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The upcoming season of The Bachelorette, which was to feature Taylor Frankie Paul, has been officially scrapped.
Credit: Disney/Michael Kirchoff
This decision follows a series of domestic violence allegations against the star of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. The situation escalated when a troubling video emerged, showing the 31-year-old nearly hitting her daughter with a chair during an argument with her ex-boyfriend, Dakota Mortensen, 33, in 2023. Disney, the network’s parent company, has since confirmed the cancellation.
On March 19, Disney Entertainment released a statement to TMZ, explaining, “In light of the recent video that surfaced today, we have decided not to proceed with the new season of ‘The Bachelorette’ at this time, prioritizing the well-being of the family involved.”
This announcement came shortly after TMZ published the distressing footage, which was reportedly the first time executives had witnessed the incident.
The confirmation came just hours after TMZ published the upsetting clip, marking the first time execs had seen it.
In the video, Dakota, who shares a son, two-year-old Ever, with Taylor, is seen attempting to evade an attack from her as he tells her that what she’s doing is “physical abuse.”
“See, Taylor, this is all you do,” he states as Taylor hits and kicks him. “It’s the only thing you know how to do is hurt me. Hon, you think this is okay? It’s not okay.”
Then, after declaring that she doesn’t “give a f*ck,” Taylor grabs a nearby chair and attempts to hit Dakota with it, despite her young daughter being seated on a couch nearby.
“Your daughter is right here,” Dakota warns.
As the daughter begins to cry, Dakota tells Taylor, “That is it! No more! You’re done. Please, stop.”
“I’m done taking the blame for you,” he continues as she tells him to “get the f*ck out.”
As fans have surely seen, Taylor and Dakota have been hurling abuse accusations against one another for years, leading the Utah Division of Children and Family Services to launch an investigation.
Prior to the release of the clip, Taylor attempted to portray herself as the innocent party.
“There’s more to the context to everything and it’s unfortunate,” she told Us Weekly. “It’s been hard. And it sucks to be in this position. And the mother that I am, that is something I will always stand my ground on. I believe that I am a good mother and I have always treated my kids very well. So the headlines that are out right now are very hard to see because that’s not the truth of it. I have always treated my children with respect and I’ve never touched them. So it’s been really hard.”
The Bachelorette season 22 was supposed to premiere this Sunday on ABC, and Taylor’s other show, Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, has been put on pause amid its fifth season.