The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is currently experiencing a renaissance of public attention, with the cast, particularly Dakota Mortensen, embracing the spotlight with unexpected humor.
In a recent exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Jessi Ngatikaura expressed her admiration for Dakota’s candidness. She shared her thoughts: “Honestly, I appreciated that he shared that video. The day after, I told him, ‘I love that you made fun of yourself.’ He recognized the need to laugh at the situation rather than be a victim of public scrutiny,” she recounted while attending the Page Six Virtual Reali-Tea āVRT Awardsā 2025 at City Winery.
ABC’s announcement that Dakota’s former partner, Taylor Frankie Paul, will be the next Bachelorette has sparked significant discussion. Prior to the announcement, Taylor reflected on how Dakota might take the news in an interview, revealing, “I havenāt confirmed anything with him directly. It’s not something that has been at the top of my to-do list. But I suspect he may find my dating other people challenging to witness.”
Taylor expressed uncertainty about Dakota’s feelings post-announcement, suggesting, “Heās aware weāve both opened the door to dating other individuals. I can imagine he might feel a mix of emotionsāespecially seeing me date others on television.” Honesty seems to be the theme here, as she humorously remarked, “I doubt this is the joyous news he envisioned for the day.”
A backstory reveals that viewers were first introduced to Taylor through her tumultuous background on season 3 of the Hulu series, which followed her controversial “soft swinging” scandal that led to the dissolution of her marriage to Tate Paul. The pair share two children, Indy, 7, and Ocean, 4, before Taylor embarked on a new relationship with Dakota, resulting in the birth of their son, Ever, in March 2024, only to later part ways.
Dakota addressed the unfolding drama in a TikTok video, captioning it: āIām genuinely happy for Tay, and I hope she finds the joy she seeks.ā The video humorously featured him lip-syncing to a memorable line from a Lindsay Lohan commercial parody of The Bachelor.
In Lohan’s parody, she quipped, āHi, Iām Lindsay, on a quest for love. I recently re-entered the dating poolāletās see how this turns out!ā Such cheeky references reflect the realm of reality television, where vulnerability turns into entertainment.
While Dakota riffs on the absurd, Taylor seems to be laser-focused on her own mission: finding love on reality TV. In her optimistic take, she quipped, “My goal is to walk away engaged. My mom always says I tend to fall quickly for romantic interests, which has been true in my past relationships.” With her trajectory in mind, it’s evident that she aims to capture love, having once married young.
The eagerly awaited season 3 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is set to premiere on Hulu on November 13, promising more drama and insight into their lives, while Taylor’s journey on The Bachelorette is slated to debut on ABC in 2026.
