The new season of The Bachelorette has been cancelled just three days before it was set to premiere after footage of an alleged 2023 domestic violence incident surfaced.
On Thursday, March 19, TMZ released a video of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Taylor Frankie Paul, who was set to appear in season 22 of The Bachelorette, throwing a chair at her then-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen. The chair reportedly struck her daughter.
ABC released a statement hours later, explaining, “In light of the newly released video surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of The Bachelorette at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family.”
The renewed controversy comes three years after Paul was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence, though most charges were later dropped.
Here is a full timeline of the scandal.
February 2023: Taylor Frankie Paul arrested
Paul was arrested on February 13, 2023, on suspicion of domestic violence after an argument with Mortensen. She faced charges of assault, criminal mischief, and commission of domestic violence in the presence of a child. The exes share 2-year-old son Ever, while Paul is also mom to daughter Indy, 8, and son Ocean, 5, with ex-husband Tate Paul.
Paul pled guilty in abeyance to aggravated assault, although the domestic violence charges were dismissed. Paul is currently serving a 3-year probation set to end on Aug. 24.
In a September 2025 interview on Call Her Daddy, Taylor denied striking her daughter with the chair. “I never had hurt my daughter. I never intentionally did anything with my children.”
February 2026: Domestic Violence Investigation launches
The Draper City Police Department confirmed in February that there is an open “domestic assault investigation” regarding Paul and Mortensen.
In light of the investigation, filming for season 5 of Secret Lives of Mormon Lives was halted.
Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen speak out
In a statement to People magazine, Paul’s spokesperson has labelled the resurfaced video a “reprehensible attempt to distract from [Mortensen’s] own behaviour.”
The statement continued, “After years of silently suffering extensive physical abuse as well as threats of retaliation, Taylor is finally gaining the strength to face her accuser and taking steps to ensure that she and her children are protected from any further harm.”
Meanwhile, Mortensen’s spokesperson told Entertainment Weekly, “He knew there was a possibility [the video] could come out, but he was not going to be the one to proactively do that because he has always wanted a decent relationship with Taylor.”
