The Duggar family first received a reality show because of their unusual family size, and for years, the show's format centered around life in a large family. Since 2015, when their previous show, 19 Kids and Counting, was canceled, to be replaced with the spin-off, Counting On, weddings have been the key element of the series.
After the public learned that Josh Duggar, the eldest son of Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar, had admitted to molesting several underage girls, and his parents told Fox News' Megyn Kelly that they had afterward protected their kids through such measures as locking their daughters (not their sons) in at night, and forbidding games of hide-and-seek, the new show's format was expected to focus on the older Duggar kids. In fact, for the first season, it was branded Jill and Jessa: Counting On, with the two sisters' names dropped later. Viewers expected that Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar, along with Josh, would be kept off-screen.
With the shift of focus to the oldest Duggar kids, weddings became a key element of the show, with seasons centered around Jinger Duggar's courtship and wedding to Jeremy Vuolo, Joy-Anna Duggar's wedding to Austin Forsyth, and Joe Duggar's wedding to Kendra Caldwell, which is still being shown in the current season. Now, Josiah Duggar's engagement appears to promise another wedding -- and another season of the family's reality show.
