When Nickelodeon's iCarly premiered in 2007, it was an instant hit. The
television show followed Miranda Cosgrove's Carly Shay and Jennette McCurdy's Sam Puckett
as they created a fictional web series. The web series itself was produced by the pals'
tech wiz and perpetually grumpy best friend, Freddie Benson, played by a
young Nathan Kress. The show had six seasons, a spin-off named Sam & Cat, a made-for-TV film,
and a crossover film that included the cast of one of Nickelodeon's other hit shows, Victorious.
The momentum behind the tween show should have catapulted all the stars to fame. And
though Miranda Cosgrove has been in a variety of acting projects since then, Nathan Kress all but
disappeared from the spotlight following the 2012 conclusion of the show, "iGoodbye." Kress has not
landed any major roles since. So, what happened to Freddie, besides some weird fan interactions?
"Did you have any bizarre fan interactions?"
"Yeah I had a girl puke."
"Like at the sight of you, from or excitement or like-?"
"I don't know! Still-still unknown"
Miranda Cosgrove had already found success before the show by starring in 2003's
School of Rock, alongside Jack Black, and she was savvy enough to not put
all her eggs in one basket. As iCarly filmed, Cosgrove booked roles in feature films,
notably voicing the character of Margo in the Despicable Me franchise.
In contrast, Kress started out by booking roles on other Nickelodeon shows,
including The Suite Life With Zack & Cody. When he landed the role of Freddie, Kress booked almost
no other major projects throughout the entirety of the show's original run.
Exceptions to this were one guest-starring role on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
in 2010 and a role in 2008's Gym Teacher: The Movie, opposite Christopher Meloni [meh-LOW-nee].
When iCarly wrapped, Kress took on guest-starring roles for a few
short-lived television shows, including the Jennette McCurdy spin-off, Sam & Cat.
Three years after playing Freddie on iCarly, Kress' name can be seen in the credits of
two other network shows: Henry Danger and Game Shakers. His experience as a faux producer must
have helped him get familiar with work behind the camera. He directed 11 episodes for Henry Danger,
Nickelodeon's comedy series about a teenager who gets a part-time job helping a superhero.
He also took the director's reins for six episodes of Game Shakers, which follows
the fictional story of two wildly successful teens, this time in the world of game-making.
Kress has also been charismatic enough to return as himself in both series,
as well as a number of Nickelodeon specials, including Throwback with Nickelodeon,
which focuses on the nostalgia of old Nick shows, and The After Party, a post-primetime talk show.
Kress had a role in the 2014 fictional disaster film Into the Storm.
He began dating his castmate from the movie, London Elise Moore,
and they married and in 2017, they had their first child, while in December 2020,
Kress announced via his Instagram that the family was now expecting their second child.
His podcast, RadioActive Dads, focuses on working and raising children in Hollywood.
The show features Kress, his co-host Brett Davern of MTV's Awkward,
and other celebrity parents. The hosts chat about working on set and discuss their
evolving perspective as millennials moving into the parenting phase of their lives.
Kress is a big advocate for parenting. He even joined a movement entitled "Man Enough,"
led by author Justin Baldoni [bahl-DO-nee]. According to the program, the movement is -
"founded on the belief that by undefining traditional roles and traits of masculinity,
men will be able to realize their potential as humans and their capacity for connection."
However busy he is as a parent, he still hasn't stopped working. In 2020,
ET Online reported the ViacomCBS announcement that a reboot of iCarly would premiere on the
network's streaming service, Paramount+. The new show will, appropriately, be called iCarly:
Revival. The reboot sees the return of Miranda Cosgrove as well as Jerry Trainor, who played
Carly's brother Spencer. However, Jennette McCurdy has announced that she will not be returning.
In January 2021, Kress posted a photo from the set of the show
that features the three returning actors smiling into the camera.
The show premiered June 17 and is loaded with all those nostalgic feels that you’ve been missing.
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