‘The Willis Family’ canceled by TLC prior to Toby Willis arrest

Should TLC start to move away from the whole “quirky family” approach? The more reports we here, the more you have to start to wonder if that is the best way for them to avoid future PR landmines.

The latest story actually involves a show that aired on the network for two seasons in “The Willis Family,” which revolved around a family of 14 who also performed as a country music band. The group The Willis Clan actually performed on “America’s Got Talent” seasons back prior to having a reality show.

Per TMZ, the network had already canceled “The Willis Family” prior to the reports out there that family patriarch Toby Willis had been arrested following an investigation that he allegedly had a “sexual encounter” with an underage child twelve years ago. The investigation began late last month, and the reality star was eventually picked up and arrested in Kentucky, and has been charged with raping a child.

Specifically, the family was reportedly informed back in May that their show would not be renewed for a third season. As for whether or not TLC investigated the family fully prior to the show even beginning, the answer to that seems to be yes. Background checks were reportedly conducted on not only Toby, but also several other family members. This is a network that is still recovering from scandals that rocked both “Here Comes Honey Boo Boo” and “19 Kids and Counting”; neither of those shows are presently on the air in their original form. (Since the story first came out in the press, the network has removed the show from their official site.)

Obviously this story is disturbing, and we will not be sharing any further details on the victim in the case. Given that this is no longer a television matter so much as it is a human matter, we’ll use discretion when making further updates. (Photo: TLC.)