Plot Synopsis

This one-hour family drama follows a teenage girl, Carter Stevens, who learns that her mother abducted her as a toddler from her real family, the Wilsons. Carter thinks she has the perfect life -- until one night, after a police bust at a high-school party, she is told that the woman who she believes to be her mother actually abducted her when she was three years old. Her biological parents, cop Elizabeth and writer David, pick her up at the police station and take her "home," where Carter refuses to be called by her birthname, Lyndon, and must now adapt to her family of "strangers": twin sister Taylor; younger brother Grant; and grandparents Joan & Buddy. While Carter explores life as a teenager, balancing school, friends, boys and her job at the Brain Freeze, she has also vowed to find Lori Stevens, the only mom she's ever known, before the police capture and put her behind bars. At the same time, the Wilsons adjust to having the teenage girl they thought they had lost forever, while Elizabeth tries to find Lori and David attempts to write an uplifting sequel to his best-selling book about his family's kidnapping ordeal. FINDING CARTER, which premiered with back-to-back episodes from 10pm-Midnight ET/PT, is based on an original script from former BONES writer and story editor Emily Silver. On Tuesday, September 16, 2014 at 10pm ET/PT, MTV aired the Season 1 finale of FINDING CARTER, immediately after an all-day marathon (9:30am-10pm ET/PT) of the previous 11 episodes of the first season. In the season ender, "One Hour Photo," Carter uncovers secrets that could unsettle her family; meanwhile, Max and Taylor's relationship may come to a breaking point. On Tuesday, March 31, 2015 at 10pm ET/PT on MTV, FINDING CARTER returned for its second season, picking up right after last season's cliffhanger with newly kidnapped Carter in the back of Lori's care -- and more scared than ever. What Carter learns will shake the foundation of her already fragile family to its core, as the biggest secrets of all are yet to be revealed. This season follows Carter and the rest of her family and friends as they face new obstacles and learn more about the secrets long hidden from them. After a four-month break, FINDING CARTER returned with new episodes on Tuesday, October 6, 2015 at 10pm ET/PT on MTV. In the second half of Season 2, after the shocking revelation that Carter's father had a secret son with Lori, Carter's world is once again thrown into chaos. As Carter gets to know Ben, the mysterious brother she never knew she had, she also must figure out who she wants to be and where she really belongs. She ultimately decides to drop out of school to find her own path, and lies her way into a job as a bartender where she sees herself in a whole new light after being hired by Jared. She'll even introduce her inner circle to a racy, underground party circuit. Her new, fast lifestyle is the perfect replacement for the tedium of high school, until it speeds out of her control... and she needs her family more than ever.
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On Tuesday, December 15, 2015 from 10pm-Midnight ET/PT, MTV premiered the two-hour season finale of FINDING CARTER. In the season ender "The Sheltering Sky / Atonement," Carter and Max must uncover the truth about the people closest to them in the wake of a love one's death. After a shocking turn of events, Carter must decide how she feels about Jared.