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Joy-Anna Duggar and Austin Forsyth were on Counting On for the long haul.
But, even before TLC finally canceled the Duggar vehicle, there were certain things that Austin specifically didn’t want to film.
He wanted to be careful what he said. He was wary of production reducing him to a single trait.
And he did not want the reality TV cameras there to capture the birth of his and Joy’s first child.
Austin Forsyth and Joy-Anna Duggar had hang-ups about filming ‘Counting On’
In the Wednesday, February 19 episode of The Jinger & Jeremy Podcast, Austin Forsyth joined the titular Jinger Duggar and Jeremy Vuolo to discuss what it’s like to marry into the Duggar family.
As it turns out, one of the biggest sticking points for Austin was filming Counting On. That makes sense. And he had specific grimes on his own behalf and on that of his wife, Joy-Anna Duggar.
“I don’t remember us having really big, like, ‘Oh, no, y’all can’t show this or whatever,’” he recalled. “I think we did push back about having Gideon. ” He continued: “I didn’t want any film crew there. I took a lot of heat for that.”
At this point, as Austin Forsyth recalled, some of Joy-Anna’s various Duggar sisters had featured their own childbirths for reality television.
As a result, it sort of set the tone. Austin felt that this precedent added to the pressures that he and his wife faced.
“That’s something which Jessa and Jill, I believe, had already had Spurgeon and Israel,” he pointed out. “So I should have thought about it.” At least, that’s how certain other Duggars presented it to him.
After marrying Joy-Anna Duggar, Austin Forsyth was suddenly a reality star
“It’s not something that, as a single guy, crossed my mind,” Austin Forsyth recalled of his thoughts before marrying Joy-Anna Forsyth.
He reasoned: “Like, ‘One day, I’m going to have to make the decision if I’m going to have the network with cameras in our face.’”
When it comes to reality television, Austin explained: “There’s a lot you just don’t know how [to handle].”
“I didn’t really trust the producers or the camera guys,” he admitted. Austin then clarified: “Not that the camera guys really had anything to do with the production.”
He described: “I remember the producer telling me, ‘It used to be so hard getting stuff out of you and you always seemed like we were trying to entrap you or you always would think a long time about your answers.’”
Austin continued: “‘And we just wanted something spontaneous.’”
Reality TV is forever, folks!
Speaking to Jeremy and Jinger, Austin admitted that he couldn’t quite put his finger on his misgivings about filming for the Duggar reality series.
“I guess I was thinking if I’m gonna be on camera and this is gonna be out there forever,” he suggested, “I really wanna be careful what I say.”
We don’t necessarily agree with Austin Forsyth and Joy-Anna Duggar about a lot of things. But this? This makes sense. And a lot of reality stars (and aspiring reality stars) may want to keep this in mind. Giving the producers what they want can pay off for the season, but might not for your long-term brand.
Joy-Anna Duggar & Austin Forsyth Didn’t Want to Film Gideon’s Birth for … was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip.