Since the first Teen Mom series began in 2011, both Teen Mom OG and Teen Mom 2 have seen its share of headline-grabbing departures and firings. Both shows have been surprisingly consistent with the main cast, but there have been supporting players who have come and gone.
The biggest departure to date is Farrah Abraham, who chose to break ties with MTV late last year and made her final appearance during the Teen Mom OG reunion special in April. She is reportedly going to be replaced with Bristol Palin, who could be the first Teen Mom OG star not to appear on 16 and Pregnant.
Videos by PopCulture.com
Scroll on for a look at 10 of the biggest firings and departures from the Teen Mom franchise.
Farrah Abraham
Farrah Abraham is easily the best-known Teen Mom OG star, but the series will have to survive without her. Abraham claims she chose to leave the show after the seventh season so she could continue her career in the adult entertainment industry, although the show depicted EP Morgan J. Freeman firing her. Since leaving, she has criticized the show and even responded to Bristol Palin’s reported casting.
“Who cares! Sorry I’m dealing with a family loss right now,” Abraham told Us Weekly, the day after the death of her Pomeranian, Blue. “I don’t care as there’s no replacement for me, as we all know.”
David Eason
David Eason, the husband of Jenelle Evans, was fired for tweeting homophobic remarks after he was criticized for posting a photo of Evans with a gun on the same day 17 people were killed in the Parkland, Florida high school shooting in February.
Fans saw the firing play out in real time in a Teen Mom 2 episode last month. Evans is reportedly holding out on signing up for Teen Mom 2 season nine unless Eason is allowed on the set.
Ryan Edwards
Ryan Edwards, who has a son with Teen Mom OG star Maci Bookout, and his wife Mackenzie Standifer officially left the series in July. Mackenzie told E! News that MTV has no interest in showing Edwards recovering from his battles with addiction.
“I know they did want five girls to begin with after Farrah [Abraham] left to sort of resemble Teen Mom 2,” Standifer explained. “But they didn’t want to see another recovering addict storyline. So they’re writing us out of the show right now and making it seem like we dipped out on our baby, on Bentley and on everyone. And that’s just not the case.”
Mackenzie Standifer
Stadifer is the wife of Edwards, Teen Mom OG starBookout’s ex-boyfriend and the father of her son Bentley. Standifer, who is pregnant, and Edwards are leaving the show, since MTV executives are not interested in showing Edwards’ efforts to get sober.
“The show had been paying for my healthcare and for the baby so they could film the visits and then a week ago they let me know that would no longer be the case,” Standifer told E! News. “They’re not going to film the birth. We’re not going to be on at all. Maci can’t speak to Ryan and Ryan can’t speak to Maci – that was a mutual decision. But she doesn’t know what’s going on in our lives.”
Matt Baier
Matt Baier, who was engaged to Teen Mom OG star Amber Portwood, no longer appears on the show. During the April Teen Mom OG reunion special, Portwood told Dr. Drew Pinsky that they had a “really horrible” and “abusive” relationship.
“The main thing is when I was going through everything after me and Matt broke up, people have to understand, I was with that man for three-and-a-half years. It was a really horrible relationship. It was an abusive relationship – mentally and physically,” Portwood told Dr. Drew. “It turned me into a really unhappy, depressed person and I couldn’t keep going on with that. When I found out that he possibly cheated on me, that was the end because I can’t stay with a man who would ever do that to me. When it ended, I spiraled out of control.”
Heather Walsh
Heather Walsh was a producer who appeared on Teen Mom OG, working with Portwood and Abraham, and was fired in 2017. There was a rumor that Portwood had something to do with that, but The Ashley’s Reality Roundup reported otherwise. According to the site, Walsh was breaking rules, staying at Abraham’s house during production.
“They found out that she was frequently staying at Farrah’s house and that is not allowed,” a source told the site. “They want producers to have a great relationship with the cast, but there are certain rules in place that lay out things they can and can not do with the cast. The producers tend to get really close to the cast, since they spend so much time together, but there has to be a cut-off to maintain professionalism.”
Simon Saran
Simon Saran is Abraham’s former former boyfriend and cut ties with the show in July 2017. However, he cannot seem to stay out of the headlines since he continues to comment on Teen Mom.
In January, he even sparked a feud with Catelyn Lowell’s husband Tyler Baltierra by sticking his nose into a cheating rumor.
‘Teen Mom 3’ Cast
The Teen Mom 3 cast has been mostly forgotten. Back in 2013, MTV tried to expand the Teen Mom franchise to a third series, but the audience was not there and the show was cancelled. The only castmember to make it on the other shows is Briana DeJesus, who appears on Teen Mom 2.
MacKenzie McKee was considered a potential replacement for Farrah Abraham on Teen Mom OG, but MTV ultimately passed on her.
Jeremy Calvert
Jeremy Calvert was married to Teen Mom 2 star Leah Messer and has continued to occasionally appear on the series. However, he was noticeably absent during the reunion taping in New York in May, claiming he could not get time off work.
Calvert has also clashed with Evans and has made his opinion on Eason’s homophobic remarks known. He also called Eason’s apology “bulls–.” Messer admitted to trying to get back with Calvert for the sake of their daughter, but it did not work out. In April, he introduced fans to his new girlfriend, Desi Kibler.
Courtland Rogers
Courland Rogers is Evans’ first husband. In 2017, Evans claimed she suffered a miscarriage after he assaulted her during their brief marriage. In January, Rogers married Lindsey Frazier, who welcomed a baby in March.
He has several run-ins with the law on his record, including his latest in April. He was arrested on two drug charges in North Carolina, after he was indicted in March. He was also arrested in February for possession of a controlled substance and jailed for a probation violation.
