He‘s not mincing words. Teen Mom OG star Taylor McKinney defended his wife, Maci Bookout McKinney, while filming the highly anticipated season 9 reunion amid drama with costars Ryan Edwards and Mackenzie Edwards (née Standifer).

Apparently, the animosity between Maci, 29, and her ex reached a boiling point when they were shooting the TV special. “At first, MTV wanted Mackenzie and Ryan to square off in-person on the set with Maci and Taylor, but Ryan absolutely refused,” a production source told The Ashley’s Reality Roundup

Teen Mom OG Maci Bookout McKinney Opens Up About Bentley Starting Therapy Amid Uncomfortable Relationship With Dad Ryan Edwards
Courtesy of Maci Bookout McKinney/Instagram; Inset: Courtesy of Ryan Edwards/Instagram

“You could cut the tension with a knife when they were all sitting out there,” another insider close to the reality crew told the site about what transpired. “But everything was OK until the very end of the segment. Maci kept giving vague answers and was making it clear that she was upset but would not say why.”

In a new statement on Thursday, February 25, Taylor, 31, takes a stand on behalf of his wife. “The source comes off as very one-sided so you can probably guess who that is,” he tells The Hollywood Gossip amid feud speculation. “You’ll have to see the reunion play out on TV but one thing I am always going to do is stand up for my wife and kids … You come for my wife and kids? I’m coming for you.” 

Taylor’s response comes after Ryan’s wife, Mackenzie, shared a quote about “overreacting” amid the ongoing drama with his former flame Maci.  

“Don’t entertain negative energy,” Mackenzie’s Twitter post read. “Some situations will test your patience and try to make you overreact, overthink and respond to things that don’t deserve your life force. Your attention is your power. Don’t feed what doesn’t add value to your life. Conserve your energy.” 

Taylor McKinney Defends Wife Maci While Filming Teen Mom Reunion Amid Mackenzie Ryan Drama
Courtesy of Maci Bookout McKinney/Instagram; Courtesy of Mackenzie Edwards/Instagram

Prior to that, Maci clapped back after Ryan, 33, and Mackenzie, 24, called her a “petty” and “evil bitch” on the show following their visitation turmoil with Maci and Ryan’s son, Bentley. “I mean, I know she wants to see Bentley, but I mean, there just comes a point in time where you just can only take so much of Maci’s bulls—t,” Ryan said. 

Around that time, the Bulletproof author took to social media to share her thoughts on their comments. “I really wanted to post some ‘petty b*tch’ (and hilarious) comments, but I’ll wait until they can tell me the definition of ‘petty’ without Googling it and reading it aloud. [microphone emoji],” Maci tweeted after the scene aired. 

It sounds like emotions will be running high during the reunion!

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