As far as its own ~birthing story~ goes, MTV's Teen Mom was originally conceived simply as a stop-gap between seasons of 16 & Pregnant. Eight years, seven seasons, 100+ episodes, and multiple spin-offs (both in the U.S. and abroad) later, though, it's more than outperformed its predecessor and has become a pop culture phenomenon in its own right.

Filming the show since basically day one, the OG crew — Amber, Catelynn, Farrah, and Maci — have become the franchise's standard bearers and hold a special place in all viewers' hearts, rights?! All four have spent nearly a decade on camera; they're now are at a point where the minutiae of their lives play out threefold — on social media as they happen, in the tabloids and across fan communities in the immediate aftermath, and then again on TV. Needless to say, all describe their experiences on Teen Mom as life-changing (so, in fact, do many of their producers). There have been highs, there have been lows, and lower-than-low moments also — it's been a bumpy ride for all concerned from, well, their first baby-bump scene onward. Here, they and many of the show's staffers remember their journey — how it got started, times it veered off-course, and where they're headed in the future.

Tony DiSanto (founder of production company DiGa and then-director of programming at MTV): Lauren Dolgen, who is a really talented producer and executive, came to me and Liz Gateley [now head of programming at Lifetime, then head of series development at MTV] with the idea [for 16 and Pregnant]. This was the era of The Hills — reality TV shows that were very polished and filmic. But we felt this was a completely different type of story and wanted to take a much more vérité approach — we really wanted this to be dramatic, authentic storytelling. But also to work as entertainment. And at the time, Juno had just come out — execution and visual style is always the big icing on the cake for me and everybody at MTV, and we borrowed the animated technique [for captions and segues] from Juno for the show.

Morgan J. Freeman (executive producer): I got a call from my agent saying that MTV wanted to tackle teen pregnancy — I honestly thought they were calling the wrong person because I was, like, a guy. But Tony and Liz said that, from their vantage point, I had spent my career telling the stories of young adults up against great odds. They wanted to look at this as a documentary about a teenager put into a tricky situation that she and her family now have to work through; to tell the story in a really raw, unvarnished way.

At this point, they had one character cast: Amber.

Amber Portwood: The [producers] found me through my brother, who was going to do Underage and Engaged. I didn't believe them at first, but they sent me a hundred-dollar check and a little tape recorder, so I did an audition tape for them and sent it back, and, boom, I was on the show. Jessica Zalkind [MTV's casting director] was doing the scouting, and she said they picked me because I had something called "dry humor." Or [the way I saw it], I had hormones raging, and I’m all fat and swollen and crying and messy. You know?

DiSanto: We shot a pilot episode, and we showed it at a pilot screening and everybody loved it. It did great. I don’t even remember if we focus-grouped it, [I think] we just moved forward and put a nail on it right away. We all believed so much in it.

Dr. Drew Pinsky: My ability to change the behavior of adolescents in this country is essentially nil. In other words, "What’s the old guy with the gray hair doing on MTV?" But having been in this space for a long time, I’ve seen that if you create a relatable source — another adolescent — and allow them to tell their story, that can change behavior. So when MTV called me [about the show] I said, "Oh my god, this is going to work." There was no doubt in my mind.

Catelynn Lowell: My adoption counselor got an email that said MTV was looking for girls between the age of 15 and 17, who were pregnant, and who were considering adoption. [My then-boyfriend, now husband] Tyler was like, "Hey, we should try this." He’s the one who filled the application out. When we found out [MTV wanted us for the show], the reason we said yes was because we were the only parents choosing adoption. I remember I told Tyler, "Young people need to know what adoption looks like these days and how it works." We agreed if it ever ended up turning into, like, some scripted, they-just-want-drama show, we would have quit.



Freeman: [I remember thinking,] is the show too raw, too dark? Where do you find the hope? Where do you find the levity? I think we wanted there to be enough [reminders] that, no matter how dire the situation or how scared some of the women were, they were still teenagers and they were still trying to connect with friends and have relationships. I’ll also say that the last thing you think when you look at [an episode of 16 and Pregnant] is, Oh, that looks great.

There’s nothing glamorous about having a miscarriage, or being in a custody battle with the father of your child, or the struggle to make money. We don’t even shoot on glamorous cameras!

Larry Musnik (executive producer): Our show is a cautionary tale, presented without judgment, of what it’s like for each one of these people. There’s nothing glamorous about having an unplanned pregnancy that you’re not ready for. There’s nothing glamorous about having a miscarriage, or being in a custody battle with the father of your child, or the struggle to make money. We don’t even shoot on glamorous cameras!

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DiSanto: [The first season of 16 and Pregnant] came on air and not only was it well received, but it also did tremendously well. Immediately my bosses were like, "We need more." And I remember saying, "Well, this is not the kind of show where you can suddenly be like, ‘OK, let’s just do 10 more!’" It takes a while to cast people, there’s a cycle of pregnancy…

So we knew there was going to be a bit of time before we had more 16 and Pregnant episodes, and I pitched out to my bosses the idea of continuing [to film the moms] — and, instead of closed-ended episodes the way 16 and Pregnant was formatted, taking their stories and [telling] them across a series-long arc. I always looked at 16 and Pregnant as a movie of the week, right? It was a singular story told each episode. [In conceiving Teen Mom,] the question was, can we turn these stories into an arced narrative but intercut them in a way that makes sense? Because these girls were not connected, but their stories all had to come together and make sense. We thought this was going to be just a bridge idea that would, you know, help us buy the time between each 16 and Pregnant series. And then it just took off unto itself!

Freeman: I remember Dia [Sokol Savage, 16 and Pregnant/Teen Mom executive producer] and myself looking at the 16 and Pregnant episodes and kind of … struggling to find the endpoint. We realized that this first year of parenthood was going to be extremely challenging for a lot of these women — and we wanted to continue sharing their stories. I loved the first six [moms cast on 16 and Pregnant’s first season]. I wanted all of them for Teen Mom but the format really lent itself to four. I think it could've worked with any configuration but the final decision was with MTV. Ebony and Whitney were the two that we ended up not pursuing.

Maci Bookout: So, literally, I was a normal person, then [16 and Pregnant] aired and I was never going to be normal again. I remember thinking, Oh no, this sucks, what did I get myself into?! I still think it's awkward. But at that time [the show aired], Bentley was about 8, 9 months old and I was thinking, Our story's not over yet. So as soon as the producers brought [Teen Mom] up, I was like, "Yeah, let's go!"



All of the sudden, surprise, it's Teen Mom time and I go crazy somehow in, like, a fucking year

Portwood: I thought of [16 and Pregnant] like a True Life episode where you do one thing and then nothing comes from it. And then, all of the sudden, surprise, it's Teen Mom time and I go crazy somehow in, like, a fucking year.

Ashley Majeski (author of Teen Mom Confidential: Secrets & Scandals From MTV's Most Controversial Shows and founder of The Ashley's Reality Roundup): Look, I think [the producers] saw that, long-term, Farrah was a ticking time-bomb — she just needed the outlet. They looked down the line. And, even at 16 and Pregnant, Amber was struggling with stuff — obviously they saw that storyline going... somewhere. I think they chose Maci because Maci is just very likable; she's the person that a lot of these fans want as their best friend, you know? And they went with Catelynn, I believe, because her 16 and Pregnant episode was the most dynamic, the most adorable — if you ask any fan what 16 and Pregnant episode they remember the most, it's going to be Catelynn's.

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Musnik: If I had to isolate one of the most life-changing moments not only in my professional career but in life, it was to be there and see [Catelynn and Tyler’s daughter] Carly’s adoption. When do you get to see a live adoption and the handing over of a child from one family to another take place right in front of your eyes? Usually that’s a private, very closed-door situation but we were all there in that moment. To this day, it’s one of the most amazing, amazingly powerful pieces of television that I’ve ever seen.

Kirsten "Kiki" Malone (executive producer): I started [working on the show] on the very first Teen Mom shoot. I was working with Catelynn and that first day is probably one of my craziest memories. I can remember we had filmed a great day — they got their Carly tattoos that day, their very first Carly tattoos. And that night, they went home to [Catelynn's mom] April's house and there’s that infamous scene where Catelynn and April and [Tyler's dad] Butch get into a huge fight [over the tattoos].

That [fight] happened because I really quietly was like, "Hey, I know I don't know you guys but I'm just curious, like, how's everybody feeling about the adoption?" I had just met them — I didn’t know them at all at that point, remember. And the second I asked that, it went from zero to 60 in a heartbeat. I was hiding under a set of stairs!

Majeski: I didn't really see [the show] start to gain the traction that it did until probably when Teen Mom 2 premiered. Once there were two shows going and eight very different stories, all of which had the potential for intense drama, I think that's when it really started to catch on. I've never seen a show that has as crazy and as rabid a following, both good and bad, as Teen Mom.

Malone: I can remember, during the first two seasons, only being able to film with Catelynn and Tyler from 4 p.m. to about 8 p.m. because [Tyler's mom] Kim had a rule that they were not allowed to film past 8 — they had school and had to do their homework, which I thought was fantastic. It did not make our jobs easy, but we did it, and we're still super respectful of the kids and their schedules.

But it was in season two, or three maybe, where we went from nobody knowing what we were — [at first] people thought we were making student films — to the girls being chased around and being on every tabloid. And that got really, really difficult to work around. Becoming an overnight sensation where everyone knows your name was uncomfortable for a lot of them. It was scary for me because there were paparazzi in [Farrah's hometown] Omaha and [Amber's hometown] Indianapolis 24/7 and they would chase the moms — stalking them and their kids through their local mall and just not caring about their privacy at all. They would chase our crews. We added more security to our teams when that started happening. It was really scary.

Freeman: I worked on Laguna Beach [in 2004], and I remember the second season — I actually wasn't working on the second season, but I was still close with the executives and the producers — filmed after season one had aired and became this overnight hit. So they’d go to shoot at Laguna Surf and Sports with Steven and L.C., and there’d be, you know, 50 fans trying to come into the store, standing outside on the sidewalk taking photos. But in the world [the producers] were shooting, Steven and L.C. don't have fans. We ran into that same thing [on Teen Mom], where suddenly we were having to pretend like the moms aren’t recognized. And them trying to stay private or not wanting to go out in public to avoid the attention started to affect our storylines.



Lowell: Tyler and I were in denial for a long time that, like, "We’re not really that famous; we’re just normal people who wanted to share our story." We thought 16 and Pregnant was just going to be it! But once we got a little older, we realized what a big deal it was. We have this really small mall in Port Huron, [Michigan]. And I remember walking in our mall [after Teen Mom aired] and people were staring at me while I was shopping and, like, secretly taking pictures and stuff. It was so weird. And at first it was cool and fun and interesting, and then after a few years, it’s just like, Dammit, I just want to go buy some shoes!

I used to get really freaked out when the paparazzi would sit out in front of my house — they’d be there for, like, four days straight. But I just ended up started partying with them. I did!

Portwood: I used to get really freaked out when the paparazzi would sit out in front of my house — they’d be there for, like, four days straight. But I just ended up started partying with them. I did! I partied with every single one of them. And they weren't even creeps — that's the funny thing, they're like legit photographers and they're showing me all their Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt pictures, and I'm making friends with them and shit.

Farrah Abraham: Now I can’t really show up to some of the same magazine parties — I’m bored of it. I am [at a point] now where I think, OK, Farrah, you have what you need. You have that star power. You can give more to other people.

Majeski: I think there were two things that you can nail down directly as [causing the show to change]: fame and money. That’s obvious! [I've been told] the moms made $5,000, give or take, for their 16 and Pregnant episodes. And their first Teen Mom season paycheck was, well, I can’t confirm this — I know the Teen Mom 2 cast’s salaries better than I do the OG cast's, let’s be clear — but let me just say it was maybe a couple thousand more than what they made from 16 and Pregnant. In that first season, they were struggling moms. If you look at them, they were living in an apartment with their boyfriend or the baby daddy, or they were living at their parents' house. As the seasons increased, so did the paychecks — suddenly [they're] making, say, a couple hundred thousand dollars a year. And you have to realize that, in small-town Indiana or Michigan, $100,000 is a big deal.

Fame is another thing that definitely changed the game. People were treating the cast like celebrities; they were getting invited to go to events, walking red carpets, and being paid to promote products. [My sources tell me that] MTV really, really tried for many years to keep the fact that they were celebrities and well-paid as on the down-low as they could. For years, it was like, when somebody would get plastic surgery, everybody else would get a notice saying no one's allowed to get plastic surgery for the rest of the season. And eventually they broke the fourth wall. There was no way to hide the monster anymore.

Freeman: There’s a moment in the show — a special called Being Maci, actually, which I pitched as, "Let's let Maci be Maci from Teen Mom" — where Ryan and his then-girlfriend Dalis get into a little bit of an argument on the phone. Dalis wanted to know what he's doing and Ryan's like, "I told you MTV's here, I'm filming." Then Dalis says something like, "I know, but who exactly's there, Ryan?" Ryan replies, "I don't know, there's a dude here pointing a camera at me," and he looks right into the lens, and then he looks into the other camera and goes, "And there's another dude here pointing a camera at me." That scene went up to Lauren Dolgen and [YouTube global head of original content, then-head of programming at MTV] Susanne Daniels, and they wanted more. It's just an authentic fourth-wall break — it just smashed right then.



[Editor's note: "Breaking the fourth wall" refers to showing footage from what the producers are saying and doing behind the cameras; this footage started appearing in Teen Mom's fifth season]



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Musnik: We have always, from day one, been very truthful with our audience. And I think [breaking the fourth wall] was really received well because it is part of the moms’ story, you know? So, we’ve embraced it. Well, I should say I’ve been on TV now a bunch of times with the show and it’s weird. I didn’t become a producer because I wanted to be on TV. Nobody tells me when I wake up in the morning, get ready! You’re going to be on camera today! I don’t expect it. I barely even shave. I just watch and my hairline get further and further back in each season.

Majeski: The season before [the wall broke], it was almost ridiculous. They would say, "Oh, the local news picked up our story," and it's like, No, everybody picked up your story! When Amber went to jail, I specifically remember she said on her voiceover something like, "A few local papers found out about this," and I thought, No, the whole world is following you, Amber.

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Malone: I hate talking about this particular period of Amber's life, but when she was going through a really hard time and went into prison, and she had that suicide attempt, we weren't there filming. We didn't go out there [with cameras] the second after that happened. We did film her when she went into the rehab — there are ways to tell those stories with compromises and without putting an entire crew in their homes, in their lives, right as it’s happening.



Majeski: There was a time for Amber specifically when she should've stopped filming, in my opinion. She wasn't mentally prepared, or mature enough, to deal with the money and fame in addition to her own issues. I don't necessarily fault the network and producers, but I think that they did exploit her [when covering her struggles with addiction]. I think there was a point where [Teen Mom 2's] Jenelle was spiraling out of control [with her addiction and legal issues] and should not have been filming either. And, I mean, with Farrah ... well, you can argue whatever, but I think Farrah has to film. She needs the attention, good or bad.

Pinsky: The producers at MTV — and I can't tell you specifics because there’s confidentiality issues here — have gone out of their way to help these moms with treatment when they needed it. They really have. No one at the network has ever told me to buzz off when I’ve said, "Hey, we need some help here." They’ve immediately stepped up, and I know [the moms] have benefitted, but you can only do so much for people, and then it’s on them.

Portwood: Look, I put myself in prison so I could get sober — when you're chewing fentanyl patches and hoarding drugs, it's not good. I pretty much just told myself, "You need to do something." [At that point,] I didn't think we were getting renewed — it was a couple months after I got out [of prison] when, all the sudden, we got the show back on.

Whenever people ask the question, "Does x, y, or z show exploits the cast?" I say, "Ask the cast!" I think this is an important point to make.

Pinsky: Whenever people ask the question, "Does x, y, or z show exploit the cast?" I say, "Ask the cast!" I think this is an important point to make. Ask the cast if they've been exploited or feel exploited. If there was a time when I really thought they were in danger from being part of a production, I would address it with the producers — they seem very, very concerned about these women. They're not just there with their cameras. They’ve develop a relationship with them over time and, in my opinion, care deeply about what happens.

Abraham: Here’s my thing. What even is being taken advantage of? Because we all put ourselves in growing experiences … I figure it out. I make my world better around me. And I think that’s all we can do. I am really all about helping others set up for success, and I hope the show is encouraging others to just keep working their asses off.

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Musnik: When the show ended [for the first time, in 2011], I think we could all see people just being very vocal on social media like, "What happened to our friends? Where did Maci, Cate, Amber, and Farrah go?" They were really missed. Everybody wanted to know how Bentley was doing. Or how Sophia was doing. People just didn’t want to say goodbye to these ladies.

Malone: [The way it was] told to me, [MTV] had planned on stopping the shows when the moms crossed into their 20s — when they weren't teen moms anymore. So the show went down and, I believe, Teen Mom 2 was set to do the same thing. But [with both shows,] we shoot continuously — we'll keep shooting while waiting to see if we're going to get picked up another season. And then something happened, there was some kind of crazy storyline, and [MTV decided to] just keep on going there. And with the success of Teen Mom 2 being stretched out much longer than anyone expected, they brought Teen Mom: OG back. And when the show [wasn't filming,] we still had those relationships [with the OG moms] on a personal level. Not because we ever thought the show was coming back; we all had just bonded.

Musnik: There are not that many television shows that have been together — cast and production — for this amount of time pretty much unchanged. A lot of trust has built up in these relationships. Yes, sometimes their decision-making, as we have seen, is not great. But everyone makes mistakes! They know that we're in their lives with them for better or for worse. If I see Amber calling me, for example, it’s impossible for me to just not pick up — she’s like a part of my family. Sure, sometimes I have to say, "I’ll call you back in a few minutes," but I take calls from [the moms] 24 hours a day, seven days a week if they need to speak to me about anything. I always make myself available. And I have a wonderful family that are very understanding and supportive, I should add.

The moms know what our role is, and they know that we are there to cover their stories and their lives, and not interfere in things that are happening. We respect that they’re adults too and we don’t jump into their decision-making.

There’s a very hard line that we as producers are faced with, and there are times where, for the benefit of our relationships and our good conscience, we’ve had to step in. But for the most part, the moms know what our role is, and they know that we are there to cover their stories and their lives, and not interfere in things that are happening. We respect that they’re adults too and we don’t jump into their decision-making.

Lowell: It is hard when [the producers] are also your friends, because they also have a job. If they ask something and it’s like, Ugh, I don’t want to talk about it, I feel bad because I don’t want to hurt their feelings. But I’ve gotten good at telling my producer no. I’m like, "Listen, Jess, you know I love you and it’s not your fault. I know it’s the bigger people." You just say, "You guys, I’m not talking about it because I don’t feel comfortable and that’s just how it’s going to be."

Malone: There is probably only one topic of this entire show that I will occasionally worry about, and that is Catelynn and Tyler's relationship with Carly’s adoptive parents. We don't ever want that to really hurt their relationship with their daughter because her adoptive parents are uncomfortable being talked about on TV. But if [Catelynn and Tyler] are choosing to talk about it, I also can't say, "Don't."

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Bookout: The crew has literally known me for almost 10 years now. And that's nice; it's not as weird as being filmed by a bunch of people you don't know. I know I feel much more comfortable because whatever I’m talking about on camera, I’ve probably already talked to [my producers] about it. It just takes everybody remembering there's a difference between our friendship relationship and our professional relationship. But we've all done this for so long that we are very aware of times when one relationship needs to override the other one.

Freeman: Maci’s story is very close to my heart. I met my wife, Katie, at Maci’s birth. She was the media liaison for the hospital chain where Bentley was born. We met and then just a few months later went on a date, and then eight, nine years later, Maci came to our wedding

Malone: I just came back today from a Maci shoot and I’m working with the same people that were on that first shoot; one of Bentley's first words was "Kiki"!

And when Catelynn gave birth to Nova, she was in labor on New Year’s Day. I was at my mother's house in Ohio for Christmas and New Year's, and every day, Tyler would call me and be like, "Nope, still hasn't happened yet." On New Year’s Eve, I can remember my mom asked, "Aren't you going to go out and see some of your old friends?" I wasn’t — I had this weird feeling it was a bad night to go out, so I stayed in and at about 4 in the morning, my phone rings and Tyler goes, "Kiki, it's happening." I literally have my little bag all ready, I jump in my car, I race three hours up to where they are, get to the hospital right before Nova's born and was filming with just a Go-Pro.

And then I was getting ready to leave a couple hours later to go back home and sleep, and [Catelynn and Tyler] said, "Wait, don't leave, just give us a minute." They kicked me out of the room for a few minutes, then brought me back in and Tyler's got a camera on me! I’m asking them what’s going on, and they told me to just hold Nova before I left. I remember I was scared to hold her, I kept saying, "I'm afraid I'm going to drop her"; and right then, Catelynn’s mom came over and was just like, "Oh my god, Kiki, look at her shirt!" She had a onesie on that said, "Kiki, will you be my godmother?" I have that onesie framed in my house now; in the moment, on his camera, Tyler captured me just bawling. That's my favorite memory from the whole show.

Abraham: So I’m going to just keep it real with you: I don’t think of [the producers] as friends, or family. I’ve seen how real the world is. To me this is just work. This is my job.

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Malone: I never in a million years thought I would still be on this show today; I wouldn't have stayed here this long if I didn't not just love the cast and people I work with, but love what this show does and what it has done. Every season that would come and go, all of us would be crying at the end of filming. And every time we get green-lit for another season, the people that are on the ground are like, Wow, really? But [right now,] it does feel like there's no end in sight.

Pinsky: Now we have two academic studies that show [16 & Pregnant and Teen Mom's] effects, right? They’ve been able to show an inverse relationship between viewership and the probability of a teen pregnancy; this show has had a net positive effective on the health of teens in America. That is a major, major thing. And so these women, even if they have some ambivalence about what they've done, can always look at that as a real positive they've been able to accomplish in their lives. And I thank them for it every time I see them.

Lowell: Tyler and I have been talking a lot about moving to L.A. — Tyler is so creative and passionate, and what he wants to do is tell other people’s stories. Take our show that we did, Reunited — it aired on MTV and was no. 2 that night, highest-rated. Love and Hip Hop was no. 1 because it always it, and we were no. 2. We beat Teen Mom: OG. We beat the reunions. Everything! And MTV didn’t want to pick it up. So it’s like … fuck them. We can take it other places. We want to start pitching shows. We’ve been thinking about opening up our own production company one day. That’s what he wants to do and I told him, "I’ll be your secretary!" I hope one day that that’ll happen. I really do.

I’m just doing hot yoga. I don’t like sweating but it brings me back to my Iowa center. The girl who I've always been.

Abraham: I’m always working on other stuff, you know? There’s always something coming up next for me and that’s what I look forward to. I’ve been feeding my soul, taking care of myself, doing my therapy … I’m just doing hot yoga. I don’t like sweating but it brings me back to my Iowa center. The girl who I've always been. I think all these good things are coming my way because I’ve done the best that I know I can do.

Portwood: I don't look at myself and think, I'm just a reality star, because I know what I've done in my life and I know the people that I helped — when you've literally helped thousands of people and even physically, you know, put people in rehabs and shit, I mean, you really want to do more. I should get a cameo in Orange Is the New Black. I'd fucking kill it.

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