Taylor Frankie Paul is breaking from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
The embattled “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star announced on Easter Sunday that she’s parting ways with the religion she built her brand on.
“Born and raised Mormon (lds) and I’ll always have love and respect towards it,” she wrote Sunday in an Instagram story. “I’ll even continue to go with my family at times, with that being said, it’s time to detach myself from it.”
Paul launched her career as a Mormon mom-fluencer on TikTok before she landed “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” the reality television series that leveraged her #MomTok success.
The series offered a look at Mormon moms in Utah that subverted viewers’ expectations. Paul drank alcohol and scandalized her online following when she admitted that her social circle participated in “soft swinging” in which they swapped partners for hookups but “didn’t go all the way.” The series followed her through the aftermath of a divorce and an on-again, off-again relationship with Dakota Mortensen, all of which is frowned upon by the Mormon church.
“I strongly believe in Christ, God, the bible, the divine,” she continued in her post. “I believe we are loved whether we are praying in [a] church building or from a bathroom floor at home.”
Paul was set to lead Season 22 of ABC’s “The Bachelorette” until a leaked video of a 2023 domestic dispute between Paul and Mortensen made its way across the internet. Though the entire season had been taped, ABC nixed the premiere, and “Secret Lives” also paused production. Her casting was a break from “The Bachelorette” tradition in that she had not been a contestant on a previous season of “The Bachelor.”
Now police are investigating allegations of a second and third domestic violence incident involving Paul and Mortensen, and as a result of the inquiry Paul has temporarily lost custody of the son she shares with Mortensen. A hearing regarding the protective order is set for Tuesday and may determine whether a final protective order is granted by the Utah court.
“The last 40 days felt like hell on earth,” Paul wrote in a separate Instagram post on Sunday. The post stitched together photos of Bible scripture, Paul crying, pain relief patches and personal notes scrawled through notebooks.
“Through every panic attack I prayed for strength as I could feel my body breaking down and out from the distress of it all. … I’ve prayed since I was young and never strayed away because I believe he wants us to ask for help especially during our lowest points.”