Fact Check

Actor Josh Peck Died?

The actor is known for his role on the Nickelodeon children’s show “Drake & Josh.”

Published Sept. 5, 2023

 (Jason Nash/Wikimedia Commons)
Image courtesy of Jason Nash/Wikimedia Commons
Claim:
Actor Josh Peck has died.

In early September 2023, rumors spread online about the alleged death of actor Josh Peck. Known for his role on the Nickelodeon kid's show "Drake & Josh," the actor became the subject of numerous posts stating "RIP Josh Peck" without specifying the cause of his alleged death.

There is no evidence that Peck died. We found no official statement in the media or on his verified accounts on social media from his family or representatives. Just a day ago, Peck's official YouTube and Instagram accounts posted clips from his "Good Guys" podcast:

 

Peck's social media accounts have been posting clips from his podcast on a regular basis, and a pinned Aug. 20, 2023, post on his Twitter account advertises an event for Nov. 6, 2023, with actor John Stamos. So far that event appears to still be scheduled. 

 

At the time of this writing, Peck's Instagram account also posted a joke about marijuana. 


(Instagram/ShuaPeck)

We reached out to Peck's management and will update this post if we get more information. Until then, we are rating this rumor as "Unproven."

(According to some online accounts, the label "RIP Josh" began trending on Twitter due to the rumored death of another person with the same first name as Peck. Twitter posts claimed the man referred to as "MAGA Josh," due to his support of former U.S. President Donald Trump, died on Sept. 4, 2023. We were unable to independently confirm if this is true, other than from the reports of this individual's death posted on social media.)

We frequently receive false reports of celebrity deaths. Learn more about why such hoaxes are so popular and how you can identify whether they are fake or not here

There is no evidence that Peck died and no confirmation of his death from his representatives or social media accounts, and he appears to be on schedule for at least one public appearance. But until we receive more information about Peck's current whereabouts, we have rated this claim as "Unproven." 

Sources

"Celebrity Death Hoaxes Archives." Snopes.Com. https://www.snopes.com/tag/celebrity-death-hoaxes/. Accessed 5 Sept. 2023.

"Girls Don't Toot! GOOD GUYS PODCAST (9 - 4 - 23)." www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOLTT--5dcw. Accessed 5 Sept. 2023.

Ibrahim, Nur. "Why Are Online Death Hoaxes so Popular?" Snopes, 22 Sept. 2022, https://www.snopes.com/news/2022/09/22/online-death-hoaxes-popular/. Accessed 5 Sept. 2023.

Nur Nasreen Ibrahim is a reporter with experience working in television, international news coverage, fact checking, and creative writing.