Taylor Frankie Paul says she accepted a surprise marriage proposal while filming her canceled season of The Bachelorette, but the relationship changed after she returned to Utah.
An exclusive clip from Hulu’s Get Real podcast previewing Season 5 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives shows Paul discussing the previously unseen events with Jessi Draper, Mikayla Matthews and Mayci Neeley.
During the conversation, the women ask whether Paul was intimate with anyone during the franchise’s fantasy-suite dates. Paul appears to indicate that she was not.
Draper also notes similarities between Paul’s reported final choice, Doug Mason, and her former partner Dakota Mortensen. Both men have the same initials and are from Idaho. Paul says she learned those similarities only later.
The bigger revelation comes when Paul confirms that Mason proposed unexpectedly. She says she was shocked when he got down on one knee and that she accepted. However, Paul says her situation changed after she returned home.
She began communicating with Mortensen again, and he eventually came to her home. Her comments appear to address speculation that the former couple became intimate after her return.
Why The Bachelorette Season Was Canceled
ABC canceled Paul’s season three days before its March 22 premiere after TMZ published video connected to her 2023 arrest following an argument with Mortensen.
Paul pleaded guilty to aggravated assault under a plea agreement. Her other charges were dismissed, while the felony charge was held in abeyance with a possible reduction to a misdemeanor after completion of the agreement.
The fallout continued beyond the canceled season. Utah authorities reviewed additional domestic-violence allegations involving Paul and Mortensen, but the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office said in April that it would not file new charges against Paul.
Meanwhile, production on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Season 5 was halted in March. The season is scheduled to premiere on Hulu on Sept. 10.
