The Original ‘iCarly’ Cast Then & Now

iCarly

Paramount+/YouTube On June 17, the iCarly reboot premieres on Paramount+.

With reboots all the rage these days, iCarly signs back on with new episodes for the first time since ending its original run in 2012. TVLine reported in December 2020 that Paramount+ was reviving the popular children’s show.

Airing for six seasons on Nickelodeon, the series documented the adventures of Carly Shay and her friends as they grew her web show iCarly. The reboot is set nearly a decade in the future, following the grown-up characters’ lives.

“This is an adult show and it’s not specifically for kids,” star Nathan Kress told Page Six. “And that’s been exciting for us — to just see where these characters from a kid’s show would be and where they are in their life now, 10 years later. But in a very realistic, non-glossy way.”

With three of the show’s regular cast members returning, here’s what you need to know:


Miranda Cosgrove as Carly Shay

Miranda Cosgrove

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Miranda Cosgrove returns as the titular character, Carly Shay, a role she first started as a 14-year-old. As she told People, “I think one of the most challenging things growing up making iCarly, I went through my awkward phase and completely grew up on the show.”

According to the publication, she first started acting in commercials at 3-year-old before building up an impressive resume which included School of Rock, Yours, Mine & Ours and Drake & Josh.

Cosgrove continued to act, appearing in the thriller The Intruders and the short-lived show Crowded. She also does voice work, most notably as Margo in the popular Despicable Me franchise.

Now, she is taking on a new role as an executive producer on the iCarly revival. “I feel from this experience in particular, I’ve learned a lot of things really fast that I never knew about before,” the Los Angeles native told People. “I’m getting to help edit all the episodes. I’ve never edited anything in my life. So just even seeing all the behind-the-scenes things, even talking to the set designers from the very start, figuring all that out and seeing how they put the sets together. These are all things that I’ve never done before. So it’s just been a real learning process and I’ve really enjoyed every second of it.”


Nathan Kress as Freddie Benson

Nathan Kress

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Kress will also reprise his role as Freddie Benson. Before playing one of Carly’s best friends, he appeared in a string of guest appearances and voice-over work. The 28-year old has continued to act, with guest roles on television and appearing in films such as Into the Storm, Tell Me How I Die and Breaking Brooklyn.

In recent years Kress has branched out – trying his hand at directing on shows Game Shakers and Henry Danger. He also co-hosts the Radioactive Dads podcast with Awkward star Brett Davern.

In 2015, the actor married London Elise Moore, an actress and stunt performer. The couple welcomed their second daughter, Evie Elise, in March. They are also parents to 3-year-old daughter, Rosie Carolyn.


Jerry Trainor as Spencer Shay

Jerry Trainor

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Jerry Trainor will once again play Carly’s older brother, Spencer Shay. iCarly was not the first time he co-starred with his fictional sister, appearing as Crazy Steve on Drake & Josh.

Before and after iCarly, he appeared in a variety of small movie roles and guest appearances on television. After starring as a titular character in the short-lived Nickelodeon show, Wendell and Vinnie, he had recurring roles on Still the King and No Good Nick.

Trainor has also built up his voice-over portfolio and appears on Arden Myrin’s Bachelor podcast, Will You Accept This Rose.


Mary Scheer as Mrs. Benson

Mary Scheer

Nick Rewind, Cameo/YouTube

Returning as Freddie’s overbearing mom, Mary Scheer is set to once again portray Mrs. Benson. According to IMDb, she is expected to appear in six episodes of the revived series.

Scheer largely works as a voice actor. Her roles include Hey Arnold! and The Penguins of Madagascar and the video game Twin Mirror.

Aside from guest appearances, she worked as an actress and writer for MADtv. She also wrote for Night Stand and The Martin Short Show.


Jennette McCurdy and Noah Munck Will Not Return

Two stars noticeably missing from the revival are Jennette McCurdy who played Carly’s best friend Sam Puckett and Noah Munck who played the off-beat Gibby Gibson.

Jennette McCurdy

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McCurdy no longer acts, though she continues to write and currently hosts her podcast, Empty Inside. During a recent episode, she admitted acting was never easy for her and she is embarrassed by the roles she did.

As she told guest Anna Faris, “My mom put me in it when I was 6 and by sort of age, I guess, 10 or 11, I was the main financial support for my family. My family didn’t have a lot of money, and this was the way out, which I actually think was helpful in driving me to some degree of success.”

Cosgrove told E! News that they all called the Sam & Cat alum, but are “happy for her because I know that she’s her life taken her in a different direction and that she’s really enjoying what she doing right now. So I think we all kind of did what we were probably meant to do.”

Noah Munck

Getty, ABC/YouTube

Munck does continue to act, appearing most recently as ‘Naked’ Rob Smith on The Goldbergs. According to Nicki Swift, the actor has a “weird relationship” with his character who was often the “punching bag,” a role that bled into his real life.

The outlet quoted his OYC Podcast interview, “Maybe one day I’ll have a better relationship with it, and who knows, I’ll come back.”


Two New Characters Have Been Created

Actors Laci Mosley and Jaidyn Triplett are rounding out the cast as new characters. According to Entertainment Tonight, Mosley’s character, Harper, is Carly’s roommate and best friend. Triplett will play Freddie’s stepdaughter Millicent, who is described by the outlet as “snarky and social media-savvy.”

Mosley revealed on Twitter that she was receiving racist attacks after her casting was announced, being called racial slurs and being accused of replacing McCurdy.

On Instagram, she wrote, “I took this role on iCarly because the room is diverse … our showrunner @ali_schouten is so incredibly kind and caring and the cast is talented and some of the best people I’ve ever met. I was shocked when a celebration of all the hard work we’ve put into making the reboot was overshadowed by the most racism I’ve ever experienced in my life over the course of 72 hours.”

The iCarly page then issued a statement on Instagram, reading, “Our company is proud to uphold the values of inclusivity and collaboration, where we work to embrace new and diverse voices, act with care and work together. The upcoming Paramount+ iCarly series is one of many examples of this commitment, and we support our entire cast and crew and stand against all instances of hate and racism.”

The first three episodes of iCarly are now streaming on Paramount+.

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