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The Roloff kids from “Little People, Big World” are not so little anymore. Since 2006, viewers have watched Matt and Amy’s children grow from small children, through their teens, into adults with families of their own. Recently, fans have observed a gradual yet concerning change in the show’s cast, as the Roloff children leave the series one after the other, leaving Zach as the only Roloff kid who still appears regularly in the show. The exodus started six years into the show, when one cast member started appearing less and less in the show, and eventually disappeared from the public eye, essentially cold quitting the family show. Since then, the show’s fans and loyal viewers know what is going on with Matt, Amy, Zach, Jeremy, and Jacob Roloff, but the life of Molly, Roloff’s only daughter, remains a mystery. To solve the mystery of Molly Roloff, we’ve dug into episodes of the show, its cast’s social media, and the internet, and compiled the following updates on why Molly Roloff quit the show, and what she’s been doing for the past 11 years since she last appeared in “Little People, Big World.”
“Little People, Big World”
4 March 2006 was a pivotal moment for reality television and people with dwarfism across the United States. On that day, TLC premiered a show focusing on the Roloff family, to raise awareness of dwarfism by documenting the lives of Matt and Amy Roloff, who have dwarfism, and their four children, one of whom has the condition as well. Initially, the show was set to air for six seasons, but its reception was such that it changed the minds of TLC’s executives, who have renewed it every year for 24 seasons.
Molly Roloff was a regular in the show’s first ten seasons. As the only girl in the family, Molly had her brothers wrapped around her little finger. For instance, when she needed her play house moved, she had all three brothers, including her younger brother, ready to help. Meanwhile, as the only female members of the family, she and Amy were joined at the hip. While Matt went camping with his three sons, Molly and Amy were relaxing in a scenic town in Arizona. When he worked with them to help construction workers fix their home, Molly was out at a cute bed and breakfast, bonding with the Roloff family matriarch.
Molly earned the unofficial title of the least problematic Roloff child. Her name evokes memories of a sweet girl who helped her mother in the vegetable garden, cheered her dad on when he gave a talk in Kentucky, and carried the flag in a parade at school. However, she had some rebellious moments as a teenager as well, most famously when she turned up late for her work in the family’s famous pumpkin patch and later when she insisted on picking a dress that violated her school’s dress code, and refused to deliver her speech after she was named valedictorian. Molly’s last major appearance on television was in the spin-off “Wedding Farm” when she left Roloff Farm for college.
Safety First
Since Molly’s appearances in the show stopped after she left for college, fans speculated that she’dleft the show to focus on her studies. However, Matt hinted at a more sinister reason. In 2020, Jacob, the youngest Roloff, went public with allegations of sexual abuse. In his explosive revelation, Jacob accused Chris Cardamone of molesting him, alleging that Chris, who was a producer of the show, groomed him for years before the incident, which occurred in November 2015. When asked why he didn’t report it to his family or the public as soon as it happened, Jacob blamed the legal system, which often lets sex offenders get away with their offences, adding that the only reprieve that most victims get is a public uproar and other social repercussions against their abusers, when they share their stories on social media.
In a candid Instagram post, Jacob Roloff claims he was molested by a former Little People, Big World producer. Read what the TLC star is alleging in his message to reality TV viewers: https://t.co/aaf3dpEhXa pic.twitter.com/pafMfwWPHL
— E! News (@enews) December 17, 2020
Matt Roloff addressed his son’s allegations in a podcast. The patriarch, who only learned about the incident two days before Jacob shared his story on Instagram, stated that he was proud of Jacob for speaking up. He revealed that no one in the family had known that Jacob was molested, and lamented his inability to protect his youngest son from abuse, despite him and Amy preparing their children for such happenings. While addressing the incident, he hinted that a similar incident when Molly was young had informed the family’s decision to reduce her airtime in the show. He spoke about obsessive fans who became fixated on Molly, and were determined to get to her. The family had to protect Molly by limiting her time in the show, which eventually led to her leaving “Little People, Big World” altogether.
Marriage and Family
Molly may have limited her time in the show to occasional appearances, but she remains a big part of her family. She pops up often on her mother’s and siblings’ social media, giving keen fans glimpses into her guarded life. From the posts, we know that Molly met Joel, the love of her life, at Whitworth University, where she went to college. He popped the question in 2016, and joined the Roloff family officially in August 2017 when he married Molly at her family farm in Oregon. The young couple moved to Spokane, Washington State – the six-hour drive from Roloff farm to the couple’s house in Spokane is the second reason for Molly’s absence from the show.
Since their wedding, Molly and Joel have settled into a quiet life in Spokane. The couple bought their first home in 2019 according to Zach Roloff, who shared the news and a congratulatory message on Instagram, and posted pictures of him beaming proudly next to his sister and her husband, when he and his family were visiting Molly and Joel. In 2022, fans were treated to a lovely re-enactment of Molly and Amy’s classic moments of closeness when, Amy spent the Easter holidays with Molly and Joel. A few months later, Matt drove to Spokane and shared lovely pictures of his time with Molly. Not one to be left out of spending time with his sister, Jeremy and his wife took Molly and Joel on a double date in Portland, Oregon, and posted pictures of their experience. The visits and pictures came after some inquisitive fans started to question Molly’s absence and wonder whether she was estranged from the Roloff family.
Work and Community Service
Evidently, Molly’s relationship with all members of the Roloff family hasn’t changed since their days of working together on their pumpkin patch. From the smiles on hers and Joel’s faces in their pictures with the Roloffs, Molly’s marriage and her relationship with her husband is thriving as well, as is her career too. According to her LinkedIn profile, Molly is a senior accountant at Nordstrom, working remotely from Spokane. In addition, Molly serves her community in the role of Board Treasurer at “Side by Side,” a ministry that helps people build friendships and improve each other’s lives. Away from her work and community service, Molly keeps a low profile away from the glare of the cameras that were trained onto every step she took until she left for college.
