In the social media era, reality TV producers are faced with some unique challenges.
The biggest problem, of course, is that by the time an episode airs, the storylines are often old news thanks to the stars of the show airing their dirty laundry online.
Fortunately, in some cases, the drama is so wild that viewers will tune in even though they already know what’s gonna happen.
Take, for example, Monday night’s episode of Teen Mom 2, in which Barbara Evans threatened to kill Kailyn Lowry.
Sure, fans watched it all unfold on Instagram Live back in January, but it was such a shocking moment that they reacted with shock all over again last night.
Take a look:
It Begins
The trouble started when Jenelle and Barbara decided to hop on Instagram Live during a girls’ trip.
Drama Queens
“I’ve been kind of overwhelmed with all the drama in my life, so my mom wanted to take me out of town for the weekend,” Jenelle explained in a voice-over.
Better Luck Next Time!
Needless to say, the little excursion only created even greater drama!
The Brittany Factor
Briana DeJesus’ sister, Brittany, eventually joined the chat from afar. This seemingly prompted Babs to step up her drunken antics.
She Went There
“We’ll all get lit and we’ll kill Kail,” an intoxicated Babs shouted at one point.
Too Little, Too Late
Jenelle, who had also been drinking, quickly attempted to defuse the situation.
Distancing Herself
“No comment, no comment,” Jenelle muttered. But it was too late.
Busted
Shortly after Barbara’s idiotic comment, Jenelle received a call from Kristen, a producer on Teen Mom 2.
Not Happy
“Take me off speaker, are you on Instagram Live?” Kristen shouted once she had Babs on the phone. “You have to tell Kail that you were joking.
Predicting a Sh-t Storm
“There’s a huge sh-t storm that you told Kail you wanna kill her,” Kristen stated as Jenelle continued to laugh at the situation.
Lame Apology
Back on Instagram Live, Babs attempted to clear the air, saying, “So earlier … and I said that I wanted to kill Kail and everyone took it out of perspective. I was just doing a joke. Come on, I’ve known the girl for 10 years, that’s like crazy.” But no no one was buying it …
Kail Is Pissed
Back in Delaware, an understandably upset Kail said to Kristen, “I don’t want an apology from Barb. She didn’t apologize and I don’t want one,” she said. “It’s not going to mean anything to me. Obviously she didn’t want to apologize or she wouldn’t have said it in the first place.”
Issuing an Ultimatum
“I’m not losing sleep over it, but at the same time, I don’t want to be part of a franchise that allows that type of behavior,” she continued.
Done With the Evans Clan
“I’m not getting on Instagram Live talking about killing anyone. Anytime I talk about them, it’s in response to something else,” Lowry went on.
Understandable Decision
“At some point, you have to choose to disassociate with people and I don’t want to associate with them or the DeJesuses,” Kail said. “I just don’t.”
Brushing It Off
“You can’t say shit these days without anyone getting offended,” said Jenelle.
The Babs Defense
“You know, I don’t understand why she was offended. It was a joke,” Barbara chimed in. “I say it all the time to Jace, ‘I’ll kill you Jace!’ When he’s acting up.”
It Was Just a Little Death Threat!
“I was laughing my head off when I said it,” she continued. “I don’t understand why she’s so pissed off. I think it’s almost a jealousy thing. We’re just having a blast.”
Making It Much, Much Worse
From there, Jenelle speculated that Kail is “jealous” of her newly repaired friendship with Babs, saying, “Yeah and none of her family wants anything to do with her and no one does because of the way she is. She’s stupid, she just wants her own show, she wants to kick everyone off. Eliminate them one by one.”
Bridges Burnt
Needless to say, we think it’ll be a long time before these former friends even attempt to make nice.
Reunion Drama
Teen Mom 2 producers may not have fired Jenelle, as Kail (and everyone else) would have liked, but Lowry still had the last laugh.
Keeping a Distance
At the latest Teen Mom 2 reunion, Jenelle was forced to film her interview segments on a separate day, when the rest of the cast would not be in the studio.
Insult to Injury
To make matters worse, David and Jenelle were put up in a hotel in Philadelphia, while the rest of the cast got to stay in Manhattan. Advantage: Kail!