Topics: Ariana Grande, Celebrity, Film and TV, Nickelodeon
Ariana Grande has spoken out after TV network Nickelodeon was accused of sexualizing her as a child.
Grande appeared on Nickelodeon as Cat Valentine in Victorious and Sam & Cat, but after a clip of her in one of the show's resurfaced many people were left very uncomfortable.
It included several videos of Grande, who was aged 16 at the time, speaking directly to the camera.
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One segment saw Grande saying a 'sentence no-one has said before', with the first one being getting your uvula stuck between a hamster's toes.
The uvula is the thing at the back of your throat, which Grande illustrated by putting her finger in the back of her throat.
Other clips include her trying to squeeze juice out of a potato, putting her toes in her mouth, and lying on her back and pouring water on her chest.
Many viewers were left outraged by the clips, claiming that the things Grande was doing sexualized her.
One wrote: "This always makes me nauseous, imagine 'directing' a teenager to do that stuff as a grown man."
Another posted: "This is absolutely disgusting. As an adult watching this right now you can tell EXACTLY what they were doing."
Now Grande has spoken about her experiences on the show in an interview on the Podcrushed podcast.
Recalling her time as a child actor, she said: "We were young performers who just wanted to do this with our lives more than anything, and we got to and that was so beautiful.
"I think we had some very special memories, and we feel so privileged to have been able to create those roles and be a part of something that was so special for a lot of young kids."
Reflecting on her own role after the clips resurfaced online, Grande said: "I don’t know, I think it just all happened so quickly and now looking back on some of the clips I’m like, ‘Damn, really? Oh s**t’… and the things that weren’t approved for the network were snuck on to like our website or whatever… I guess I’m upset, yeah.”
Grande went on to say that children who are employed on movie sets should have contracted access to therapists, as well as their parents being allowed to be with them at all times.
She said: “I think the environment needs to be made safer if kids are going to be acting, and I think there should be therapists.
"I think parents should allowed to be wherever they want to be, and I think not only on kids’ sets."
UNILAD has contacted Nickelodeon for comment.
