March 17, 2026
More Trouble For NEW Bachelorette Taylor Frankie Paul: Filming Halted Amid Police Investigation
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RSS Feed We’re just days away from the premier of a new season of “The Bachelorette” with reality star Taylor Frankie Paul. ABC and Disney made the controversial choice even after Paul pleaded guilty to aggravated assault stemming from a 2023 domestic violence incident. Now, police have confirmed they are investigating yet another reported assault with her same ex-boyfriend who continues to play a prominent role in the newly released season of “The Secret Lives Of Mormon Wives.” The incident has now forced filming of the latest season of Mormon Wives to STOP just as “The Bachelorette” debuts on Sunday.
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00:00:02
Speaker 1: Hey, the folks, it is Tuesday, March seventeenth, And aren't Disney and ABC getting exactly what they wanted when they named Taylor Frankie Paul as the new Bachelorette. You do that because you want eyeballs, you want attention, you want ratings, you want headlines, and yes, you want controversy. But is this too far? And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ Robes. Aren't they getting exactly what they wanted when they named her the new Bachelorette? Well?
00:00:36
Speaker 2: I don't know if they wanted this kind of mess. I know they all say there's no such thing as bad press, but we would beg to differ and you would think Disney and ABC would as well when it comes to the allegations that are now swirling around Taylor Frankie Paul.
00:00:53
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, so let's a little context. You've been seeing her everywhere. She's been promoted as a part of every big anything that happens, including the Oscars on Sunday. But all this is happening Rhodes as she is about to make her debut. Is it not this Sunday?
00:01:09
Speaker 2: It is this Sunday, March twenty second, the New Bachelorette, the much anticipated, perhaps even one of the most anticipated seasons of The Bachelorette is happening this Sunday.
00:01:22
Speaker 1: And can it not be a franchise saving season?
00:01:26
Speaker 3: That is what they were hoping for.
00:01:28
Speaker 2: And they knew when they brought on Taylor Frankie Paul that she already had a criminal history, certainly a moral controversial, massive headline grabbing scandal that involved I don't even know what you call it swinging.
00:01:47
Speaker 3: I guess yes, that was it.
00:01:48
Speaker 2: Yeah, And so they knew that this was a controversial person they were putting at the helm of their biggest franchise. But it was a Hail Mary, I think by all accounts.
00:02:00
Speaker 1: And some even thought it was a good one, because this is the person who has got a very popular show, Mormon Wives, Secret Lines of Mormon Wives on Hulu and it's what third or fourth season, It's.
00:02:08
Speaker 2: Oh uh honey, it's its fourth season and they're in the middle of filming their fifth season right now. So this is about crossover promotion from Hulu to ABC. This is honestly everything wrapped up in a bow, except for the fact when you have somebody who is that much of a lightning rod.
00:02:25
Speaker 1: Expect lightning, and they just got lightning in the form of a police investigation into a domestic violence incident, so Robes. The first headlines about this came several days ago when we heard that, like you just said, Mormon Wives, in its fifth season of shooting, shut down production.
00:02:47
Speaker 2: Yes, that is now the big headline. Mormon Wives had to stop production with a domestic violence investigation ongoing that Draper City police have confirmed is official.
00:03:00
Speaker 3: This isn't just a rumor.
00:03:02
Speaker 2: We don't know the details right now, but we do know that it was intense and severe enough that Mormon Wives had to temporarily halt production of their best show to date.
00:03:15
Speaker 1: And as of this recording, we don't understand that the production has started up again. We do eat too ropes from police there. They say, allegations are flying on both sides of this incident.
00:03:26
Speaker 2: That's correct. This is again out of Utah. They say they have acknowledged and confirmed. We should say that there is an open domestic assault investigation and it involves Taylor Frankie Paul and her ex boyfriend, the father of her youngest child, Dakota Mortensen. And if you're a fan of the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. You know damn well who Dakota is. And the spokesperson from the police department acknowledged that the allegations have been made in both directions. So Taylor is saying Dakota did something to her, and Dakota is saying Taylor did something to him. And this apparently, this back and forth was the end of February, So this has been in the works now for a couple of weeks, but it's making huge headlines now because production has halted.
00:04:14
Speaker 1: Production has halted on that show, but as far as we know, things are going forward on the other show that she is heading up, which is The Bachelorette on Sunday. Now, Robes, we need to be careful, need to be kind, need to be fair here. These are just allegations. We do not have any idea what is actually alleged, and everybody at this point at least is innocent until proven otherwise. Fair.
00:04:40
Speaker 2: Yes, And it should be pointed out that the police Department made a point because can you imagine the calls that are just NonStop going into this police agency. They said that they were not going to give any more details because quote the DCPD respects the rights and privacy of all citizens without an immediate impact to public safety. It is the practice of the department not to release details related to active investigations, and I thought that was an interesting way to put it. Look, these two people aren't threats to anyone else's lives, so we don't need to make a public announcement, a safety announcement. We don't need to give any of you inquiring minds any of the salacious details because you don't need to know.
00:05:23
Speaker 1: Okay, So that is what we get from police. Who have we actually heard from in all this Brobs, There's Disney, ABC, there's Taylor, Frankie Paul, there's the ex Who in that group have we actually heard something from since all of this happened.
00:05:39
Speaker 2: We've only gotten some posts by Taylor Frankie Paul that could be interpreted in a couple of different ways because what you put on Instagram was a little bit different than what you put on TikTok. But there has been no official public comment to date as of this recording from either ABC or Hulu.
00:05:58
Speaker 1: All right, what is Taylor saying? Because, like you said, depending on which social media platform you're looking at, you get a different messages from her, and the one I saw that stopped me in my tracks was the one on TikTok and which she looked like she was taking this not just in shride, but almost even making light of it.
00:06:15
Speaker 2: Yeah, like too busy to care and was dancing in her kitchen. You see the arm of a man next to her who starts to come into picture while she's dancing and laughing and lip syncing to this song, and so you see, and then she kind of pushes him out of the picture playfully so you don't get to see. Is it Dakota, Is it the guy who she may end up with or not at the end of the bachelorette. So she was being playful, She was teasing some mystery man, and she was letting us all know.
00:06:45
Speaker 3: That she's too busy to care about what's going on.
00:06:47
Speaker 1: Okay, given that, is it fair to say we should all interpret that as she is not taking this that seriously. Whatever is going on with this police investigation into domestic violence, she is not, at least publicly. If I I only saw that, wouldn't think it was that big of a deal. Uh.
00:07:03
Speaker 2: Yes, But when you actually have a confirmed police investigation going on and we can get into the fact that this is not her first rodeo when it comes to these types of charges and allegations, and the last time this happened, she said it was the worst day of her life.
00:07:18
Speaker 3: So this is a very different reaction from her.
00:07:21
Speaker 1: But that's on TikTok.
00:07:22
Speaker 3: That's on TikTok you well.
00:07:24
Speaker 2: On Instagram, she talks about about asking basically for people to understand that these aren't just storylines.
00:07:32
Speaker 3: These are our actual lives we're sharing.
00:07:35
Speaker 2: She's talking about people getting into all of the what happened in season four, and we'll get into that because it relates in a lot of ways to the Bachelorette this weekend and perhaps these domestic violence allegations. But she said, I'm not sharing to appease or switch storylines for anyone's entertainment. A big reason I continue on she's saying reality shows is to potentially help someone. I know this because I personally watched and listened to people's experience and it helped me take courage to share such vulnerable topics with an audience. My heart goes out to those around me that share and everyone else that continue to do so.
00:08:14
Speaker 3: The hugs will always outweigh the hate for me.
00:08:18
Speaker 2: So it's a little a lot more serious on Instagram and very.
00:08:23
Speaker 3: Playful on TikTok. Huh.
00:08:26
Speaker 2: It's mixed messages for sure, given all that's going on. But to not take these types of allegations seriously is a little puzzling.
00:08:33
Speaker 1: Oh Ken, this not jaywalking, This is not even speeding. This is domestic violence that we're talking about. We have not heard her side, his side. We don't know if anything's ever going to come with this. We don't know if charges are ever going to be filed. We don't know what her story is, his story. We gotta get that out. But Robes, you spoke on this a moment ago. This is a woman who has been charged with domestic violence before and ended up pleading guilty in that case to charges. Robes, and that was an ugly incident.
00:09:07
Speaker 2: Correct, This was in twenty twenty three. She actually was. She was facing misdemeanor charges of assault, criminal mischief and commission of domestic violence in the presence of a child. What she was accused of and what she even admitted to us.
00:09:21
Speaker 3: What happened.
00:09:22
Speaker 2: She was throwing a chair at Dakota in the middle of this heated fight. She says she was drunk, she had been drinking, and that chair accidentally hit her daughter. So she pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault. The other charges were dismissed, but she said that that was the reason. That was the night that she decided to get sober.
00:09:45
Speaker 1: That was also Robes an incident that police had the time described. I believe it was barstools where they medal. Even she cost a couple that incident also, it was reported involved choking in a involved This wasn't just an argument and something flew across. They describe at least that one Robes as a pretty significant violen scene. Yes, ABC Disney knew what they were doing when they decided to put her where she is now. We can, of course always she's done her time to society and you have whatever opinion you want keep following her or not, and she asks for forgiveness. People should be able to move on with their lives after making whatever mistakes Robe. Is there going to be an issue now with this show being as important as it as it is, the balance and the jeopardy of now celebrating hoisting up as a star someone who is now involved in another incident that involves violence. Baby, we're talking domestic violence. This is can you show it? Hey, everybody celebrate this woman looking for another love, look at how she's behaved in her past or right, this is now circling into a different type of storyline that are people going to be curious and want to watch the Bachelorette even more or go ick Abc?
00:11:14
Speaker 2: I think it will go both ways, and I do think that there are going to be a lot of finger There is going to be a lot of finger pointing because a lot of people could say, ABC, Disney.
00:11:24
Speaker 3: You knew exactly what you were getting now.
00:11:27
Speaker 2: I do think they might have been trying to sell this as a in a way, a redemptive story. Somebody who's learned from her past mistake, someone who has gotten sober, someone who has acknowledged.
00:11:37
Speaker 3: Her her pastways.
00:11:39
Speaker 2: And I think we all always want to celerate people who we all make mistakes.
00:11:44
Speaker 3: I'm not saying that severe.
00:11:45
Speaker 2: But we all make mistakes, and so to be able to applaud someone's decision to turn their lives around and actually find a healthy relationship, I think we can all get behind that supportive Yes, but this is the same person who she has been in a I think it's very fair to say a toxic and yes violent relationship with at times. And it has continued all the way through season four of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives that just dropped last week leading up to the Bachelorette this weekend. And now I wouldn't be people have to look at this through a different lens now.
00:12:22
Speaker 1: Well, Disney and ABC though, right, are they gonna come out with a statement they say, Yes, we stick with her. She's a good person. We're gonna hang with her through her troubles, that she makes it through this difficult time. We're gonna stand by a woman who is now facing a second domestic abuse investigation. If they want to put that statement out, I would love to see it. I would love to see it. I would love to examine it, and I would love to ask many, many, many questions.
00:12:48
Speaker 3: This is a network of family values we've been told.
00:12:51
Speaker 1: Look, I'm not suggesting of what they should or shouldn't do, or what chance she should or shouldn't have, but d we are talking about out a different storyline now to where this is a woman and even the storyline robes of how can you take it seriously, really, Disney, hey you twenty five guys, we got a sweetheart for you. We really want you to fight over this woman who now has a background and we have video of how she has behaved in past relationships. Does it mean she's going to be like that in the future? But Robes, the whole story is this just meant to be a prime time shit sho? Is that just as long as you watch?
00:13:36
Speaker 2: I cannot imagine that this is what ABC and Disney wanted in terms of publicity, publicity leading into the Bachelorette.
00:13:43
Speaker 1: I mean, maybe it's just ratings are all that matter. Maybe they don't care, babe, It's possible.
00:13:48
Speaker 2: You made a very good point though, before we jumped on in front of the mics, and you said, man, imagine if the situation were reversed gender wise.
00:13:57
Speaker 1: Oh good lord, good lord.
00:14:02
Speaker 2: If this was the Bachelor instead of the Bachelorette.
00:14:05
Speaker 1: And a suggestion a hint of two domestic violence incidents against the Bachelor, how fast would that show be pulled?
00:14:17
Speaker 3: Before you could even wonder when it was gonna happen?
00:14:21
Speaker 1: How fast? All right? But folks, what is going to happen next with the show? Will it go forward? On Sunday and should it stay here.
00:14:43
Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone, as we talk about this latest controversy with Taylor Frankie Paul within days of the big new, highly anticipated season of The Bachelorette, the saving the life saving perhaps series, or of the Bachelorette. At least that's what ABC and Hulu and Disney We're all hoping that Taylor Frankie Paul was going to save the franchise by being the next Bachelorette. She's wildly popular, has a huge following online on social media, and certainly her series Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is the biggest show on Hulu right now. Season four just dropped, and it's of note because with these domestic violence allegations now swirling around Taylor Frankie Paul. It was really interesting how season four ended because it ended with Taylor and Dakota as she was leaving for Los Angeles to go be the next Bachelorette.
00:15:47
Speaker 1: I mean, what guy would see that and feel good about it? What guy that she's potentially going to be dating knew she got to send off from her ex on the way to me. Essentially what we're showing and again I guess this is cross promotion. I guess this is all good, and this is I guess so season five will involve some stuff from the Bachelorette season that's happening, and they can just keep going back and forth. Yes, everybody said, a lot of people said this was brilliant casting ropes cross promotional.
00:16:17
Speaker 2: But yes, to know that Taylor and Dakota spent the night before she left to become the Bachelorette together. Then they show them on the phone when she lands on LA where you hear Dakota tell Taylor save a rose for me. So look, I get that that creates drama. I get that gets you so interested in the Bachelorette from the moment you start watching on Sunday because you think, my god, she just slept with her ex boyfriend the night before, and now we know that because we watched the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and now we get to see what happens with all these men now trying to vibe.
00:16:56
Speaker 3: For her heart.
00:16:57
Speaker 2: The problem is the Bachelorette grew to fame and became the success it was because they were actually leaning on the success rate. You think about Trista and Ryan, they were promoting this show as a true marriage show. We are trying to help people come together find the loves of their lives. Look at the babies that have been created, look at the lasting unions that are still there for all to see. And they really prided themselves on this fun show that actually had real and true intent.
00:17:32
Speaker 3: This blows that all up.
00:17:35
Speaker 1: And that's fine. Why not? Yes, there are some Bachelor Nation purists who might have an issue with it, but Robes, they are chasing ratings in a difficult time for television, and they have come up with they think is a brilliant plan with a star on reality TV. Yes, we have stars now and she has been cast in a second show as a superstar. They have put a lot now on her. Do they worry about any blowback? I haven't seen it. As far as online. Are people upset going to be upset with Disney we're putting up?
00:18:10
Speaker 2: There will always be people who are upset, but with anyone's decision. But I think this one, Look, I don't know, I don't know if this is what people expect from reality TV now.
00:18:22
Speaker 3: Maybe and they are now.
00:18:24
Speaker 2: So desensitized by all of this that yeah, barstools flying, children being injured, police being involved. It's a sad state of where we are perhaps and what we call entertainment. I think we can all get into will she won't we? Who's she going to pick?
00:18:43
Speaker 3: All of that's fun and exciting, But when.
00:18:45
Speaker 2: Things take this type of a criminal twist, I don't know if everyone has the stomach for it.
00:18:50
Speaker 1: So what are they supposed to do? Do you want to watch it anymore? Any less? Now that this information is out, you.
00:18:57
Speaker 2: Know what, it makes me less excited. I still want to watch, but I'm less excited about watching it now. I'll be honest, And look, if it was just that she was with her ex the night before, I could kind of just buy into the Wow, this is reality show, like one oh one. They're creating all of this controversy before we even walk into it.
00:19:15
Speaker 3: That's fine.
00:19:16
Speaker 2: But when you start bringing in police, and you start bringing in criminal potential criminal charges, and you start looking at the past decisions this reality star has made. And look, we met her. She was lovely, We had a great time talking with her. She seemed real, authentic, and she seemed very genuine and wanting to do better and be a better mom. But this, you know, this is tough to watch.
00:19:43
Speaker 1: I think probably just that part is it, Babe. It's just in an almost to some degree, feels like an icky modern day media press release. This is how now you get attentionent and eyeballs for your show. You create a much conflict and controversy. And the timing really one week before the premiere. Some would say, oh, that's horrible timing for every ABC, and there are some others going, hell, yeah, we're going to get huge eyeballs on Sunday.
00:20:14
Speaker 3: Babe.
00:20:14
Speaker 2: It came out this week, right, Okay, the charges are, or at least the allegations were three weeks ago, so you could question the timing of the release of this information.
00:20:29
Speaker 1: And if we didn't say, you just said it a moment ago, and I want to make sure we did. We we spent some time. Look, we're not clothes, we're not suggesting no, but we spent a full two hours along with her, and the majority of that was on a microphone talking, but we got time with her privately, and we walked away from her liking her, genuinely rooting for her, and didn't think she was trying to fool us in any way, shape or form. She was authentic and that was something we liked, and I think there's something the audience likes as well. We are rooting for her and like her genuinely, but I don't know. We'll see what happens with this investigation, Rose, but this is just wanted to make sure it was clear and trying to be fair to her and everybody else involved it.
00:21:14
Speaker 2: We have to wait and see, wait and see, and we will almost certainly be watching, just like many of you will. And with that everyone, thank you for listening to us. I made me Robach alongside TJ.
00:21:24
Speaker 3: Holmes. We will talk to you real soon
Speaker 1: Hey, the folks, it is Tuesday, March seventeenth, And aren't Disney and ABC getting exactly what they wanted when they named Taylor Frankie Paul as the new Bachelorette. You do that because you want eyeballs, you want attention, you want ratings, you want headlines, and yes, you want controversy. But is this too far? And with that, welcome to this episode of Amy and TJ Robes. Aren't they getting exactly what they wanted when they named her the new Bachelorette? Well?
00:00:36
Speaker 2: I don't know if they wanted this kind of mess. I know they all say there's no such thing as bad press, but we would beg to differ and you would think Disney and ABC would as well when it comes to the allegations that are now swirling around Taylor Frankie Paul.
00:00:53
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, so let's a little context. You've been seeing her everywhere. She's been promoted as a part of every big anything that happens, including the Oscars on Sunday. But all this is happening Rhodes as she is about to make her debut. Is it not this Sunday?
00:01:09
Speaker 2: It is this Sunday, March twenty second, the New Bachelorette, the much anticipated, perhaps even one of the most anticipated seasons of The Bachelorette is happening this Sunday.
00:01:22
Speaker 1: And can it not be a franchise saving season?
00:01:26
Speaker 3: That is what they were hoping for.
00:01:28
Speaker 2: And they knew when they brought on Taylor Frankie Paul that she already had a criminal history, certainly a moral controversial, massive headline grabbing scandal that involved I don't even know what you call it swinging.
00:01:47
Speaker 3: I guess yes, that was it.
00:01:48
Speaker 2: Yeah, And so they knew that this was a controversial person they were putting at the helm of their biggest franchise. But it was a Hail Mary, I think by all accounts.
00:02:00
Speaker 1: And some even thought it was a good one, because this is the person who has got a very popular show, Mormon Wives, Secret Lines of Mormon Wives on Hulu and it's what third or fourth season, It's.
00:02:08
Speaker 2: Oh uh honey, it's its fourth season and they're in the middle of filming their fifth season right now. So this is about crossover promotion from Hulu to ABC. This is honestly everything wrapped up in a bow, except for the fact when you have somebody who is that much of a lightning rod.
00:02:25
Speaker 1: Expect lightning, and they just got lightning in the form of a police investigation into a domestic violence incident, so Robes. The first headlines about this came several days ago when we heard that, like you just said, Mormon Wives, in its fifth season of shooting, shut down production.
00:02:47
Speaker 2: Yes, that is now the big headline. Mormon Wives had to stop production with a domestic violence investigation ongoing that Draper City police have confirmed is official.
00:03:00
Speaker 3: This isn't just a rumor.
00:03:02
Speaker 2: We don't know the details right now, but we do know that it was intense and severe enough that Mormon Wives had to temporarily halt production of their best show to date.
00:03:15
Speaker 1: And as of this recording, we don't understand that the production has started up again. We do eat too ropes from police there. They say, allegations are flying on both sides of this incident.
00:03:26
Speaker 2: That's correct. This is again out of Utah. They say they have acknowledged and confirmed. We should say that there is an open domestic assault investigation and it involves Taylor Frankie Paul and her ex boyfriend, the father of her youngest child, Dakota Mortensen. And if you're a fan of the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. You know damn well who Dakota is. And the spokesperson from the police department acknowledged that the allegations have been made in both directions. So Taylor is saying Dakota did something to her, and Dakota is saying Taylor did something to him. And this apparently, this back and forth was the end of February, So this has been in the works now for a couple of weeks, but it's making huge headlines now because production has halted.
00:04:14
Speaker 1: Production has halted on that show, but as far as we know, things are going forward on the other show that she is heading up, which is The Bachelorette on Sunday. Now, Robes, we need to be careful, need to be kind, need to be fair here. These are just allegations. We do not have any idea what is actually alleged, and everybody at this point at least is innocent until proven otherwise. Fair.
00:04:40
Speaker 2: Yes, And it should be pointed out that the police Department made a point because can you imagine the calls that are just NonStop going into this police agency. They said that they were not going to give any more details because quote the DCPD respects the rights and privacy of all citizens without an immediate impact to public safety. It is the practice of the department not to release details related to active investigations, and I thought that was an interesting way to put it. Look, these two people aren't threats to anyone else's lives, so we don't need to make a public announcement, a safety announcement. We don't need to give any of you inquiring minds any of the salacious details because you don't need to know.
00:05:23
Speaker 1: Okay, So that is what we get from police. Who have we actually heard from in all this Brobs, There's Disney, ABC, there's Taylor, Frankie Paul, there's the ex Who in that group have we actually heard something from since all of this happened.
00:05:39
Speaker 2: We've only gotten some posts by Taylor Frankie Paul that could be interpreted in a couple of different ways because what you put on Instagram was a little bit different than what you put on TikTok. But there has been no official public comment to date as of this recording from either ABC or Hulu.
00:05:58
Speaker 1: All right, what is Taylor saying? Because, like you said, depending on which social media platform you're looking at, you get a different messages from her, and the one I saw that stopped me in my tracks was the one on TikTok and which she looked like she was taking this not just in shride, but almost even making light of it.
00:06:15
Speaker 2: Yeah, like too busy to care and was dancing in her kitchen. You see the arm of a man next to her who starts to come into picture while she's dancing and laughing and lip syncing to this song, and so you see, and then she kind of pushes him out of the picture playfully so you don't get to see. Is it Dakota, Is it the guy who she may end up with or not at the end of the bachelorette. So she was being playful, She was teasing some mystery man, and she was letting us all know.
00:06:45
Speaker 3: That she's too busy to care about what's going on.
00:06:47
Speaker 1: Okay, given that, is it fair to say we should all interpret that as she is not taking this that seriously. Whatever is going on with this police investigation into domestic violence, she is not, at least publicly. If I I only saw that, wouldn't think it was that big of a deal. Uh.
00:07:03
Speaker 2: Yes, But when you actually have a confirmed police investigation going on and we can get into the fact that this is not her first rodeo when it comes to these types of charges and allegations, and the last time this happened, she said it was the worst day of her life.
00:07:18
Speaker 3: So this is a very different reaction from her.
00:07:21
Speaker 1: But that's on TikTok.
00:07:22
Speaker 3: That's on TikTok you well.
00:07:24
Speaker 2: On Instagram, she talks about about asking basically for people to understand that these aren't just storylines.
00:07:32
Speaker 3: These are our actual lives we're sharing.
00:07:35
Speaker 2: She's talking about people getting into all of the what happened in season four, and we'll get into that because it relates in a lot of ways to the Bachelorette this weekend and perhaps these domestic violence allegations. But she said, I'm not sharing to appease or switch storylines for anyone's entertainment. A big reason I continue on she's saying reality shows is to potentially help someone. I know this because I personally watched and listened to people's experience and it helped me take courage to share such vulnerable topics with an audience. My heart goes out to those around me that share and everyone else that continue to do so.
00:08:14
Speaker 3: The hugs will always outweigh the hate for me.
00:08:18
Speaker 2: So it's a little a lot more serious on Instagram and very.
00:08:23
Speaker 3: Playful on TikTok. Huh.
00:08:26
Speaker 2: It's mixed messages for sure, given all that's going on. But to not take these types of allegations seriously is a little puzzling.
00:08:33
Speaker 1: Oh Ken, this not jaywalking, This is not even speeding. This is domestic violence that we're talking about. We have not heard her side, his side. We don't know if anything's ever going to come with this. We don't know if charges are ever going to be filed. We don't know what her story is, his story. We gotta get that out. But Robes, you spoke on this a moment ago. This is a woman who has been charged with domestic violence before and ended up pleading guilty in that case to charges. Robes, and that was an ugly incident.
00:09:07
Speaker 2: Correct, This was in twenty twenty three. She actually was. She was facing misdemeanor charges of assault, criminal mischief and commission of domestic violence in the presence of a child. What she was accused of and what she even admitted to us.
00:09:21
Speaker 3: What happened.
00:09:22
Speaker 2: She was throwing a chair at Dakota in the middle of this heated fight. She says she was drunk, she had been drinking, and that chair accidentally hit her daughter. So she pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault. The other charges were dismissed, but she said that that was the reason. That was the night that she decided to get sober.
00:09:45
Speaker 1: That was also Robes an incident that police had the time described. I believe it was barstools where they medal. Even she cost a couple that incident also, it was reported involved choking in a involved This wasn't just an argument and something flew across. They describe at least that one Robes as a pretty significant violen scene. Yes, ABC Disney knew what they were doing when they decided to put her where she is now. We can, of course always she's done her time to society and you have whatever opinion you want keep following her or not, and she asks for forgiveness. People should be able to move on with their lives after making whatever mistakes Robe. Is there going to be an issue now with this show being as important as it as it is, the balance and the jeopardy of now celebrating hoisting up as a star someone who is now involved in another incident that involves violence. Baby, we're talking domestic violence. This is can you show it? Hey, everybody celebrate this woman looking for another love, look at how she's behaved in her past or right, this is now circling into a different type of storyline that are people going to be curious and want to watch the Bachelorette even more or go ick Abc?
00:11:14
Speaker 2: I think it will go both ways, and I do think that there are going to be a lot of finger There is going to be a lot of finger pointing because a lot of people could say, ABC, Disney.
00:11:24
Speaker 3: You knew exactly what you were getting now.
00:11:27
Speaker 2: I do think they might have been trying to sell this as a in a way, a redemptive story. Somebody who's learned from her past mistake, someone who has gotten sober, someone who has acknowledged.
00:11:37
Speaker 3: Her her pastways.
00:11:39
Speaker 2: And I think we all always want to celerate people who we all make mistakes.
00:11:44
Speaker 3: I'm not saying that severe.
00:11:45
Speaker 2: But we all make mistakes, and so to be able to applaud someone's decision to turn their lives around and actually find a healthy relationship, I think we can all get behind that supportive Yes, but this is the same person who she has been in a I think it's very fair to say a toxic and yes violent relationship with at times. And it has continued all the way through season four of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives that just dropped last week leading up to the Bachelorette this weekend. And now I wouldn't be people have to look at this through a different lens now.
00:12:22
Speaker 1: Well, Disney and ABC though, right, are they gonna come out with a statement they say, Yes, we stick with her. She's a good person. We're gonna hang with her through her troubles, that she makes it through this difficult time. We're gonna stand by a woman who is now facing a second domestic abuse investigation. If they want to put that statement out, I would love to see it. I would love to see it. I would love to examine it, and I would love to ask many, many, many questions.
00:12:48
Speaker 3: This is a network of family values we've been told.
00:12:51
Speaker 1: Look, I'm not suggesting of what they should or shouldn't do, or what chance she should or shouldn't have, but d we are talking about out a different storyline now to where this is a woman and even the storyline robes of how can you take it seriously, really, Disney, hey you twenty five guys, we got a sweetheart for you. We really want you to fight over this woman who now has a background and we have video of how she has behaved in past relationships. Does it mean she's going to be like that in the future? But Robes, the whole story is this just meant to be a prime time shit sho? Is that just as long as you watch?
00:13:36
Speaker 2: I cannot imagine that this is what ABC and Disney wanted in terms of publicity, publicity leading into the Bachelorette.
00:13:43
Speaker 1: I mean, maybe it's just ratings are all that matter. Maybe they don't care, babe, It's possible.
00:13:48
Speaker 2: You made a very good point though, before we jumped on in front of the mics, and you said, man, imagine if the situation were reversed gender wise.
00:13:57
Speaker 1: Oh good lord, good lord.
00:14:02
Speaker 2: If this was the Bachelor instead of the Bachelorette.
00:14:05
Speaker 1: And a suggestion a hint of two domestic violence incidents against the Bachelor, how fast would that show be pulled?
00:14:17
Speaker 3: Before you could even wonder when it was gonna happen?
00:14:21
Speaker 1: How fast? All right? But folks, what is going to happen next with the show? Will it go forward? On Sunday and should it stay here.
00:14:43
Speaker 2: Welcome back everyone, as we talk about this latest controversy with Taylor Frankie Paul within days of the big new, highly anticipated season of The Bachelorette, the saving the life saving perhaps series, or of the Bachelorette. At least that's what ABC and Hulu and Disney We're all hoping that Taylor Frankie Paul was going to save the franchise by being the next Bachelorette. She's wildly popular, has a huge following online on social media, and certainly her series Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is the biggest show on Hulu right now. Season four just dropped, and it's of note because with these domestic violence allegations now swirling around Taylor Frankie Paul. It was really interesting how season four ended because it ended with Taylor and Dakota as she was leaving for Los Angeles to go be the next Bachelorette.
00:15:47
Speaker 1: I mean, what guy would see that and feel good about it? What guy that she's potentially going to be dating knew she got to send off from her ex on the way to me. Essentially what we're showing and again I guess this is cross promotion. I guess this is all good, and this is I guess so season five will involve some stuff from the Bachelorette season that's happening, and they can just keep going back and forth. Yes, everybody said, a lot of people said this was brilliant casting ropes cross promotional.
00:16:17
Speaker 2: But yes, to know that Taylor and Dakota spent the night before she left to become the Bachelorette together. Then they show them on the phone when she lands on LA where you hear Dakota tell Taylor save a rose for me. So look, I get that that creates drama. I get that gets you so interested in the Bachelorette from the moment you start watching on Sunday because you think, my god, she just slept with her ex boyfriend the night before, and now we know that because we watched the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, and now we get to see what happens with all these men now trying to vibe.
00:16:56
Speaker 3: For her heart.
00:16:57
Speaker 2: The problem is the Bachelorette grew to fame and became the success it was because they were actually leaning on the success rate. You think about Trista and Ryan, they were promoting this show as a true marriage show. We are trying to help people come together find the loves of their lives. Look at the babies that have been created, look at the lasting unions that are still there for all to see. And they really prided themselves on this fun show that actually had real and true intent.
00:17:32
Speaker 3: This blows that all up.
00:17:35
Speaker 1: And that's fine. Why not? Yes, there are some Bachelor Nation purists who might have an issue with it, but Robes, they are chasing ratings in a difficult time for television, and they have come up with they think is a brilliant plan with a star on reality TV. Yes, we have stars now and she has been cast in a second show as a superstar. They have put a lot now on her. Do they worry about any blowback? I haven't seen it. As far as online. Are people upset going to be upset with Disney we're putting up?
00:18:10
Speaker 2: There will always be people who are upset, but with anyone's decision. But I think this one, Look, I don't know, I don't know if this is what people expect from reality TV now.
00:18:22
Speaker 3: Maybe and they are now.
00:18:24
Speaker 2: So desensitized by all of this that yeah, barstools flying, children being injured, police being involved. It's a sad state of where we are perhaps and what we call entertainment. I think we can all get into will she won't we? Who's she going to pick?
00:18:43
Speaker 3: All of that's fun and exciting, But when.
00:18:45
Speaker 2: Things take this type of a criminal twist, I don't know if everyone has the stomach for it.
00:18:50
Speaker 1: So what are they supposed to do? Do you want to watch it anymore? Any less? Now that this information is out, you.
00:18:57
Speaker 2: Know what, it makes me less excited. I still want to watch, but I'm less excited about watching it now. I'll be honest, And look, if it was just that she was with her ex the night before, I could kind of just buy into the Wow, this is reality show, like one oh one. They're creating all of this controversy before we even walk into it.
00:19:15
Speaker 3: That's fine.
00:19:16
Speaker 2: But when you start bringing in police, and you start bringing in criminal potential criminal charges, and you start looking at the past decisions this reality star has made. And look, we met her. She was lovely, We had a great time talking with her. She seemed real, authentic, and she seemed very genuine and wanting to do better and be a better mom. But this, you know, this is tough to watch.
00:19:43
Speaker 1: I think probably just that part is it, Babe. It's just in an almost to some degree, feels like an icky modern day media press release. This is how now you get attentionent and eyeballs for your show. You create a much conflict and controversy. And the timing really one week before the premiere. Some would say, oh, that's horrible timing for every ABC, and there are some others going, hell, yeah, we're going to get huge eyeballs on Sunday.
00:20:14
Speaker 3: Babe.
00:20:14
Speaker 2: It came out this week, right, Okay, the charges are, or at least the allegations were three weeks ago, so you could question the timing of the release of this information.
00:20:29
Speaker 1: And if we didn't say, you just said it a moment ago, and I want to make sure we did. We we spent some time. Look, we're not clothes, we're not suggesting no, but we spent a full two hours along with her, and the majority of that was on a microphone talking, but we got time with her privately, and we walked away from her liking her, genuinely rooting for her, and didn't think she was trying to fool us in any way, shape or form. She was authentic and that was something we liked, and I think there's something the audience likes as well. We are rooting for her and like her genuinely, but I don't know. We'll see what happens with this investigation, Rose, but this is just wanted to make sure it was clear and trying to be fair to her and everybody else involved it.
00:21:14
Speaker 2: We have to wait and see, wait and see, and we will almost certainly be watching, just like many of you will. And with that everyone, thank you for listening to us. I made me Robach alongside TJ.
00:21:24
Speaker 3: Holmes. We will talk to you real soon