Jenelle Evans was a 17-year-old single mom when she joined the cast of 16 and Pregnant.
The controversial former MTV star then went on to appear as a cast member on the inaugural season of Teen Mom 2 alongside Chelsea Houska, Kail Lowry, and Leah Messer.
Since her departure from the franchise in 2019 — she was fired due to her husband David Eason’s actions, including killing their family’s dog — Jenelle has remained in the public eye via social media, as well as a few cameo appearances on Teen Mom: The Next Chapter and Girls’ Night In.
Jenelle often shares her personal life with her followers on TikTok and recently took to the platform to answer a curious fan’s question about her start on Teen Mom 2.
The question from a fan asked Jenelle why she did the show. According to Jenelle, she jokingly admitted that it was “all her fault.”
“No, but for real, I went to MTV.com, looked at casting calls, looked at people they were looking for for different shows, and 16 and Pregnant was one of them,” Jenelle shared.
Jenelle Evans dishes on why she joined the cast of Teen Mom 2
Jenelle said that she signed up, the network emailed her back, and she sent them her story. The North Carolina resident said that MTV asked her to share everything about her life, including the inside of her home and her family members. Jenelle obliged, sending MTV what they asked for in a casting tape.
She then expanded on the reason why she was interested in doing so. Jenelle told her 2.8 million TikTok followers that being gifted her first digital camera in third grade sparked her interest in film editing.
Being in the “TV world” was always a dream of Jenelle’s, but not necessarily being in front of the cameras, although that’s how it happened. As she explained, she always wanted to be behind the scenes. Jenelle added that film editing quickly became a hobby of hers and one that she hopes to continue.
Jenelle teased her own ‘dynamic series’ in the works
Over the summer, Jenelle divulged that although she wasn’t interested in returning to the Teen Mom franchise to film as a cast member, she would like to do her own thing and possibly create her own show.
Jenelle’s manager, August Keen, told TMZ in August that her client turned down an exclusive deal with MTV, claiming that she has a “new dynamic series” in the works.
Teen Mom: The Next Chapter airs on Tuesdays at 8/7c on MTV.