A representative for Taylor Frankie Paul said the reality star is “very grateful for ABC’s support” after the network canceled her upcoming season of “The Bachelorette” Thursday.
“Taylor is very grateful for ABC’s support as she prioritizes her family’s safety and security,” the representative said in a statement to People. “After 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.”
ABC scrapped “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star’s already filmed season of “The Bachelorette” just three days before it was scheduled to premiere on Sunday.
TMZ leaked a 2023 video of Paul throwing three metal barstools at her then-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen. One of the chairs inadvertently hit her daughter.
“In light of the newly released video just 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,” a Disney Entertainment Television spokesperson said in a statement Thursday.
The video was from a domestic violence incident that was covered in the first episode of her Hulu reality series. Paul was then arrested and pleaded guilty in abeyance to aggravated assault and was put on probation for three years.
Season 4 saw Paul rekindle her toxic on-and-off again relationship with Mortensen, even sleeping with him the night before she left to film “The Bachelorette.” Mortensen even asked the reality star to “save him a rose” as she left.
“There 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,” reps for Paul added. “Taylor 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.”
Reps for the reality star said ahead of the season’s cancellation Thursday that the video leak was part of Mortensen’s “pattern of manipulation.”
“It’s 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,” Paul’s rep said. “Releasing an old video, which conveniently omits context, on their son’s birthday is a reprehensible attempt to distract from his own behavior.”
Mortensen’s camp claimed Wednesday that he did not “proactively” leak news of the domestic violence investigation ahead of Paul’s season of “The Bachelorette” and that his No. 1 priority is protecting their 2-year-old son, Ever.
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