Amber Portwood Says MTV Wants to Produce a ‘Teen Mom’ Spinoff About the Kids: She’s Against It
Despite not seeing her daughter, Leah Shirley, for several months amid mounting tension, Amber Portwood has some strong opinions about the teen’s potential future. Portwood recently took to TikTok to rant about MTV potentially considering a spinoff of Teen Mom that focuses more heavily on the kids. Portwood is having none of it, and while fans agree it’s a terrible idea, they still question Portwood’s motives.
Amber Portwood says MTV is planning a ‘Teen Mom’ spinoff about the kids
Amber Portwood was back on TikTok Live this week. The former reality TV star and mother of two took a brief break from the platform in April, but has ramped up her content creation recently. While most of Portwood’s TikTok events are pretty mundane, she drops a bombshell every so often.
That’s what she did this week when she jumped online to claim that MTV is planning a Teen Mom spinoff that focuses on the very children whose birth the network filmed. Portwood didn’t give away many details, but she claims her daughter, 16-year-old Leah Shirley, is being prepared to headline the series. Portwood says she’s entirely against the supposed concept and has expressed those feelings to network executives.
Viewers agree it is a terrible idea
Portwood isn’t the only person who thinks keeping the teens of Teen Mom on the reality TV track is a horrible idea. Followers flooded the comments section to discuss the concept, and even moved the convo to Reddit after Portwood’s Live event ended. Several fans expressed discomfort with the continued filming of the teens, who have been on reality TV literally since the day they were born. The continued exploitation of their traumatic experiences feels uncomfortable to some. Other fans have questioned whether the teens can make an informed decision about future filming, given the nature of their upbringing in front of the cameras.
While fans and followers largely agree with Portwood that a potential Teen Mom spinoff is a terrible idea, they don’t necessarily trust her motives. After all, Portwood didn’t seem to mind when her child was being “exploited” by MTV when she was earning a paycheck from it, too. It looks a bit suspicious that Portwood is expressing concern now. The worry only seems to come into play after she left MTV behind and is no longer cashing the network’s checks.
How long has the cast of ‘Teen Mom’ been on TV?
The original Teen Mom premiered on MTV on December 8, 2009, after the success of season 1 of 16 and Pregnant. It ran for four seasons until October 9, 2012. After a hiatus, it returned as Teen Mom OG in March 2015. The series aired its final episode on December 7, 2021. That wasn’t the end of the story, though.
In 2022, MTV announced Teen Mom: The Next Chapter, which brought cast members from multiple shows in the franchise together. It premiered on September 6, 2022. MTV has not yet announced its plans for the series moving forward. They have not announced plans for the spinoff Portwood discussed on TikTok, either.
Portwood was 17 when she signed up for 16 & Pregnant, and had turned 18 by the time Leah Shirley was born. Leah’s father, Gary Shirley, was 21 when she was born. Leah has resided with Gary and his wife, Kristina Shirley, since she was a toddler. The teen has expressed a desire to be adopted by Kristina, who has primarily acted as her mother. Portwood also welcomed a son, James Glennon, in 2018. James lives with his father, Andrew Glennon, in California. He is not featured on the show.
