Robbie Shapiro is by far the most awkward of the Hollywood Arts High School students who comprised the primary cast of “Victorious.” He is a ventriloquist who frequently carries Rex, a puppet that looks terrifying but is somehow smarter than Robbie could wish for, about with him. He struggles with lady interaction, occasionally flaunts his tech prowess, is a major ham boning prodigy, and occasionally gets carried away with his own interests.
Fans may recall the episode of “Survival of the Hottest” when he drank more water than he should have while the group was confined to an RV on a sweltering day, or when he posted embarrassing recordings of his friends on his blog (“Robarazzi”).
Even his buddies make fun of him since he’s a nerd. Bennett described Robbie as “the punching bag of the show” and “bordering Screech from ‘Saved by the Bell'” in a “Throw Back with Nickelodeon” segment. He is, however, generally a decent guy and Cat Valentine has some feelings for him (Ariana Grande).
Matt Bennett portrays Robbie in the 2010–2013 Nickelodeon series. Some of the cast members of the show have become more well-known than others in the nine years since the last episode of the series—which didn’t really have a conclusion—aired. Grande, for instance, is a well-known pop star, whilst Elizabeth Gillies has achieved success on programmes like “Dynasty” on The CW. What transpired to Bennett, then?
He started acting at the age of 13 and continues to this day
IMDb states that Nickelodeon Matt Bennett was born in Massapequa, New York, in 1991. He began acting at around age 13, and his first on-screen credits were in 2009. The Virginity Hit, a film that was produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay among others, was his first significant undertaking. But it was “Victorious” that actually made him famous. He has compared himself to Robbie by saying, “We’re tender-hearted people with a tendency for strumming the guitar and falling in love with girls out of our league,” according to Northern Transmissions.
In fact, he and Robbie started to resemble each other more. He stated in 2016: “As we went along, the writers discovered our strengths and limitations and would write around those. When we started ‘Victorious,’ the characters were less fleshed out. “Over the course of the performance, Robbie and I got to actually change together, and vice versa. By the end, we weren’t all that different. My current difference, I suppose, would be four additional years of life experience and a fresh set of glasses.”
He has a limited number of film and television credits, but some noteworthy parts. In 2014, he reprised his role as Robbie in “Sam and Cat,” and in 2015, he appeared in “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” and “The Stanford Prison Experiment.” High-profile TV shows like “Fresh Off the Boat,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Shameless,” and “The Big Bang Theory” have included him as a guest star. He portrayed Howard Wolowitz’s (Simon Helberg) hitherto unidentified half-brother Josh on the later programme.
He has also focused on music and appeared in friends’ music videos
Matt Bennett hasn’t been very active in acting, but it doesn’t mean he hasn’t been involved in the entertainment industry because he has also prioritised music. He released the EP “Terminal Cases” in 2016, which featured the song “Fisher King” and was influenced by Robin Williams’ movies. He also spent some time in Japan studying Japanese music; in 2016, he revealed to Moshi Moshi Nippon that he had made three trips there beginning in 2012. Living there was “the next step,” he added on “The Zach Sang Show.”
He has even appeared in a few music videos, though not any of his. He made an appearance as a fan in Poppy’s “Lowlife” in 2015; the singer’s friend, according to reports. He also had an appearance in the video for Ariana Grande’s “One Last Time” that same year. He portrays her boyfriend, whose perspective the audience sees as she attempts to acquire a better view of a comet colliding with the planet. The recent release of “Don’t Look Up,” in which Grande portrays a singer in a comparable circumstance, has been giving the video fresh life. It was a cute little Easter egg for “Victorious” fans.
Bennett had an appearance in Ariana Grande’s Easter-themed “thank u, next” music video in 2018. He made an appearance in a scene supposed to parody Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Bradford’s amorous toothbrush exchange in “Bring It On.” He additionally made an appearance at one of Grande’s concerts in 2019 to perform “I Think You’re Swell,” a song he originally composed for “Victorious.”
He’s on social media, where his image has changed from his nerdy teen roots
On social media, Matt Bennett displays his personality and sense of humour. He used to be a YouTuber, but recently he’s been showing up more on Twitch (username MottBonnott). He sings and talks stories about a taxidermied rat on “Victorious,” his experiences with dating apps, and seeing Lindsay Lohan’s “The Parent Trap” with actor Matthew Scott Montgomery in a live from May 2021. Along with playing video games like “Fortnite,” “Halo,” and “Minecraft,” he also comments on “Victorious” episodes. He performs fascinating song mashups, fakes Ariana Grande’s signature for a fan on TikTok, and plays DJ at nightclubs.
Bennett is unmistakably there, even though he may not have released another album as he had planned to. And he isn’t beyond using his prior notoriety to advance his career. In an interview with Nickelodeon, he discussed how his performance in “thank u, next” actually helped him gain more popularity among his audience. “They hadn’t known who I was or what I was capable of, they always viewed me as Robby,” he said, adding that his appearance also energised him. “I mean, it was just a small minor thing but I think it helped people see me in a different light. It simply seemed like a really fantastic boost out of nowhere that these folks, who like me and truly appreciate my character from “Victorious,” want to see me flourish. Bennett’s future may yet include some significant leading man roles.
