Former Nickelodeon star Drake Bell has officially filed for divorce from his estranged wife, Janet Von Schmeling. The couple, who share a 4-year-old son named Wyatt, had reportedly been separated for over two years.
Entertainment Weekly reported that Bell, 39, filed for divorce on Thursday, August 14 in Seminole County, Florida. Von Schmeling had filed for divorce from the Drake & Josh alum back in April 2023, just a week after the former child actor was briefly reported missing.
Bell's manager, Juan José Rovirosa, gave a statement to Entertainment Weekly about Bell's filing, saying, "At this stage, both of them are simply concluding that legal process. Their priority remains the safety and wellbeing of their son, and they are doing so from a place of love and respect — closing a beautiful chapter of their lives that now evolves into a different form of love and complicity, always centered on their child’s best interests."
Bell and Von Schmeling were married in 2018, but their marriage wasn't made public until 2021. When revealing the news of their marriage on X (formerly Twitter), Bell also shared the news that they have a son.
Users on Reddit have been supportive of the couple's divorce announcement, with one fan saying, "They are co-parenting very well and are friends. They celebrated her birthday 2 months ago. Both are in a relationship now, Janet is about to give birth to her second child. they want clarity. Good for them!"
Another fan added, "Sounds like an amicable divorce that’s really none of our business. I thought I was going to click the link and see some kind of horrible deed that ended it all but nope. Sometimes relationships just don’t work out. Been there myself. It is what it is."
Bell made headlines in 2024 on the docuseries Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV when he opened up about sexual abuse accusations against former Nickelodeon dialogue coach Brian Peck. Earlier this year, Bell spoke with Access Hollywood about his desire to do a Drake & Josh reboot and his current focus on his music. His most recent album, Non-Stop Flight, was released in October 2024.
