By Holly Rasmussen
Whip up a tater tot casserole and get ready for some more “wholesome” TV, courtesy of TLC! The network announced today that the Duggar family is coming back– well, some of them are anyway.
TLC confirmed that the two married Duggar daughters, Jill Dillard and Jessa Seewald, will be getting their own TV specials. This morning TLC Executive Vice President and General Manager Nancy Daniels released a statement about the specials to the Associated Press.
“What we will be following in these specials is Jessa preparing for her first child, she said. “And we’ll be watching Jill preparing to make a major move to Central America with her family, which we know is something our audience will be interested in.
“We know that our audience is really excited about what’s been going on with Jill and Jessa as they move into young adulthood,” Nancy Daniels added. “And now they’re both at the precipice of big changes. With what was happening in their lives in the next few months, it felt like now is the time [for the specials], and we got going pretty quickly.”
Jessa and Jill are no strangers to the camera. They appeared on their family’s reality show, 19 Kids and Counting, from 2008 until earlier this year, when the show was pulled by TLC after their brother Josh admitted to molesting four of his sisters and one family friend.
“There’s no doubt it’s been a tough few months on the family, and we’ve obviously been in close contact with them as they’ve been going through it,” Nancy Daniels added.
So far the specials are untitled, but the network has plans for at least two or three episodes and plans to start production soon. They are planned to air sometime this fall.
The AP reports that a network production source has confirmed to them that Josh Duggar will not appear on the girls’ specials, nor will he ever return to any TLC programming. It is not yet known what role Jessa and Jill’s parents, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, or their 16 other siblings will have in the specials, if any.
The Duggar family is very excited for the specials and posted the following message on their family Facebook page:
“We appreciate all the prayers for our family,” the family wrote. “God has drawn us closer to Him and to each other this summer. We are grateful that the new TLC specials set to air this fall will be sharing special moments with Jill, Derick and Israel on the foreign mission field and following Ben and Jessa as they prepare for the arrival of their first baby!”
Jill also wrote about the specials on her Instagram, mentioning that it will provide an opportunity for fans to see her and her husband’s missionary work in action. (The couple was recently criticized for not reporting how they were using fans’ donated funds.)
“We are looking forward to reconnecting with everyone with the new specials on TLC – many have asked about our mission work and about the challenges of taking our family to a different country, culture and learning a new language,” Jill wrote on Instagram. “We appreciate your prayers.”
Now that they’re back on the TLC payroll, perhaps Jessa & Co. can stop begging fans for gift cards and donations?
(Photos: Facebook, TLC)
21 Responses
I will boycott all sponsors of these stupid shows & know several people who feel the same. When the Duggar girls dismissed their perverted brother’s molestation actions as “curiosity,” they did a HUGE disservice to all abuse survivors. They are a bunch of money hungry grifters who hide behind religion to scam their fans out of $. They offer nothing of value to the word & should go away permanently.
Derrick is the best one out of all these people
What’s wrong with Jill’s husbands face in that picture. It looks so crooked and off. What dorky douchy men
I hope Ben and Derrick don’t let Jim Bob take the money they earn from TLC. The girls are probably brain washed into giving what they have to their parents. Keep in mind that it may be because of them that you got on TV in the first place, but it’s also because of them that they lost the show too.
This is disgusting and low and s slap in the face to any survivor of this type of abuse. Shame on you TLC no one wants to see them and you reward the behavior that they covered up by giving them another show? I hope everyone boycotts TLC This kind of abuse doesn’t go away, doesn’t die with the abuser its something you live with day in and out and to have a family support the abuser makes you feel your not worth anything. God help those girls
They are all money hungry and using gods name to do so not interrsted in watching whether watch Seasme Street
Too ‘worldly’, I’m sure. Remember how Jimboob and MEchelle were iffy on The Andy Griffith show? And I don’t think Mayberry had women wearing pants like in sinful, sinful Sesame Street. *rolls eyes*
I don’t know. I think Miss Ellie rocked a pair of tight capris once or twice.
just sick TLC is just trying to cash in on a scandal we should all boycott this show sick sick cult money grabbing perverts
A few months ago I would have been interested in seeing this ridic fundie family (without Josh) getting another crack at TV bc they were a guilty pleasure. Seeing how deep the fame whore machine goes and how insincere they are with asking for baby gifts and money…I’m done. If TLC were smart, they woulda waited YEARS and tested the water with an update on some of the Duggars after public began to forget all of their issues and became curious about how they turned out. A few months after a scandal is a bad move…
GO AWAY!!!!
Boycutt this show
Ugh.
No.
You’re over at TMJ, right? I lurk there! If you’ve never been on FreeJinger, I recommend it!
There is no part of me that wants to watch these wretched people do anything, ever. Except maybe being sent off on an ice floe (the young can still be saved.) WHAT IS TLC THINKING??
Wasn’t one of these girls just caught lying about raising money for supposed missionary work?? These scam artists need to STFU and GTFO!!
I’m not even remotely interested in watching this.
Agree!! I can’t believe TLC would put them back on Tv.
Unbelievable!! That this family is still sucking the life out of TLC.
I think it’s more like TCL refusing to let completely go of their cash cow
Hey, Nancy Daniels, why don’t you invite them to your house for Sunday Dinner. All of them