TMOG's Maci and Ryan: Inside Strained Coparenting Relationship

It’s hard to keep up with the never-ending drama between Teen Mom OG exes Maci Bookout McKinney and Ryan Edwards.

In light of Ryan’s firing, fans are seeing the intensity of their estranged relationship while the former flames raise their 12-year-old son, Bentley.

Maci, 29, and Ryan, 33, have essentially been at odds since they first appeared on 16 & Pregnant. The two struggled to get along throughout the course of their romance, which resulted in them splitting up in 2010 and having to figure out a visitation set-up for Bentley post-breakup.

The animosity did not waver when Maci and Ryan’s families faced off during season 9 of TMOG because his loved ones felt they didn’t get enough time with Bentley and speculated it was Maci’s fault — something she boldly denied.

In January 2021, the Battle Upstairs: Poetry Book author responded to claims Ryan’s father, Larry Edwards, in which he implied that she and her husband, Taylor McKinney, had “convinced” Bentley to stop visiting with dad Ryan’s side of the family.

“I mean, obviously everyone is entitled to feel how they want to feel or [to] have their own opinion. But I think definitely throughout the season, the audience is going to be able to see Bentley and his growth and get to know a deeper side of him and how he feels,” Maci exclusively told In Touch at the time. “Honestly, if I’m going to respond, it would just be that I have raised Bentley to be an individual, to be himself and it’s OK to feel however he feels.”

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“Honestly, I have not raised him to give anybody the ability or the power to influence him, not even me,” she highlighted. “Really nothing else to say.”

Ryan’s father, Larry, has since surprised fans by claiming he and wife Jen were allegedly fired from the show after they taped the dramatic season 9 reunion for Teen Mom OG. Ryan’s wife, Mackenzie Edwards (née Standifer), later doubled down on the claims, adding that she and Ryan were also allegedly let go from the franchise.

Scroll down for more details on Maci and Ryan‘s strained coparenting relationship.

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Sharing Her Story

Maci opened up about their tough split in her book I Wasn’t Born Bulletproof. “My most painful breakup was one where, because I had so much invested in the relationship, I convinced myself that I needed to make it work and ignored a lot of red flags,” she wrote in one emotional excerpt. “It was my second love, and my most toxic relationship. When it finally ended it was painful, but I also felt a sense of relief that the relationship was over.”

Mulling It Over

The reality star said she and Ryan gave it a solid shot because they “thought staying together was the right thing for Bentley (after all my parents have stayed together through all kinds of ups and downs since they were teenagers).” After taking some time to reflect, “we realized that being happy and apart was far healthier for our son than being miserable and together.”

Finding a Balance

“[Larry and Jen] don’t update me or talk to me about it,” she exclusively told In Touch in May 2020. “I don’t ask them about it either. [It’s] not that I don’t care about his sobriety or don’t want him to be healthy, but … I have my own family, my own life that I have to keep [my] top priority. And it’s a tightrope to walk on.”

Visitation Drama

Although Ryan has made big strides in his sobriety journey, the visitation drama persisted between him, Maci and Mackenzie, leading both of the ladies to share cryptic messages throughout season 9 about their coparenting disagreements. Although Ryan and Bentley started going to counseling together, it appears they still have some issues to sort through.

Letting Go

In early April, Mackenzie addressed the “elephant in the room” (a.k.a. their firing) and said she and Ryan were “at peace” with their release from the network. The mom of three pointed out she will now have more time to focus on other projects and passions. “I have been putting together a fitness plan since I started my fitness journey close to a year ago,” she shared in a video via her IG Stories. “I had decided that I was going to curate a plan with trainers, and I got a team together and we are finally making that dream a reality, and I’m so excited.”

Family Feud

At the end of the month, fans finally got to see part one of the TMOG reunion after hearing all about the drama in the weeks leading up to it. Maci’s husband, Taylor, and Ryan’s dad, Larry, got into a war of words over visitations with Bentley and Taylor questioned if Ryan had been staying sober.

Venting His Frustrations

“Since I’ve been around, I know this woman has bent over backwards to make sure Bentley has kept a relationship with them through everything that Ryan has put us through,” Maci’s husband declared after hearing out Larry and Jen. “I mean that guy can really show you how big a piece of s–t he really is,” Taylor also said of Ryan.