ABC Losing Millions After Being Forced to Cancel Taylor Frankie Paul’s Season of ‘The Bachelorette’
ABC has canceled Taylor Frankie Paul’s season of The Bachelorette.
The network has pulled the upcoming season of the reality show featuring The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star after TMZ published a video of a violent 2023 altercation between her and Dakota Mortensen, the father of her son, Ever. The Bachelorette Season 22 was scheduled to premiere Sunday, March 22.
‘The Bachelorette’ Season 22 canceled after Taylor Frankie Paul video surfaces
In the clip, Taylor and Dakota wrestle with each other before she kicks him and then throws multiple metal chairs in his direction while he begs her to think of her daughter, who is also in the room. The incident led to Paul’s arrest. She later pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and was sentenced to three years probation.
“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 told NBC News.
Just a few hours before confirming that the new season of The Bachelorette had been paused, ABC was enthusiastically promoting the new season on social media. That was despite earlier reports that Paul and Mortensen had been involved in another domestic incident in February 2026, after she filmed her season The Bachelor spinoff. Earlier this week, filming was paused on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Season 5 amid Paul’s personal issues.
Decision to pull ‘The Bachelorette’ will cost Disney
The sudden decision to cancel this season of The Bachelorette carries a major cost. Each episode costs about $2 million to produce, according to TMZ. While only the premiere episode has been finished, people close to the production says the network stands to lose of a significant amount of money by not airing the season, in part because of “trade outs,” or product placements, with airlines, hotels and other companies that were supposed to be part of the upcoming episodes. In addition, those who work on the show’s post-production will likely be out of a job.
The Bachelorette airs on ABC and streams on Hulu, which are both part of Disney. The show is produced by Warner Bros. Television Group. Disney will take a “significant financial hit” by cancelling the season, The New York Times reports, noting that the company pays Warner Bros. millions of dollars in licensing fees to air the show.
The abrupt cancellation could also have ripple effects for the rest of The Bachelor franchise. Typically, a runner-up from The Bachelorette goes on to be the next Bachelor. But with Paul’s season scrapped, producers will likely have to turn to someone from a previous season, which could affect interest in The Bachelor, which is heading into its 30th season.
Is this the end of ‘The Bachelorette’?
Paul herself will also likely face financial fallout. Even before her season was cancelled, sources told The Sun that she might not be paid – or could even be fined – because of the new domestic violence allegations, which could be a breach of her contract.
“At the end of the day, she could potentially be financially liable,” the insider said. “They most likely won’t take her to court though. What they will most likely do, if anything, is withhold future payments she’s owed.”
The source also predicted that The Bachelorette might not survive its latest scandal.
“If they could hit a redo button and have never had come into contact with Taylor Frankie Paul, they absolutely would do that,” they said of the network’s position. “Many feel this is the last nail in the coffin for the already dying franchise.”
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