TV and Movies

Posted on May 26, 2021

17 Times Kids Shows Had Super Problematic Jokes And Scenes That Should Have Been Left On The Cutting Room Floor

I don't know how some of these Victorious and Jessie jokes were actually said on kids TV.

by Hannah Marder

BuzzFeed Staff

Recently, we asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us about moments from Nickelodeon and Disney Channel shows that were actually pretty problematic, looking back. Here are their responses!

Note: Some submissions include topics of eating disorders and anti-trans language.

1. On Victorious, when Beck made a joke about his aunt being transgender and purposefully misgendered her to make a joke:

Robbie remembers that cars are called "she," and Beck reminds him boats and airplanes are, too, and also his uncle "Barbara" with finger quotes

2. On Hannah Montana, when Jackson continuously sexualized Siena just because she was a bikini model:

Jackson says, "Dad, we're talking about Siena. A girl in fashion magazines. A girl who models b-b-b-b-bikinis!"

3. On Girl Meets World, when the gang acted like their friendship with Farkle would change if he had Asperger's, and Maya encouraged him to hide his symptoms:

Lucas reads that a symptom of Asperger's is going on about a subject others aren't interested in, and Riley says they're interested in everything he's interested in — Farkle starts talking about history and Maya tells him to stop

4. On Jessie, when Luke wouldn't stop flirting with Jessie and at one point revealed he'd set up a camera in her room:

Luke says he's checking the webcam in her bedroom, and his siblings look at him strangely

5. On Hannah Montana, when Oliver and Lilly pulled at a Black woman's hair because it was blocking Oliver's view and then ended up pulling her wig off:

Lilly and Oliver get their hands stuck in a Black woman's hair, then pull and the wig flies off and hits Hannah in the face

6. On iCarly, when a Confederate flag was just randomly hanging in a classroom:

Arrow pointing to Confederate flag hanging off the wall

7. On Sam & Cat, when people with dwarfism were used for comedic purposes and referred to as things rather than people:

Sam says Cat is supposed to be studying, have red hair, and not supposed to be handcuffed to "that" (referring to a man with dwarfism who is handcuffed to her)

8. On Jessie, when there was a suggestive joke about Mrs. Chesterfield squeezing Bertram's buttcheeks when he was sleeping:

Mrs. Chesterfield says, "I just want to squeeze his cheeks" and Jessie says, "Please tell me you mean his face"

9. Any time girls were sexualized on Dan Schneider's shows, but especially in the Victorious bonus scene when Cat tried to drink water upside down but it was super sexual:

Cat pouring water on herself upside down

10. Along with anything to do with their feet:

Nickelodeon

"Whole subplots of iCarly and Victorious were around showing footage of the actors’ feet — Carly getting her toe stuck in the tap while taking a bath, the tiny fish that eat skin cells and make your feet soft in Victorious."

—jbmasta

Editor's Note: Schneider produced a number of popular Nickelodeon shows in the '90s, 2000s, and 2010s, but he and Nickelodeon parted ways in 2018 after rumors of abuse complaints against Schneider, though the official story is that it was a natural time to end their partnership. Many fans have pointed out a sexualization of young girls in Schneider's shows, particularly having to do with feet.

11. On Jessie, when the kids made fun of Stuart for being gluten-free (the episode was later pulled):

Zuri throws bread at Stuart, who yells "Ah! Gluten!" as Ravi says Stuart makes him look macho

12. On Victorious (and in bonus features of Cat), when they constantly made a joke out of Cat and her brother's mental health:

Cat answers a tweet asking what's wrong with her, saying her parents took her to doctors but they don't know, and also says she has to go because her brother is going back to the "clinic" for a while

13. On iCarly, when the episode "iGo to Japan" was filled with racist stereotypes and vilification of Japanese characters:

Freddie's mom says the kids have been kidnapped by evil Japanese web comedians, and later Sam says she finds Japenese people arguing funny

14. On Jessie, when Ravi's whole character was a stereotype, and his Indian heritage was continuously played for laughs:

Ravi says, "Stupid video game! It's like eating hot curry! I love it, but I always get burned in the end!" and also, "This is much more fun than playing Duck Duck Mongoose"

15. Everything about Carly, Sam, and Freddie's friend group in iCarly:

Sam suggests doing a sketch where they hit a pinata, and Carly guesses that Freddie will play the pinata — he asks why all her ideas involve hitting him

16. On Victorious, when a Breakfast Club–themed episode suggested that Robbie should be embarrassed about being a virgin:

Jade accuses Robbie of being a vegan, and Robbie says he didn't want Tori to know

17. And finally, on So Random, when a sketch made light of eating disorders by having a character brag about how little he ate (the sketch was later pulled):

In the sketch, Angus is introduced as someone who only eats one full meal a week because his agent wants him to look his best, telling him that he won't get jobs if he eats carbs

Note: Submissions have been edited for length/clarity.