'7 Little Johnstons' Add Eighth Family Member to Show Upon March Return on TLC
7 Little Johnstons is adding an eighth member of the family as the TLC show prepares to return with brand new episodes on Tuesday, March 15. The Johnston family is welcoming 17-year-old exchange student Joose into their Georgia home as parents Trent and Amber Johnston try to juggle their own lives with those of their kids Jonah, Anna, Liz, Alex and Emma.
"As Trent adjusts to the complexities of his new job as a car salesman and Amber juggles teaching while returning to college, the Johnstons decide to welcome a new member into their household!" the network announced Wednesday alongside the premiere date. "Joose, a 17-year-old foreign exchange student from Finland who is also a little person, moves in with the Johnstons to learn to speak English fluently. Along the way, Joose gets a head-spinning introduction to American culture while sharing Finnish traditions with the Johnstons. Meanwhile, newly independent adult kids Jonah, Anna and Liz discover the highs and lows of adulting while teens Alex and Emma navigate the final years of high school."
Trent and Amber previously opened up to PopCulture.com in May 2021 about sharing their family life on television, with Amber explaining, "I think more than anything, [the difficulty is] the vulnerability and the living with what everyone thinks and thinks they know about your family."
Despite any criticism leveled their way, Amber said it's important to share the real ups and downs on camera. "We have to keep life as real as possible," she explained. "We are everyday people, and we happen to be little people, but the show is not something we wanted in order to create celebrities out of us." Trent added, "We are not TV stars. ... We weren't when we began this, and we aren't when this ride is over."
"It's a platform where we can entertain and relate with the families watching us, but also throw in bits of education," Amber continued. "The little people community, as well as being a minority community, we have a long, long way to go for our civil rights. ...We're simply human beings who have hearts and feelings." 7 Little Johnstons returns Tuesday, March 15 at 9 p.m. ET on TLC.