Taylor Frankie Paul’s “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” castmates alleged Dakota Mortensen continuously sabotaged her behind the scenes, well ahead of ABC shockingly canceling her season of “The Bachelorette.”
ABC made the decision to pull the plug on Paul’s season — which was scheduled to premiere Sunday — due to disturbing video of her attacking Mortensen with chairs in 2023 while her 8-year-old daughter, Indy, cried in the background.
In a resurfaced clip of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” stars Mayci Neeley and Layla Taylor’s appearance on “The Viall Files” podcast in May 2025, Neeley accused Mortensen of purposely ruining Paul’s mindset ahead of major opportunities.
“Why do you think Taylor didn’t show up today? Of course, it’s always him behind the scenes sabotaging things,” she said, referencing Paul being a no-show during the podcast appearance.
When host Nick Viall asked, “So I should blame Dakota?,” both Neeley and Taylor replied, “One thousand percent.”
Neeley alleged that any time Paul had a big event coming up, Mortensen purposely got into fights with her to the point where Paul was crying and no longer wanted to do press. Neeley and Taylor said this happened multiple times ahead of press events in 2024.
“He sabotages all the exciting things,” Neeley said.
She accused Mortensen of not wanting Paul to do her best and that he felt like it was a “competition” between them.
“I think he’s so insecure that he has to bring her down to his level, to be honest,” she said.
Neeley later called Mortensen “a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” noting that he had a likable personality when filming, but was not the same behind closed doors.
Page Six has reached out to Mortensen’s rep but didn’t immediately receive a response.
Paul, 31, spoke out after ABC’s decision to cancel “The Bachelorette,” accusing Mortensen of not letting her move on. The two share a 2-year-old son, Ever, together.
“After years of silently suffering extensive mental and physical abuse as well as threats of retaliation, Taylor is finally gaining the strength to face her accuser and taking steps to ensure that she and her children are protected from any further harm,” her spokesperson told Page Six Thursday.
“There are too many women who are suffering in silence as they survive aggressive, jealous ex-partners who refuse to let them move on with their lives.”
In his own statement Thursday, Mortensen, 33, denied Paul’s earlier allegations that he was creating a “desperate” and “destructive campaign to harm” her after the horrifying domestic violence video was released by TMZ.
Paul also claimed the video “conveniently omits context.”
Mortensen told Page Six in response, “As anyone who has seen the video will understand, this is a deeply upsetting situation.”
“I am, unfortunately, used to these baseless claims about me and our relationship, which I categorically deny,” he continued. “I am focusing on our son and his safety, and hope that Taylor will do the same.”
