NickelodeonThe Sam & Cat drama continues.
Amid reports that Ariana Grande and Jenette McCurdy are ready to leave the Nickelodeon hit, the former star has broken her silence about one of the alleged reasons she wants to quit the TV show.
Grande, 20, issued a lengthy statement via Twitter Thursday. "I hate addressing rumors and I hate gossip but this is really bothering me. Jennette and I agreed upfront that we would be treated equally on this show in all regards (as we should be, considering we each work just as hard as the other on this show)," said the actress, who is also a successful recording artist. "The rumors circulating about our contracts and our salary not being equal are absolutely ridiculous and false. I don't know who's putting these idiotic quotes out there but I thought I'd straighten it out and try to end this nonsense."
When reports of "discord" on set surfaced, the network told E! News, "We are wrapping up what was an unusually long production cycle of Sam & Cat, and everyone is understandably tired. We are going into our production hiatus next week which will give everyone on the show a much needed rest."
Nickelodeon has not commented further on the alleged behind-the-scenes drama, and Grande doesn't know much about it, either. "As far as the show goes, I don't know what's happening because I'm not directly involved with the problem but I just wanted to address this one rumor in particular because I am NOT making more money than my co-star, nor do I think I should be," she told her 14.3 million Twitter followers. "So we can all move on and get out of our heads that this was a money thing cause I don't play like that at all. I am, have always been and always will be about equality and fairness."
In a separate tweet, "The Way" singer told her fans, "Love you and don't want you being in the dark about work related things like this.. thank you for caring and supporting through and through."
McCurdy, 21, has not publicly responded to Grande's Twitter statement.