After 15 years as a reality television star, Maci Bookout admittedly thinks about stepping away from the cameras “all the time.” In an exclusive interview with In Touch, the Teen Mom: Family Reunion star and her husband, Taylor McKinney, open up about why they’ve considered throwing in the towel.
“I think I’ve just gotten to a point where, for me, it’s like, man, everything is just … it’s just not what you see on the show,” Maci, 32, explains. “Every move we make is just so public and then everything with our kids is just so public. You can’t really go out in public and be left alone, which isn’t a bad thing.”
However, with so many years in the spotlight already under her belt, Maci is aware of the fact that she’ll always be a public figure now. “Even if we left reality TV, everything would still be so public,” she says. “They’re not just going to forget that we exist and not care. So if we expect to leave and then just be left alone, that’s never going to happen. So it’s like … might as well keep trying to help people, keep trying to put real stuff out there for people to see, to laugh at. Or to judge, whatever. But hopefully if it can help one person or one family, then [it] sounds good to me.”
Taylor, 34, adds that filming days are often long and “can get overwhelming,” but says that he and his wife “try to make the best of it.” At the end of the day, being able to help others outweighs any negativity.
“When somebody comes up – and you can kind of lose sight of this – but somebody will come up in public and just say, ‘Hey, your guys’ story helps me a lot. I appreciate what you’re doing,’” he shares. “And I forget that sometimes. Because we’re just going through our everyday life that you forget that people watch and relate to it and it helps them.”
Maci began sharing her story on 16 & Pregnant in 2009. At the time, she was in a relationship with Ryan Edwards and had given birth to their son, Bentley. They continued to document their journey on Teen Mom, which premiered later that year.
Meanwhile, Maci and Taylor started dating in 2012 and went on to welcome two children of their own. They tied the knot in 2016. The couple is currently starring on season 3 of Teen Mom: Family Reunion, where they’ve been able to work on bettering their relationship away from the kids.
“I felt like communication was definitely the main [issue we wanted to work on],” Maci admits. “And still has been and probably will be forever.”
Teen Mom: Family Reunion airs on MTV Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
