Taylor Frankie Paul's run as the new lead of 'The Bachelorette' franchise never got off the ground. The first episode of her season was due to air this Sunday, butABCcancelled it following the release of a controversial video showing her in an altercation with her ex-boyfriend.
In the clip, Paul is seen attackingDakota Mortensenwith her hands and a metal chair. At one point, one of Paul's children with her ex-husband, Tate Paul, can be seen crying her eyes out during the altercation. Reports revealed that the child was accidentally struck by the chair Paul threw at Mortensen.
The appearance of one of Paul's children in the video left many viewers concerned about the welfare of the kids. According to reports, Tate fought to gain full custody of his two children after his ex-wife pleaded guilty to felony aggravated assault. Before the altercation, the two had shared joint custody. Tate was subsequently granted full custody, a decision Paul did not contest. The court also ruled that Paul could regain 50/50 custody if she completed alcohol education classes and submitted to various tests.
The reality TV star eventually regained 50/50 custody of her children. According to recent reports, Tate had not been fully aware of the extent of the altercation at the time, having tried to obtain a copy of the footage but been told it could not be released due to privacy concerns. He only learned the full details when the video became public.
The Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) has also come under scrutiny, with reports claiming the agency did not take steps to separate the children from Paul in the aftermath. The agency is reportedly more focused on ensuring that families stay together, and it is also claimed that DCFS determined Paul had not intentionally struck her child, treating the incident as an accident. At present, it remains unclear whether Tate holds full custody of the two children. Paul and Mortensen also share one child together.
🎥🚨 In the chaotic aftermath of TMZ's explosive Taylor Frankie Paul video, the drama is far from over—and now the question looms: what happened with custody of her kids?
Paul, 31, first rose to prominence through #MomTok, a TikTok community of young Mormon mothers in Utah, before becoming a central figure on Hulu's 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.' She met Mortensen in the aftermath of her 2022 divorce from Tate, and the two had an on-and-off relationship that played out across subsequent seasons of the show. Mortensen is the father of Paul's third child, a boy named Ever, born in March 2024. The couple officially ended their relationship in December 2024, and her casting as 'The Bachelorette' was widely seen as marking a fresh start.
The shocking incident led toABC's decisionto pull the new season of 'The Bachelorette' from its schedule. What has compounded the controversy is that Paul had not hidden her behaviour from the public. In fact, during a podcast interview, she admitted to being the aggressor in one of her fights with Mortensen. Some insiders are now questioning why ABC still pushed through with its decision to cast Paul as its lead, given that extensive background checks and interviews are conducted before filming begins, raising questions about whether network executives had adequate oversight of the process.
The network faced a similar situation last season, when it emerged that male contestant Devin Strader had arestraining orderfiled against him by a former girlfriend, who had accused him of physical assault in 2017. He was nonetheless allowed to appear on the show.
😨 Taylor Frankie Paul was the aggressor in her 2023 fight with Dakota Mortensen ... at least according to her. The full story at the link in bio. 🎥: CHEERS! with Avery Woods
Source: International Business Times UK
