpack, so bear with us: Although he most likely won’t be involved in the film itself, Schneider has become an increasingly dicey topic for Nickelodeon in recent years in general; the former Head Of The Class star was a major moneymaker for the network from the ’90s through the 2010s, creating some of their most lucrative kid-based sitcoms. But he’s also been the subject of a lot of half-whispered comments about inappropriate behavior—most recently in iCarly star Jennette McCurdy’s recent book I’m Glad My Mom Died, where McCurdy tells multiple stories about a man referred to only as “The Creator,” who emotionally manipulated teen actors and was sometimes physically inappropriate with them.
In terms of Zoey 101, meanwhile, former co-star Alexa Nikolas—who’s had a long and fractious relationship with series star Jamie Lynn Spears, as well—recently said that she “did not feel safe” around Schneider. Nikolas is not, unsurprisingly, expected to participate in the new movie—although Spears is, starring front and center in Zoey 102. (Meanwhile, she has, of course, also had a whole other set of controversies over the last few years, centered on her often-fractious relationship with her sister Britney.)
So, yeah: That’s a lot of caveats to drop in front of what would otherwise be a pretty fluff-focused movie aimed at getting some nostalgia views over on Paramount+. The film itself will focus on most of the original cast of the series (including Spears), as they come together for a wedding and to reminisce about their younger days. Other listed cast members on the movie include Erin Sanders, Sean Flynn, Matthew Underwood, Christopher Massey, Abby Wilde, and Jack Salvatore; no word yet who’ll be taking up duties on the creative side of the project.