‘School of Rock’ Kid Stars Reveal Bullying After Release of Jack Black Classic

In celebration of the 20th anniversary of School of Rock, Rolling Stone magazine published an oral history in which many of the child actors from the Jack Black-led film opened up about the tough years they encountered after being cast in the blockbuster film. 

School of Rock was a box-office sensation in 2003 making $131 million worldwide, and today it is regarded as a comedy classic. For many of the cast of School of Rock, bringing their talents back to their high school or middle school years was a difficult thing for them to do.

“It was tough. I came back to school, and I was like a three-headed freak, basically,” said Joey Gaydos Jr., who portrayed lead guitarist Zack “Zack-Attack” Mooneyham. “I came back with all this culture in my brain to a pretty one-horse town outside of Detroit. And I was looked at like a complete weirdo, and that was hard.”

“I remember going to a football game in high school, and some older girl coming up and smacking me in the face because, ‘Look at that weird guy from the movie,’” he added. “People thought I had it all going on. I couldn’t believe it.”

“There was, I would say, about a decade of me being really, really sick and really, really mentally unwell and using anything I could to feel nothing, basically,” explained Rivkah Reyes, who played bassist Katie (aka Posh Spice). “But the last five years, I’ve been sober and re-navigating the film industry and comedy and writing and all of it. It’s just so much easier when there’s not all that extra stuff in the way of me, my actual self.”

In the film, Brian Falduto starred as Billy, the band’s flamboyant fashion designer who was nicknamed Fancy Pants. Falduto said he loved that the set allowed him to be himself without hiding it. “To have this experience where we were all made to feel special because of our differences was really cool. But then it also made it all the more difficult when we went back to school,” Falduto noted. “People tried to box me into the title of the gay kid after the movie, and I didn’t even know what being gay was at the time. I was just being myself and having a great time.”

For many of the child stars, it would take several years to realize just how powerful School of Rock really was, regardless of how cruel the bullies were. “It just warms my heart that it’s aged so gracefully and that it still has this powerful message of radical self-acceptance,” Reyes said. “School of Rock allowed us to really let our freak flags fly. When you have a whole room full of underdogs, it’s so powerful.”

In addition, Z Infante, who played computer genius Gordon, added, “I didn’t know I was queer at the time, but there’s something queer about School of Rock. There’s something about challenging the status quo, about sticking it to the man, that creates this incredible environment for people of all backgrounds, sexual orientation, gender identities, races, religions. Whoever you are, you’re welcome at the School of Rock.”

There was a period during the pandemic in which people were texting Maryam Hassan, who played the lead vocalist, Tomika, non-stop, as they watched School of Rock for the first time or revisited it as solace during a difficult period. Many of them referenced a scene where Jack Black’s teacher encourages Tomika to be body-positive.

“I’d get DMs from people who were around 9 or 10 when they saw it, like, ‘That helped me so much,’ or they’ll show it to their kids who are in the same situation,” Hassan said. “Now more than ever, with body positivity being a huge conversation, I’m so honored that I was a part of that scene. Because I was a plus-size kid, and I’m a plus-size woman now, and I’m confident.”