Yvette Nicole Brown Says Child Actors onDrake & JoshHelped Her Hone Her Craft: I Was 'Studying These Babies' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

From left to right: Drake Bell, Yvette Nicole Brown, Miranda Cosgrove and Josh Peck in 2008.Photo:Charley Gallay/WireImage

Charley Gallay/WireImage

Yvette Nicole Brownsays her earliest acting teachers were actually her child costars onDrake & Josh.“It was amazing to seeDrake [Bell],Josh [Peck]andMiranda [Cosgrove]be so amazing at such young ages,”the newlywed tells PEOPLEduring a recent interview. “I was just starting out as an actor, so I was really learning and studying these babies and learning how they were moving on these sets.“Brown, 53, played Helen Dubois, the manager of Premiere Theater and Josh’s (Josh Peck) boss on the Nickelodeon sitcom about stepbrothers. Her character recurred from 2004 to 2007 in seasons 2 to 4.“It was one of the first or second things I’d ever done,” she says. “It was really exciting to be in that training ground and to be already working with professionals, even though they were really young.“Yvette Nicole Brown as Helen Dubois onDrake &Josh.Nickelodeon/NetflixAdds Brown, “We had a really good time.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Brown and Peck recently had a miniDrake & Joshreunion on his podcast,Good Guys.“I did not know this was going to happen,” Brown says. “He was like, ‘We’d like to act out some scenes here on the podcast, and I just happened to have this scene fromDrake & Josh.’ He pulled out a scene from [season 3 episode] ‘Helen’s Surgery’ — when I get the eye surgery.”On the podcast episode, released Nov. 4, the former costars returned to their roles.“I sound the same,” Peck says in the clip posted toInstagram.“You do,” Brown agrees.In the series, Helen hated Josh. But in real life, Brown says she “adored” Peck.“Me and Josh fell right back into those characters [for the November reunion]. You would’ve thought it was 20 years ago, yesterday,” Brown tells PEOPLE. “It was really interesting to realize how those characters still live in our bodies and we can just become Helen and Josh like that.”Later on in the podcast episode, Brown also revealed thatDrake & Joshis still one of her most recognized roles.“If I get stopped on the street, I get stopped forDrake & Joshmore than anything — even more thanCommunity,” Brown said. “People still love Helen. It was 15 episodes, 20 years ago, but they still love the old girl.”

Yvette Nicole Brownsays her earliest acting teachers were actually her child costars onDrake & Josh.“It was amazing to seeDrake [Bell],Josh [Peck]andMiranda [Cosgrove]be so amazing at such young ages,”the newlywed tells PEOPLEduring a recent interview. “I was just starting out as an actor, so I was really learning and studying these babies and learning how they were moving on these sets.“Brown, 53, played Helen Dubois, the manager of Premiere Theater and Josh’s (Josh Peck) boss on the Nickelodeon sitcom about stepbrothers. Her character recurred from 2004 to 2007 in seasons 2 to 4.

“It was one of the first or second things I’d ever done,” she says. “It was really exciting to be in that training ground and to be already working with professionals, even though they were really young.”

Yvette Nicole Brown as Helen Dubois onDrake &Josh.Nickelodeon/Netflix

Nickelodeon/Netflix

Adds Brown, “We had a really good time.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Brown and Peck recently had a miniDrake & Joshreunion on his podcast,Good Guys.“I did not know this was going to happen,” Brown says. “He was like, ‘We’d like to act out some scenes here on the podcast, and I just happened to have this scene fromDrake & Josh.’ He pulled out a scene from [season 3 episode] ‘Helen’s Surgery’ — when I get the eye surgery.”On the podcast episode, released Nov. 4, the former costars returned to their roles.

“I sound the same,” Peck says in the clip posted toInstagram.“You do,” Brown agrees.In the series, Helen hated Josh. But in real life, Brown says she “adored” Peck.“Me and Josh fell right back into those characters [for the November reunion]. You would’ve thought it was 20 years ago, yesterday,” Brown tells PEOPLE. “It was really interesting to realize how those characters still live in our bodies and we can just become Helen and Josh like that.”

Later on in the podcast episode, Brown also revealed thatDrake & Joshis still one of her most recognized roles.“If I get stopped on the street, I get stopped forDrake & Joshmore than anything — even more thanCommunity,” Brown said. “People still love Helen. It was 15 episodes, 20 years ago, but they still love the old girl.”

source: people.com