''Mom at Sixteen'' is a 2005

Lifetime Television Lifetime is an American basic cable channel that is part of Lifetime Entertainment Services, a subsidiary of A&E Networks, which is jointly owned by Hearst Communications and The Walt Disney Company. It features programming that is geared toward ...

film about a sixteen-year-old mother, dealing with problems at school and her decaying relationship with her mother, because of her seeing her boyfriend for the first time since before her son was born.

Plot

Jacey Jeffries (

Danielle Panabaker Danielle Nicole Panabaker (born September 19, 1987) is an American actress. She began acting as a teenager and came to prominence for her roles in the Disney films '' Stuck in the Suburbs'' (2004), '' Sky High'' (2005) and ''Read It and Weep'' ( ...

) is a 16-year-old high school student and the mother of a baby boy named Charley. Instead of giving him up for

adoption Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

as planned, she chose to keep the baby. Her mother, Terry (

Mercedes Ruehl Mercedes J. Ruehl (; born February 28, 1948) is an American screen, stage, and television actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, two Obie Awards, an ...

) pretends the infant is hers to allow Jacey to finish

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

and lead a relatively normal life and graduate. When Jacey attends a new school, she criticizes several of the students for their promiscuous behavior during a class discussion. Jacey's opinions lead Donna Cooper (

Jane Krakowski Jane Krakowski (; ; born October 11, 1968) is an American actress, comedienne, and singer. She is best known for her starring role as Jenna Maroney in the NBC satirical comedy series ''30 Rock'' (2006–2013, 2020), for which she received four ...

), the Health teacher, to take a special interest in Jacey. Jacey's comments are unique in that she does not have an interest in following what her classmates say. The teacher's husband, the swim coach Bob (

Colin Ferguson Colin Ferguson (born July 22, 1972) is a Canadian-American actor, director and producer.
Yahoo! Mov ...

), convinces Jacey to join the swim team. Jacey passes out after taking

tranquilizers A tranquilizer is a drug that is designed for the treatment of anxiety, fear, tension, agitation, and disturbances of the mind, specifically to reduce states of anxiety and tension. Etymology Tranquilizer, as a term, was first used by F.F. Yonkm ...

stolen from her mother and ends up in the hospital. Donna and Bob are unable to conceive and are devastated when they discover their latest round of

In-Vitro Fertilization In vitro fertilisation (IVF) is a process of fertilisation where an egg is combined with sperm in vitro ("in glass"). The process involves monitoring and stimulating an individual's ovulatory process, removing an ovum or ova (egg or eggs) ...

has failed. Jacey feels that matters are unresolved with Charley's father, Brad. It is apparent that Jacey was and still is in love with him. Jacey feels guilty because Brad is unaware that Jacey gave birth. Brad currently attends college. When Jacey attempts to call him, she becomes nervous upon hearing his voice and hangs up. Donna sees Jacey with Charley, and asks if Jacey is his mother. Although Jacey lied, many students from the school witnessed the interrogation and believe Jacey is really the mother. She begins to get teased at school for her behavior. Her secret is found out at school, when the students were asked about how guys react to what girls wear. When other students criticize her for her

hypocrisy Hypocrisy is the practice of engaging in the same behavior or activity for which one criticizes another or the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. In moral psychology, it is the ...

, she goes to a mothers meeting for teen mothers. After being teased at school, she leaves abruptly to see Brad. They spend the day together, and are about to have sex, when Jacey announces that the reason she left him was because she got pregnant. Brad takes the news badly and leaves. Jacey returns home and has a huge argument with Terry who hands her Charley and tells her to handle things on her own, angry that Jacey doesn't understand the sacrifices she has made to help Jacey have a normal life. Exhausted and confused, she turns to Donna for help and advice. Donna advocates for Jacey telling her mother that she wants to be Charley's mom to which Terry gives a speech about the sacrifices it takes to be a 'real Mom'. A few weeks later, Brad arrives at Jacey's house to apologize and tells Terry that he will make it work between Jacey and him. However, when Jacey makes a surprise visit to his school, she finds out Brad's parents will only help if a DNA test is done to prove Brad is the father; Jacey feels betrayed and leaves him. At school, Jacey gives a speech on pregnancy and teen sex, using examples from her friends from the teen mother's meeting. She gets applause and respect from her former bullies for being honest and sensible. Afterwards, Macy, her sister, gives her a DVD she had put together for Charley for him to watch when he is older. Watching it together with Terry, the two reconcile. Later, Donna receives a call that there is a baby waiting to be adopted. Overjoyed, Donna and Bob go to adopt the child, only to find that it is Terry and Jacey who have decided to give him up to give him his best chance. She apparently remains a part of Charley's life, as five years later she's there at Charley's first day at kindergarten, Donna and Bob have a new baby daughter, and Bob is shown recording Charley and asks Charley to talk about himself. "I'm Charley Cooper and I'm 5 years old, I got a new baby sister." Charley tells the camera that he has two mommies and that Jacey is his special mommy and Bob asks why. Charley replies, "because I'm the only one who knows how her heart feels from inside her." It is indicated in one scene that this is in fact the couple that was originally going to adopt him before Jacey changed her mind.

Cast

as Jacey Jeffries *

as Donna Cooper *

Clare Stone Clare Stone (born 1992) is a Canadian nurse and former actress. Career She has appeared in such films and television works as ''Would Be Kings'', ''The Jane Show'', ''Breach'', '' Mom at Sixteen'', '' Samantha: An American Girl Holiday'', '' G ...

as Macy Jeffries *

Tyler Hynes Tyler Jeffrey Hynes (born May 6, 1986) is a Canadian actor. Early life Hynes was born in Toronto, Ontario, but later grew up on a ranch outside Ottawa. He began acting professionally at the age of eight. Career Hynes got his professional st ...

as Brad *

Colin Ferguson Colin Ferguson (born July 22, 1972) is a Canadian-American actor, director and producer.
Yahoo! Mov ...

as Bob Cooper *

as Terry Jeffries *

Hollis McLaren Hollis McLaren (born February 5, 1956) is a Canadian film and television actress. Early life and education McLaren was born in Toronto in 1956. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Windsor and studied drama at RADA in Lon ...

as Marlene * Rejean Cournoyer as Mr. Cheevers * Dawn McKelvie Cyr as Gretchen * Megan Edwards as Linda * Matthew MacCaull as Dr. Hughes *

Sabrina Jalees Sabrina Jalees (born April 19, 1985) is a Canadian comedian, actress, and writer. She has written for various series, and starred as a main cast member alongside Patricia Heaton in the 2019 TV comedy series ''Carol's Second Act.'' Early life and ...

as Sarah *

Deborah Allen Deborah Allen (born Deborah Lynn Thurmond on September 30, 1953) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Since 1976, Allen has issued 12 albums and charted 14 singles on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart. She recorded the 1 ...

as Pauline * Anastasia Hill as Trea * Leah Fassett as Gena * Scott Smith as Charley

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mom At Sixteen 2005 television films 2005 films 2000s teen drama films American teen drama films Lifetime (TV network) films Teenage pregnancy in film Teenage pregnancy in television Films about dysfunctional families Films about adoption Films directed by Peter Werner American drama television films 2000s American films