One of the most compelling things about Teen Mom stars Catelynn and Tyler Baltierra’s journey in the franchise has been their relationship with birth daughter Carly’s adoptive parents, Brandon and Teresa Davis. Catelynn and Tyler placed Carly for adoption in an episode of 16 & Pregnant in 2009. Since then, their relationship with Brandon and Teresa has gotten increasingly chaotic.
In the April 2, 2025, episode of Catelynn and Tyler’s podcast Cate & Ty Break It Down, the couple shared some intimate details of the fractured relationship they now have with Carly’s adoptive parents. They explained at the top of the episode that they recorded it at a time when tensions were high, but because of that, Tyler was quick to spill some tea regarding a claim that Brandon and Teresa wanted MTV to pay them for photos of Carly.
Tyler and Catelynn claim Brandon and Teresa wanted money from MTV.
As Teen Mom fans know, Brandon and Teresa have long since asked Catelynn and Tyler to honor their rule of only sharing photos of Carly from the back, or where her face isn’t showing. According to Catelynn and Tyler on the show, it’s all about privacy for the teen and protecting her both on and off the show. According to Tyler and Catelynn in the podcast episode, though, one reason for Brandon and Teresa’s rule has to do with money.
They explained that Brandon reached out to them after they shared a social media photo of Carly, Tyler, and his and Catelynn’s daughter Nova, and they made sure to only feature their backs. Although Tyler thought this was in line with the rule in place, because he shared the photo on Instagram, MTV was able to add it to an episode of Teen Mom.
Catelynn shared that Brandon and Teresa told her and Tyler, “I guess we’re kind of upset about it because now, MTV can’t pay us.”
Tyler added, “because it’s not an exclusive picture.”
They also claimed that “if it made the adoption look really good,” Brandon and Teresa were more likely to agree to film or share part of their story on the show.
Tyler says there is a ‘weird power dynamic’ with Brandon and Teresa.
Tyler and Catelynn also explained on their podcast that, over the years, as their relationship with Brandon and Teresa has changed, they’ve shared more about their side of things because of the push and pull with Carly’s adoptive parents. Tyler also said they faced backlash when they expressed their feelings about the adoption and about their interactions with Brandon and Teresa.
“It’s just a weird power dynamic, and it feels like, for so long, we had to be silent because like [Catelynn] said, I don’t want to ruffle feathers, I’m not in control,” Tyler said on the podcast. “So we have to kind of be like, ‘OK, all right. Because I don’t want you to take her away.’ So we didn’t speak out [about] a lot of things that happened behind closed doors, because that’s priority number one, to be able to see her and have access to her.”
