Whatever Happened To The Original Cast Of TLC's Unexpected?

The dedicated viewership to shows that chronicle teen pregnancies was at its peak in the early 2000s, with hits like MTV's "16 and Pregnant" and "Teen Mom." Young couples graced our TVs to share their stories on what it's like to raise a child before becoming an adult themselves. It was TLC's "Unexpected" that kept the train rolling, introducing the 2017 version of teenage parenthood.

Teenage pregnancy has been criticized in the media before. Movies like "Juno" and "Knocked Up" were blamed for glorification. The 2010 film "The Pregnancy Pact" portrayed the real-life phenomenon in Gloucester, Massachusetts, where 18 high schoolers promised to become pregnant in 2008 to raise their babies together. However, shows like "Unexpected" do not intend to encourage teenage pregnancy. If anything, the show magnifies the struggle to keep a family together while reaching the traditional milestones of teenagehood, like prom and graduation. So, where is the cast of "Unexpected" now?

Season 1 of "Unexpected," which premiered in 2017, introduced us to Lilly Bennett and James Kennedy, who were 16 and 17 at the time they found out they were pregnant. They had only been dating for three months when the couple revealed they were expecting. Viewers watched the pair grow closer, with Kennedy even giving Bennett a promise ring. By the end of the Season 1 "Tell All" episode, the family seemed more bonded than ever, and Bennett was even mentioned wanting more children with Kennedy. But by her next appearance in Season 4, which aired in 2020, she was expecting her second baby with her new boyfriend, Lawrence Bishop.

Though Bennett and Kennedy broke up behind the scenes, it's still evident through social media that the two love their daughter, Aaliyah. Bennett continues to post updates on social media about her daughter and the son she shares with Bishop – while the only photo featured on Kennedy's Instagram is of him and Aaliyah in 2022. Kennedy's life past "Unexpected" is not public, but his ex, Bennett, is always posting adorable photos of her new family, including the moments captured during her and Bishop's August 2024 wedding.

Dating since they were both 14 years old, McKayla Adkins and Caelan Morrison discovered they were pregnant with their son Timmy at 16. In Season 1 of "Unexpected," fans got to see the romance and turmoil between the two. The couple got engaged and then broke off their wedding plans. They decided to continue their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend during Season 2 when they found out they were pregnant with their second child, Gracelynn. Adkins and Morrison ultimately ended their relationship by Season 3 of the show.

After the breakup, many fans slammed Adkins for being toxic while she battled it out with Morrison for full custody of their children. According to TV Shows Ace, Adkins filed a temporary restraining order against Morrison in 2020 while he was fighting for visitation rights. However, the courts reportedly gave Morrison weekends with Timmy and Gracelynn. As of 2024, Adkins is divorced from her husband, Ethan Tenney, with whom she shares her third child. Morrison also welcomed his third baby with his partner, Allycia Flowers, in May 2024.

The apple didn't fall far from the tree for "Unexpected" star Lexus Scheller, as both her mother and grandmother were teenage parents. Fifteen-year-old Scheller and her 17-year-old boyfriend, Shayden Massey, were notorious for their arguments during Season 1 in 2017. They welcomed a baby girl by the end of the first season, but the birth of their daughter only made their fights more frequent. By the Season 1 "Tell All," Scheller revealed that she and Massey broke up due to his poor treatment of her. Shortly after they called it quits, Massey served time in jail for multiple infractions involving an expired license.

The parents appeared in Season 2 but did not return for the third season, as Massey claimed the financial benefits were not enough for him to stay on the show. Scheller and Massey have moved on and are now both in different relationships. Shayden now has two other daughters with two different women and seems to be in a relationship with the mother of his third child. As for Scheller, she is in a relationship with a new man and even announced on Instagram that she was expecting baby #2 with him in 2022.