{"id":533730,"date":"2026-03-20T00:04:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T00:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/533730\/"},"modified":"2026-03-20T00:04:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T00:04:09","slug":"bachelorette-canceled-by-abc-amid-taylor-frankie-paul-investigation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/533730\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Bachelorette\u2019 Canceled by ABC Amid Taylor Frankie Paul Investigation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Season 22 of \u201cThe Bachelorette\u201d has been canceled amid a police investigation<\/a> involving its lead, reality TV star Taylor Frankie Paul.<\/p>\n

On March 19, just three days before the reality dating show was set to premiere on ABC, the network\u2019s parent company, Disney, announced the show\u2019s fate following headlines involving Paul and her ex<\/a>, Dakota Mortensen. <\/p>\n

Disney addressed its decision in a statement obtained by TODAY.com. <\/p>\n

\u201cIn light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of \u2018The Bachelorette\u2019 at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family,\u201d a Disney spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

Following the cancellation, a spokesperson for Paul told NBC News that the reality star is \u201cvery grateful for ABC\u2019s support as she prioritizes her family\u2019s safety and security.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cAfter years of silently suffering extensive mental and 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,\u201d the statement reads. \u201cThere are too many women who are suffering in silence as they survive aggressive, jealous ex-partners who refuse to let them move on with their lives.<\/p>\n

\u201cTaylor has remained silent out of fear of further abuse, retaliation, and public shaming. She is currently exploring all of her options, seeking support, and preparing to own and share her story,\u201d the statements concludes. <\/p>\n

TODAY has reached out to Mortensen for comment.<\/p>\n

Paul is known as one of the creators of #MomTok,<\/a> a group of Utah moms who create viral dance-based TikTok videos. She is among a group of women who star on \u201cThe Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,\u201d which just dropped for a fourth season on Hulu. <\/p>\n

Disney decision to scrap \u201cThe Bachelorette\u201d came after reports this week that \u201cMormon Wives\u201d halted filming Season 5 amid an investigation into Paul and Mortensen, and hours after TMZ resurfaced what it said is a two-year-old video of Paul attacking Mortensen<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On March 17, three sources familiar with the matter confirmed to NBC News that Paul and Mortensen are part of an \u201congoing investigation\u201d<\/a> and that \u201cMormon Wives\u201d had stopped filming during the probe. The sources, who commented on the condition of anonymity, declined to provide further information.<\/p>\n

On March 16, the Draper City Police Department told People<\/a> that Paul and Mortensen, who share a 2-year-old child, are connected to an open \u201cdomestic assault investigation.\u201d The spokesperson said \u201callegations have been made in both directions\u201d and \u201ccontact was made with involved parties\u201d on Feb. 24 and 25.<\/p>\n

The department declined to confirm the report to NBC News, stating, \u201cit is the practice of the department not to release details related to active investigations.\u201d<\/p>\n

While attending a press preview for her season of \u201cThe Bachelorette\u201d on March 17, the reality star spoke out about the investigation for the first time.<\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, just like, my heart hurts to see it, to go through it, especially at this time,\u201d she said. \u201cJust the timing is hard, and it\u2019s a big deal. I feel like every premiere that I\u2019ve experienced, I\u2019ve never enjoyed fully, so this is another one… it\u2019s extremely hard, and it took everything to get me here today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mortensen\u2019s representative said in statement that \u201chis number one priority here is protecting (their 2-year-old son), Ever.\u201d <\/p>\n

Paul, a mother of three,<\/a> has also shares two children, an 8-year-old daughter and a 5-year-old son, with her ex-husband, Tate Paul.<\/p>\n

Taylor Frankie Paul was arrested in 2023<\/a> after a fight with Mortensen<\/a>, which was documented in the first episode of \u201cThe Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.\u201d She was charged with three misdemeanors: assault, criminal mischief and domestic violence in the presence of a child. She later reached a plea deal in her assault case, pleading guilty to aggravated assault in August 2023. The other charges against her were dropped, NBC affiliate KSL in Salt Lake City reported<\/a> at the time.<\/p>\n

TMZ on March 19, hours before Disney pulled \u201cThe Bachelorette,\u201d published a video reportedly connected to the 2023 incident, showing Paul pushing and kicking Mortensen in front of their child. Mortensen appears to be holding the camera.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will have my truth,\u201d Paul said in a phone interview with NBC News after the video was released.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s sad to see the latest installment of his never-ending, desperate, attention-seeking, destructive campaign to harm Taylor without any regard for the consequences for their child,\u201d Paul\u2019s rep said in a statement, speaking of Mortensen. <\/p>\n

Before ABC provided an update on its plans for Season 22 of \u201cThe Bachelorette,\u201d Cinnabon, which had previously announced a collaboration with the show, said it plans to cut ties with both Paul and the ABC series.<\/p>\n

\u201cCinnabon has made the decision to terminate its collaboration with \u2018The Bachelorette\u2019 and \u2018The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,\u2019\u201d the company said in a statement. \u201cRecent developments and allegations surrounding the lead cast member led us to reassess this collaboration as it no longer aligns with our brand values.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Season 22 of \u201cThe Bachelorette\u201d has been canceled amid a police investigation involving its lead, reality TV star…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":533731,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[88,92],"class_list":{"0":"post-533730","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-tv"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/533730","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=533730"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/533730\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/533731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=533730"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=533730"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=533730"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}