Jennette McCurdy is speaking out with new details about a troubling relationship she had as a teenager with a much older man, which she now calls “creepy” and emotionally draining.
The former iCarly star, 33, opened up during a recent episode of Call her dad podcast that connects the experience to themes in her forthcoming debut novel Half his agewhich will be released on January 20.
McCurdy said she was around 18 when she first entered into a relationship with a man in his 30s whom she met through work during her time on the Nickelodeon set.
She described how he would show her movies and music that he assumed she would enjoy, even if she didn’t, and how she would pretend to like them to please him.
The dynamic wasn’t just disjointed in age, it also carried a sense of power imbalance, with the man already in a long-term relationship and living with his girlfriend.
“It was just exhausting,” McCurdy recalled, reflecting on the way she felt trapped in a cycle that was hard to break.
In the interview, she highlighted how uncomfortable some encounters became, including moments when he showed up drunk and pushed for intimacy that conflicted with her own beliefs and upbringing, which emphasized waiting until marriage.
Looking back, she said the whole situation now feels “creepy.”
The relationship took place during a difficult time in McCurdy’s life, shortly before her mother’s death in 2013, adding emotional strain to an already confusing situation.
Although the romance eventually faded, McCurdy revisited the experience while writing her novel and found that it stirred unresolved anger she had not fully processed before putting it into words.
McCurdy has also been candid about her past in previous work, including her bestselling memoir I’m glad my mother diedwhere she first mentioned the age difference.
Her newest project is expected to delve even deeper into how desire, power and vulnerability intersected in that and other experiences from her youth.
By sharing these reflections, McCurdy hopes to spark broader conversations about unhealthy relationships, power dynamics, and the emotional journey of coming to terms with one’s history.
As the release of her novel approaches, audiences can expect more insight into how she has turned difficult personal experiences into creative expression.
