Tyler Baltierra Slams ‘Teen Mom OG’ for Casting Bristol Palin: ‘It’s Weird as Hell’

Teen Mom star Tyler Baltierra is no fan of Teen Mom OG bringing in Bristol Palin as a replacement for Farrah Abraham, calling it “weird as hell.”

“Do I think it’s weird as hell? Absolutely. Do I think it’s a really, like, not a good decision for the franchise? Yeah. But that’s out of my control,” Baltierra who is married to Catelynn Lowell, told Kate Casey on her Reality Life podcast this week.

Baltierra admitted that he was not following the news when Palin found herself in the national spotlight during the 2008 presidential campaign, when her mother Sarah Palin ran as Sen. John McCain’s vice presidential candidate. He told Casey he was still not too familiar with her when he heard about her joining the Teen Mom franchise.

“I don’t know anything about anybody. It’s weird. When it comes to that kind of stuff, I’m a f– recluse,” he said, via Hollywood Life.

But once MTV made it official, Baltierra started hearing more about Palin and learned more about her.

“I got headlines sent to me, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s racist, she’s homophobic,’” Baltierra explained. “I’m like, ‘What? I don’t know!’”

Baltierra said he did not plan on making judgements about Palin until he meets her in person. However, he said he understands the allure of joining the MTV franchise. Cheyenne Floyd, who starred on MTV’s The Challenge and Are You The One, is also joining Teen Mom OG.

“Do I have any hard feelings against the girls, the people participating in it now? Absolutely not,” Baltierra said. “Because I think with the franchise — like, what it turned into — if the opportunity knocks on anyone’s door, I think everyone would be lying if they said they wouldn’t take the opportunity. Honestly, things evolve, they gotta grow.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Baltierra detailed how he handled his wife’s miscarriage. Baltierra and Lowell are now expecting their third baby, but Lowell suffered a miscarriage earlier in the year.

“It was very emotionally intense for me,” Baltierra said, via PEOPLE. “My first initial reaction was to just to help Cate. I ran to her, held her. We cried. We just held each other for probably two hours and just cried.”

Baltierra, 26, said he felt the pressure to stay “strong” for his wife, but he was “breaking down every single day.” He also admitted to “just crying every single day” while Lowell was in rehab for treatment with depression.

Lowell, 26, and Baltierra are parents to Novalee, 3, and have been married since August 2015. They are also parents to 9-year-old Carly, who was placed for adoption. The two announced they are expecting another baby last month.

Teen Mom OG airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on MTV.

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