The 30-year-old actress delivers bombshell allegations in her new memoir, 'I'm Glad My Mom Died.'
Jennette McCurdy is reckoning with her child-star past in a new memoir, processing a complicated mother-daughter relationship and chronicling the pitfalls of being a young working actress. Her book, titled I'm Glad My Mom Died, will be released on Aug. 9.
"My whole childhood and adolescence were very exploited," she tearfully tells The New York Times in a new interview. "It still gives my nervous system a reaction to say it. There were cases where people had the best intentions and maybe didn't know what they were doing. And also cases where they did -- they knew exactly what they were doing."
According to NYT, McCurdy writes in her book about allegedly suffering various indignities during her time on the Nickelodeon series, iCarly, and its spinoff, Sam & Cat. Among them, the 30-year-old actress claims to have been encouraged to drink alcohol by an "intimidating figure." She also writes of being photographed in a bikini during a wardrobe fitting. McCurdy alleges that when her mother, Debra McCurdy -- who died of cancer in 2013 -- was present, she did not intervene on her daughter's behalf. "Everyone wants what you have," the now-retired star recalls her mother telling her.
ET has reached out to Nickelodeon for comment.
iCarly star Miranda Cosgrove spoke about her own relationship with McCurdy during their time working together. While the two became close on set, Cosgrove said she was unaware of what McCurdy now says she was going through.
"When you're young, you're so in your own head," Cosgrove tells NYT. "You can't imagine that people around you are having much harder struggles."
Adding, softly, "You don't expect things like that from the person in the room who's making everyone laugh."
iCarly ran from 2007 to 2012 on Nickelodeon, and followed a group of best friends as they created a webcast for and about kids their age while grappling with everyday problems and adventures. It was since picked up for a revival by Paramount+ in 2021, with the new version recently renewed for a third season. McCurdy has not participated in the reboot.
The NYT reports that a press representative for Nickelodeon declined to comment on McCurdy's allegations.
ET, Nickelodeon and Paramount+ are both subsidiaries of Paramount.
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