Taylor Frankie Paul Offers ‘The Bachelorette’ Spoilers as Season Remains Shelved
Taylor Frankie Paul’s shelved season of The Bachelorette has been shrouded in mystery since ABC put it on ice back in March, days after video from Paul’s 2023 arrest surfaced. While there were rumors that the season would eventually air, its future seems more uncertain than ever now. That doesn’t mean fans don’t know what happened, though. Paul herself just dropped major spoilers, despite reportedly signing an NDA when she signed on for the dating competition show.
Taylor Frankie Paul Revealed That Her ‘The Bachelorette’ Season Ended With a Proposal
Taylor Frankie Paul dropped a big clue about how her The Bachelorette season ended on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. While Season 5 has not yet aired, a clip featuring Paul talking about her time on the dating series was shared on Hulu’s Get Real podcast. In the clip, Paul tells Jessi Draper that she did get engaged at the end of the show.
She stopped short of naming exactly which of her 20-plus suitors briefly won her heart, but her castmates didn’t leave much room for debate. In the clip, the group pointed out that the man’s initials matched those of her ex, Dakota Mortensen; a fact that apparently eluded Paul during their courtship. The details line up with one suitor, Doug Mason. The California-based lifeguard and EMT’s name has been thrown around Bachelor Nation circles as the season’s winner for months.
The bigger twist came in what Paul said next. Describing what happened once filming wrapped and she returned home engaged, she said she and Mortensen had already started texting again. “Then, I come home. Obviously we were texting. ‘When are you going to be home?’ I don’t know how it led to it, but he came over,” she said, trailing off without giving details, though her co-stars clearly knew what their hangout session led to.
Again, the admission confirms rumors that have been circulating for months about her time on the show and how it ended. Back in March, Reality Steve pointed to Mason as the season’s winner, claiming the pair got engaged, but that it ended due to Paul and Mortensen’s on-again, off-again romance.
A Season Still Frozen in Limbo
The spoiler lands nearly six months after ABC pulled Paul’s already-filmed season just three days before its scheduled March premiere. While the season was ultimately shelved after new domestic violence allegations and an old video surfaced, both of those issues have since been settled. The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office opted not to file criminal charges in connection with the 2026 investigation. Paul had previously pleaded guilty to charges stemming from her 2023 arrest.
After the legal drama was settled, it looked like ABC might still move forward with the season. Insiders claimed a summer release was being discussed. Still, ABC never confirmed a new release date and has been extremely evasive about its plans for the season. While fans remained hopeful, much of that hope now seems lost. TMZ theorized that if Paul is comfortable dropping major spoilers about her time on The Bachelorette, the network likely gave her the go-ahead and has no plans to air the season.
ABC has not commented on the spoilers at this time. Doug Mason has not commented on the slip, either.
