Hulu confirmed yesterday that “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” will resume production on Season 5, and the announcement could not have come at a better time. With Disney’s ‘Get Real’ reality event happening today, Hulu clearly wanted this question off the table before that slate of announcements dropped. Smart move.
nd now TMZ has answered the question everyone was actually asking: Taylor Frankie Paul will return for “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” at some point — however, her main focus remains her family and kids. Production sources also say the cast and crew are fine with Taylor’s comeback, and cameras could start filming as soon as this week.
How We Got Here
According to NBC News, production on Season 5 paused in mid-March after a domestic violence incident between Taylor Frankie Paul and her ex-boyfriend Dakota Mortensen went from an on-set situation to a full public crisis. During a March 7 meeting between cast members and executives, the cast unanimously decided to pause filming until legal proceedings played out. That decision came after Hulu executives visited the set and witnessed cast members discussing a recent alleged domestic violence incident.
Then things escalated further. On March 19, TMZ released a video that appeared to show Paul attacking Mortensen in a 2023 domestic violence incident. Hours later, ABC pulled her completed season of “The Bachelorette” — a massive professional consequence that came on top of everything else already unraveling publicly.
Where the Legal Situation Stands
On April 14, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s office said it had decided not to pursue charges against Paul, citing statute of limitations issues and lack of evidence. Two days later, the city of Draper said that Mortensen would not be charged either. With the legal cloud cleared on both sides, the path was open for production to resume — and Hulu moved quickly to confirm it would.
It is worth noting that Taylor also filed her own protective order against Mortensen. In her filing, she recounted several alleged abusive incidents involving Mortensen, making clear this situation has never been as one-sided as early coverage framed it.
Season 5 Is Going to Have No Shortage of Material
Consider what has happened in Utah since cameras went down. Jessi Draper filed for divorce from Jordan, corrected TMZ on the spelling of her own name, did a photoshoot with Marciano Brunette involving berries, and is now commenting “what happens in Nashville stays in Nashville” on his Instagram posts.
Taylor herself has been publicly processing the fallout of the Bachelorette cancellation, the legal situation, and a very raw Instagram post about panic attacks and bathroom floor breakdowns that hit 102,000 likes. The rest of the cast has been living their lives in full public view the entire time production was paused.
Jessi said it best when she spoke about the pause back in March: “Clearly there’s no shortage of drama in our lives. So, if we get another season, it’s going to be good.” That was an understatement then. It is an even bigger understatement now.
The show was renewed for 20 new episodes ahead of the pause, which would essentially cover Seasons 5 and 6. Hulu is not walking away from this franchise. Whenever cameras do go back up, they are going to have a lot to work with.
“The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” Seasons 1 through 4 are streaming now on Hulu.
For more “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” content, click here.
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