Tylor Chase: Heartbreaking Viral Video Highlights Mental Health Crisis for Former Child Star

Former Nickelodeon Star Raises Concerns

Tylor Chase, who played Martin Qwerly on Nickelodeon’s ‘Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide’, has sparked widespread concern after a video filmed in Riverside, California and first shared on TikTok in September showed him living on the streets. In the clip, a passerby asks the 36-year-old if he was on Disney Channel, to which he confirmed his role on the beloved children’s series. The video quickly went viral, prompting emotional reactions from fans and former colleagues alike.

Co-Stars Express Helplessness

Chase’s former co-stars Devon Werkheiser, Lindsey Shaw and Daniel Curtis Lee addressed the video on their Ned’s Declassified Podcast Survival Guide. Daniel Curtis Lee admitted he was initially ‘angry’ about people filming Chase during hard times, then ‘upset’ with himself because he felt ‘powerless’. Werkheiser added that the group hopes to help Chase get onto a better path but that a podcast appearance is not what he needs right now.

Family Reveals Mental Health Struggles

After the clip went viral, a GoFundMe was launched, raising just over $1,200 before Chase’s mother asked that it be shut down. In messages shared by multiple outlets, she said her son lives with bipolar disorder, struggles to keep phones or manage money, and ‘needs medical attention, not money’. His mother stated, ‘Tylor needs medical attention not money. But he refuses it’, highlighting the complex challenges families face when adult loved ones refuse treatment.

Broader Implications for Child Stars

The video went viral, and there were complex discussions on what may happen to child actors when it comes to issues like mental illness and addiction. The video has left many hoping Chase will receive sustained help and reopened debate about how the industry supports child actors once the spotlight moves on. Despite significant attention, Chase was reportedly still living on the streets at the end of 2025, according to some locals, underscoring the ongoing nature of mental health crises and the limitations of short-term public attention in addressing deep-seated challenges facing former child performers.