Nickelodeon

Amanda Bynes just took a huge step on the path to personal freedom ... because she officially filed to pull the plug on her conservatorship. And, it doesn't seem coincidental she's doing it on the heels of Britney Spears ending hers.

The former child star filed docs in L.A. Wednesday to end her 9-year conservatorship.

Amanda was placed under the conservatorship back in 2013 following a string of bizarre episodes ... including when she soaked her dog in gasoline while setting a neighbor's driveway on fire, which shed light on some of her struggles with mental health. She was committed temporarily to a psychiatric facility and once released, was cared for by her parents.

Amanda's move to end the conservatorship is interesting ... as we reported back in September, a judge signed off to keep it in place until March 2023.

She's mostly been staying out of the spotlight, pursuing other interests besides acting, dabbling in rap music and pursuing a design career while getting engaged. She also got a degree from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, which certainly shows an ability to function.

There's definitely a movement to end conservatorships with young people where it runs indefinitely, so the judge's reaction will be both interesting and important.

Chris Massey is ready and willing to help smooth things over between Jamie Lynn Spears and Alexa Nikolas ... but he wants some help from the rest of the "Zoey 101" cast.

We got Chris at the Dream Hotel in Hollywood and asked if he wants to step in and help Jamie Lynn and Alexa squash their beef.

Chris says he's definitely down to arrange a meeting between his former Nickelodeon peers ... and wants all of the OG "Zoey 101" cast there so everyone can get on the same page.

As you know ... Jamie Lynn and Alexa are beefing over Jamie Lynn's new book, "Things I Should Have Said," where she claims she had a falling out with Alexa back in the day after Alexa became jealous of her friendship with Kristin Herrera and started spreading rumors about her on set.

Jamie Lynn claims big sister Britney Spears even came to the set one day and exchanged harsh words with Alexa.

But, Alexa's calling BS on Jamie Lynn's narrative ... claiming JLS is "lying up a storm" in her memoir and calling her the real bully.

Chris says neither side should be hurling nasty accusations in these times ... and thinks a reunion with the "Zoey 101" stars will do everyone some good and mend fences.

Jamie Lynn Spears took a hard pass on doing a nationwide tour to promote her new book ... because she's not in it for the money ... so say sources connected to her.

Our sources say Britney's little sis was approached about doing a book tour but she was adamant it wasn't for her.

It's a departure from how most celebs do business ... they usually trek across the country promoting their books, encouraging folks to buy and doing meet-and-greets at book stores.

The sources say Jamie Lynn didn't write her book, "Things I Should Have Said," to make a killing. Instead, they say she wrote it to address her past, heal from it and move on.

We're told, "a portion" of the proceeds will go to a number of charities. They won't say which charities because Jamie Lynn tried to donate profits from the book to a charity last October, but the charity rejected her gesture because of all the backlash. So, our sources say Jamie Lynn doesn't want to name the charities this time around, to avoid a similar outcome.

That said, she'll still pocket some of the proceeds, but the sources insist that's not the motivating factor.

As you know, some excerpts are already being ripped by Britney ... with Jamie Lynn's older sister repeatedly lashing out on social media.

Britney's upset both by Jamie Lynn's interview on "Nightline" and a passage in the book where JLS claims Britney once locked them both in a room with a knife.

We're told Jamie Lynn is not shocked by Britney's reaction, because she knows her sister better than anyone and was prepared for such reactions from Britney and others.

Our sources say Jamie Lynn feels it's her story to tell ... and it's important to address what she lived through so she can move forward.

Get ready for a blast from the past ... Kirk Fogg says he's coming back as one of the faces of the rebooted '90s kids game show, "Legends of the Hidden Temple."

We got the former Nickelodeon host outside Starbucks in Studio City and he dished on what's to come in the rebooted CW version of 'Hidden Temple.'

Kirk doesn't want to let the cat out of the bag but he just can't hold his tongue ... telling us he's returning as a co-host Sunday alongside new host Cristela Alonzo ... and it doesn't sound like it's a one-episode deal.

Remember ... we also got Kirk back in May and he liked one of our photog's pitches on potential contestants.

Well, as it turns out ... Kirk says he was able to make the vision a reality ... and some contestants from the OG show, which he hosted for 3 seasons in the '90s, are getting a redo!!!

JoJo Siwa says her relationship with Nickelodeon isn't fractured beyond repair amid a dispute over her upcoming tour ... but she says it's gonna take a lot for them to mend fences.

We got JoJo outside the Loews Hotel in NYC and asked her about Tuesday's beef with Nickelodeon. She says the network's blocking her from performing songs from her recently released musical when she embarks on a 37-city tour in January.

JoJo told us her problem is Nickelodeon treating her like she's just a brand ... and forgetting she's a person too.

You can tell from her tone ... JoJo's ticked off the relationship's gone south. She says she's frustrated folks with less tenure than her at Nickelodeon are trying to call the shots on what she can and can't sing.

While JoJo says her home network's not supporting her ... she's turning to other child stars like Bella Thorne, Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato for sage advice.

Sounds like JoJo's hopeful they can still come to an agreement before her tour, but she also leaves open the possibility of going against the grain.

Britney Spears publicly beefing with her little sister, Jamie Lynn, is having no impact on the "Zoey 101" reboot moving forward ... so says Chris Massey.

We got the former Nickelodeon star -- and Jamie Lynn's costar -- Tuesday in L.A., where he told us he's heard the exact opposite of what his fellow 'Zoey' alum, Paul Butcher, said online the other day ... about the #FreeBritney drama potentially derailing the show's revival.

Check it out, Chris tells us he's been in touch with Jamie Lynn fairly recently, and that as far as he knows -- the plan is still to bring back the show ... even though he admits they have been somewhat delayed.

However, he also acknowledges JLS is going through some family drama -- namely Brit crushing her little sis on social media over the conservatorship and an old award show beef.

Chris says he's not sure why Paul made it seem like the reboot was off ... and even has a message for his old pal. He wants to have a little chat to clear the air, and any rumors he might've inadvertently caused with his TikTok post.

BTW, Chris gives us a bit of insight into what he remembers about Britney and Jamie Lynn's relationship ... albeit from many years past. Although Britney's making it seem like it's no love lost between them, he remembers a time it was clearly much different.

'Ned’s Declassified' star Lindsey Shaw got sound advice from her "one Black friend" about how to handle her TikTok backlash for seemingly mocking Black creators -- but she went rogue, and now has a bigger mess to clean up.

Daniel Curtis Lee, who played Cookie, Lindsey's on-screen BFF on the Nickelodeon sitcom, tells TMZ ... Lindsey hit him up shortly after her inbox was flooded with hateful comments about her since-deleted video reaction to a TikTok dance trend.

He says he specifically advised her that if she was going to respond to racism accusations, it would be best if she dealt with it in a lighthearted way. Instead, Daniel says Lindsey chose the "crying route," which he says only triggered a feeding frenzy.

As we reported, Lindsey said the backlash was so intense it drove her to quit social media altogether. She posted a tear-filled vid, saying the hate was too much to handle.

Lindsey also said that the intent of her initial video was to point out generational differences between millennials and Gen Zers ... nothing racial.

Daniel says, simply put, his friend of 20 years gave a non-tasteful take, but he does NOT see the 9 words she uttered as racist.

That being said ... Daniel says her reaction video clearly offended people ... and he offers advice (AGAIN!!!) on how she can best handle this going forward.

"Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide" star Lindsey Shaw is getting dragged for seemingly mocking Black creators on TikTok ... so she's tearfully quitting social media altogether.

Lindsey was in full breakdown mode -- tears streaming down her face -- as she said the flood of hateful comments in her inbox, reacting to a recent TikTok, was too much to handle.

The outrage is over her clip, where she questions -- if not outright mocks -- a new dance trend on the app, and she says a lot of folks are taking issue with the fact she's making fun of Black dancers.

In her TikTok, Lindsey asks ... "Hey, are we okay, what the f*** is this?!?" ... then mimicks the dance.

Lindsey says her critique wasn't about race ... it was simply her playing into the Millennial versus Gen Z trends. Still, she apologizes for offending people, and says she wasn't intending to belittle anyone.

Drake Bell won't be doing any time behind bars in his child endangerment case -- a judge just announced his fate, and the actor ended up getting probation instead.

The former Nickelodeon star was sentenced Monday in an Ohio court ... receiving 2 years of probation -- to be supervised in California, where he lives -- plus 200 hours of community service. If he doesn't keep his nose clean, he could face up to one year in prison on the felony charge of attempted endangering children -- to which he's pled guilty.

DB took the punishment in stride, saying he accepted it ... while also apologizing, explaining that it wasn't his intention to do harm, but that he's sorry to the girl and anyone else he hurt over this matter.

The woman, however, said he'd done irreparable harm -- issuing a victim impact statement via Zoom, and detailing what exactly this is all about. She claims they began exchanging messages online in 2017 (when she was 15), which she says eventually turned sexual in nature and included photos. She says this all happened over IG and Snap.

She went on to allege that she attended a concert of his back then, and that afterward ... he took her backstage to be alone -- where she claims she performed oral sex on him. Drake was seen shaking his head a few times during her remarks.

You'll recall, Drake was officially charged over this just earlier this year -- even though she filed a police report back in 2018. Up until now, it wasn't quite clear what sort of messages Drake was alleged to have sent to the minor -- but she shed a bit more light on it in her appearance.

Dan Schneider -- the ex-king of Nickelodeon programming -- has addressed a long-held theory that he's into feet, and channeled that on his shows ... something he says isn't true.

The one-time TV producer -- responsible for creating a number of hit series on Nick over the years, including "iCarly," "Drake & Josh," "The Amanda Show," "Zoey 101" and countless others -- did an interview with NYT ... which straight-up asked him about the foot fetish rumor.

Several people have compiled still shots from different shows of his, and they seem to find a common theme among his child actors ... they seemed to be in a lot of bare feet scenes.

Dan responded with this ... "The comedy was totally innocent," going on to say the foot fetish claims were "ridiculous" and chalked it up to kids finding feet funny/goofy ... insisting he never attempted to sexualize his stars.

Some of his on and off-camera behavior with said stars have been called into question -- suggesting Dan was, at the bare minimum, creepy and unaware of boundaries.

It's all much ado about nothing, though ... according to Dan, who also clarified his reasons for parting ways with Nick in 2018, after a historic 30-year run with the network -- saying he was simply attending to other personal matters in his life that he'd let "go by the wayside."

However, NYT reports an in-house investigation into Dan's workplace practices got underway around that time ... this after claims of verbal abuse from his ex-staffers. Apparently, the review found merit to some of those claims ... which made him seem high-strung and difficult.

What the HR didn't find any credence in ... allegations of sexual misconduct, something else that had been speculated about Schneider, especially amid the height of #MeToo and his coincidental departure around the same time, when allegations were flying like crazy.

JoJo Siwa seemingly spared no expense to throw a massive party to celebrate Pride Month ... and inside the event was everything you'd expect from the newly-minted gay icon.

JoJo's rainbow-themed bash had a little bit of everything -- as documented by fellow influencer Tana Mongeau -- a fully loaded kitchen and bar, a rainbow-dyed dog walking around, a hand-bedazzled rainbow piano ... and a JoJo Barbie wall.

Siwa -- who was clearly having a great time with her girlfriend, Kylie Prew -- also revealed she sprung for a bouncy house, because ... why the hell not?

Pretty extravagant stuff all around from the recently-turned-18, mega-rich YouTube and Nickelodeon star, who as you know ... came out as gay earlier this year.

"Blue's Clues & You" just put out a sing-along for kids that features an animated version of a "RuPaul's Drag Race" star ... who leads a song about Pride Month and inclusivity.

Nickelodeon posted the video Friday -- just days ahead of June 1, which marks the beginning of Pride -- and it features a cartoon rendering of Nina West, who's a fan fave from 'Drag Race,' leading on vocals -- narrating a parade that's passing her in the background.

The song touches on the makeup of different families that fall under the LGBTQ+ umbrella ... including households with two dads, two moms, non-binary children and more.

Words like "ace," "queer," "trans," "bi, "pan" and other identifying terms used in the community are sprinkled throughout -- and the song doesn't shy away from them ... noting that they can all be part of a family that loves one another. All the families are made up of different animals -- alligators, sharks, turtles, birds, cats, etc. -- that wave/rock rainbow flags.

Now, the overwhelming reaction to this appears to be positive ... with many taking to social media to praise 'Blue's Clues' for being progressive -- and taking proactive steps to teach kids about different family structures in a fun, catchy way that appeals to young children.

On the other hand, there are some who are clutching their pearls over this ... but they're mostly being drowned out by folks saying this is a great thing that Nick/Nick Jr.'s doing.

Miranda Cosgrove now has a Black BFF in the "iCarly" reboot -- which is unfortunately receiving hateful and racist backlash that she and the rest of the cast are stamping out.

Actress Laci Mosley is cast as Harper in the revived series -- which now follows Carly in her 20s -- who plays the main character's new best pal/roommate ... seemingly replacing Carly's old friend from the OG show, Sam Puckett. At least that's what trolls thought, anyway.

Apparently, folks were harassing Laci for her appearance in the show -- amid the absence of actress Jennette McCurdy, who played Sam -- and some were even calling her the n-word and other racist epithets ... so claims Laci, who called out the online hate.

She clarified she wasn't "replacing" anybody, and if people continued trolling her in her DMs, they'd be blocked. Her cries were echoed by Paramount -- the parent company of Nickelodeon -- and even Miranda herself.

The company issued a statement saying they were proud of the racially diverse cast for the new "iCarly" show -- and that any forms of racism being directed at their actors of color were not acceptable. MC reposted that same message to her IG Story.

One interesting twist here ... many Black fans of the show have also chimed in on Laci's casting, and some seem to think it's a case of PC overcorrecting and/or pandering on the part of Paramount.

One user wrote, "did they seriously just do the whole Black bestfriend trope with ICarly??? Man f*** all of that." There are lots of other tweets from other Black people that have similar sentiments.

Terry Crews' son, Isaiah doesn't need a side hustle ... because he's getting paid a small fortune for his role in "Side Hustle."

The 15-year-old actor is off to a strong start in the family business after landing a recurring role on the Nickelodeon series, "Side Hustle." According to his minors contract, obtained by TMZ, Isaiah is banking $15k per episode in the first season alone.

Looks like season one has 10 episodes ... which should net him a cool $150k. And, get this ... he'll see significant increases per episode if the show's a hit and gets picked up for new seasons ... he could earn nearly $20k an episode by season 6.

This isn't Isaiah's first role in Hollywood. He appeared as himself in his pops' short-lived reality show "The Family Crews" a little over 10 years ago. He's probably used to the cameras ... what with his father being a huge Hollywood star and all.

California based actress and musician Daniella Monet (real name Daniella Monet Zuvic) gained mediocre fame in the early 2000s after she landed small roles on shows like "Zoey 101," "iCarly" and "Listen Up" ... but Monet's stardom really began to shine after her breakout role as the entertainment-driven big sister Trina Vega on the 2010 Nickelodeon show "Victorious."

Daniella Monet wasn't the only starry-eyed artist attending Hollywood Arts ... she was cast alongside some other epic up-and-coming actors including Ariana Grande as the kooky sidekick, Cat Valentine ... and of course Victoria Justice as Trina's younger sister and Hollywood hopeful, Tori Vega.

SpongeBob SquarePants' sexuality has entered the chat -- and lo and behold, the Bikini Bottom dweller might be, as many suspected for years, gay.

Nickelodeon tweeted Saturday in support of Pride month, and attached photos of three of their canon characters as a clear indicator that they're all part of the LGBTQ+ community ... but without actually saying it outright.

The tweet heard round the Krusty Krab said, "Celebrating #Pride with the LGBTQ+ community and their allies this month and every month 🌈.⁣"

All of the characters -- Sponge, Schwoz Schwartz from 'Henry Danger,' and Korra from the 'Avatar' spin-off show 'Legend of Korra' -- are featured in a rainbow color background.

What's interesting is ... fans have known for a while Korra was gay/bisexual -- as it was revealed in the show itself. As for Schwoz, the actor who plays him -- Michael D. Cohen -- is a transgender man in real life.

So, that leaves the Krusty Krab's fry cook. If the other 2 are clearly members of the community, it makes some people think the tweet is about more than declaring SpongeBob an ally ... instead, they think it's his coming out.

Of course, we gotta say folks had their suspicions for a long time. If you know, you know ... we won't break it down for boomers.