Jennette McCurdy and Ariana Grande’s Friendship Over the Years: Their Time at Nickelodeon, Feud Rumors and More

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Jennette McCurdy and Ariana Grande's Friendship Over the Years: Their Time at Nickelodeon, Feud Rumors and More

Growing pains. Jennette McCurdy and Ariana Grande have gone through many obstacles in their friendship over the years. After scoring scene-stealing roles in iCarly and Victorious respectively, McCurdy and Grande moved on to a spinoff series centered around their characters. Sam & Cat, which ran from 2013 to 2014, made headlines amid rumors of a feud between the costars. McCurdy, for her part, noted that she formed a close bond with the "Positions" singer behind the scenes. "We keep each other on track, we don't really talk much about work stuff, because I feel like we talk about that so much with other people that we like to keep it to family, and just personal stuff," she told E! News in 2013. "It's all completely personal, what we've done with our friends lately, where we're going, what we're getting into, clothes." The former actress also gushed about getting to work alongside someone with such a strong work ethic. "She's extremely strong-willed and she will do whatever it takes to get what she wants if she really believes in something. I think that's such an admirable quality to have and I look up to her for that," McCurdy continued. "And I think that's something, working with her now for a year and a half, that hopefully I've adopted a bit of and I hope to get more of it as time goes on." After airing one season on Nickelodeon, the series went on hiatus and was canceled in 2014. At the time, the Florida native took to social media to address her time on the show — while notably leaving McCurdy's name out of the farewell message. “I want to thank Nickelodeon for making a childhood dream of mine come true, for being a family to me, for being so accommodating and supportive of my multitasking with my music career and for, of course, introducing me to many of my fans however many years ago,” the songstress wrote at the time. [jwplayer 5VACIkIG-zhNYySv2] Following the end of Sam & Cat, McCurdy clarified that the costars were on good terms. “I just feel that, you know Ariana and I were and are extremely close and very like-minded in a lot of different ways and then, sorta as the show dissolved, everybody wanted to find some sort of hidden meaning in our relationship,” she explained to E! News in 2015. “I think we butted heads at times, but in a very sisterly way. She knows me so well and I know her so well that I think it was unfortunate that things kind of got misconstrued.” The "Empty Inside" podcast host pointed out that "it’s just natural" to have ups and downs with a coworker after working 16 hours a day together. McCurdy later announced that she didn't have plans to return to acting due to her time on Nickelodeon. "I quit a few years ago because I initially didn't want to do it,” she shared on her podcast in March 2021. “I’m so ashamed of the parts I’ve done in the past. … I resent my career in a lot of ways. I feel so unfulfilled by the roles that I played and felt like it was the most cheesy, embarrassing [thing].” McCurdy added: "Walking away was really difficult but it was something I needed to do for my mental health and for my overall peace." Scroll on for a breakdown of McCurdy and Grande's friendship through the years: [podcast_block]

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2009

The duo first interacted while filming crossover episodes between their respective shows, Victorious and iCarly.

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2012

After their respective shows ended, McCurdy and Grande were cast in a spinoff show titled Sam & Cat.

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2013

"Ariana and I just planned a sleepover for tomorrow we're going to be in New York together and we're going to go over to her apartment and sleepover," McCurdy told E! News about their friendship. "We share everything. We always go through, like, boy situations at the same time, so we both had new kind of romances over our break, so we've just been kind of catching up on those."

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2013

The songwriter showed support for her coworker amid her mother's death. "[R]est in peace Debbie McCurdy one of the most beautiful brightest souls and kindest hearts this world has ever known, I was blessed to know u," Grande wrote on Twitter. "Times like this remind you of what's really important."

Jennette, for her part, replied, "@ArianaGrande thanks for being by my side and showing so much respect to my mom." In response, Grande wrote back, "I love you more than you know always."

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2014

Following Jennette's absence at the 2014 Kids Choice Awards, the "Side to Side" performer took to social media to call out online concerns.

“I hate addressing rumors and I hate gossip but this is really bothering me. Jennette and I agreed upfront that we would be treated equally on this show in all regards (as we should be, considering we each work just as hard as the other on this show),” she tweeted at the time. “The rumors circulating about our contracts and our salary not being equal are absolutely ridiculous and false. I don’t know who’s putting these idiotic quotes out there but I thought I’d straighten it out and try to end this nonsense.”

One month later, Sam & Cat was put on a production hiatus. Nickelodeon announced that it was canceled in July 2014.

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2015

During an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Jennette clarified where her friendship with Grande stood amid feud rumors.

“She just gave me a book recommendation that I'm almost done with,” she shared at the time. “And then we text probably like once a week to kind of catch up and see what's going on."

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2018

Amid Grande's short-lived engagement to Pete Davidson, Jennette gushed about the major milestone. “They seem like they’re a great fit,” she told Entertainment Tonight. “From what I know of her, he seems like exactly a good person for her.”

(The couple called it quits later that year.)

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2020

While reflecting on her time at Nickelodeon, Jennette discussed how her friendship with the "Thank U, Next" singer helped her. "I would not have such an enjoyable life if these people weren't in it," she told Elite Daily. "The human connections you have with people is always what determines whether, ultimately, something is a good or bad experience."

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2021

During an episode of her podcast, Jennette admitted she was affected by how Nickelodeon treated her compared to her costar.

“We started the show and her explosion to Ariana Grande fame happened during our first 20 episodes,” she said on the “Empty Inside" podcast in June 2021. "She would have to miss work because she was pulled in all directions. She's gotta do the radio shows, she's gotta do Billboard Awards, the Grammys."

Jennette added: "She's performing at the Grammys and I'm, like, acting on this show with a box because they decided for that week her character had to be trapped in a box so she can go perform at the Grammys."

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2022

“What finally undid me was when Ariana came whistle-toning in with excitement because she had spent the previous evening playing charades at Tom Hanks’s house. That was the moment I broke," the filmmaker recalled in her memoir. "Every time something exciting happens to her, I feel like she robbed me of having that experience myself. And every time someone calls me a good sport, all I feel is how much I don't want to be one."

She continued: "If I wasn’t such a good sport to begin with, I wouldn’t be in this predicament in the first place. I wouldn’t be on this s--tty show saying these s--tty lines on this s--tty set with this s--tty hairstyle."

Jennette recalled fantasizing about how her life would have looked if she had similar opportunities as Grande. "But it’s not different. It’s this. This is what it is. Ariana misses work in pursuit of her music career while I act with a box. I’m pissed about it. And I’m pissed at her. Jealous of her," she shared.

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2022

In her memoir, Jennette questioned if the Grammy winner's success came from "a much easier upbringing."

"I grew up in Garbage Grove in a goddamned hoarder house with a cancerous mom who constantly wept about not being able to afford rent and utility bills," she wrote. "Ariana grew up in Boca Raton, Florida, an incredibly wealthy, idyllic town, with a healthy mom who could buy her whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted — Gucci bags, fancy vacations, Chanel outfits."  

According to the California native, she was allegedly meant to have her own show before being paired off with the singer. "This was supposed to be Just Puckett, the harrowing tale of a brassy juvenile delinquent-turned-school counselor," she continued. "Now it’s some half-baked two-hander — Sam & Cat — about a brassy juvenile delinquent who, with her 'ditzy best friend,' starts a babysitting company called 'Sam & Cat’s Super Rockin’ Fun-Time Babysitting Service.' This is not harrowing."

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2022

During an interview with Vogue, McCurdy addressed her decision to detail her issues with Grande in her memoir. "I’m able to look back on it and just see it as the comedy gold that it is, to be on set at 21, where you’re just the most susceptible to jealousy and comparison that you can possibly be, and I’m there across from a burgeoning pop star of the day," she explained. "Like, that is just so funny to me, and I tried to capture that humor."