Taylor Frankie Paul May Cost Network Millions

Taylor Frankie Paul during a special preview of the Oscars before the premiere of "The Backelorette," which is now not going to air. (John Fleenor/Disney/TNS)

What to Know

01 Taylor Frankie Paul’s domestic violence allegations and resurfaced video led ABC to cancel her “Bachelorette” season.

02 The network could lose $40–$50 million, with advertisers pulling out and production halted.

03 Investigations are ongoing, with potential contract breaches and wider fallout for staff and the show.

ABC was reportedly “livid” about the new domestic violence and child abuse allegations against Bachelorette Taylor Frankie Paul in the run-up to cancelling her season, which could cost the network $40 million to $50 million and many their jobs.

The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star, 31, has been making headlines all week amid new domestic violence and child abuse allegations from her former partner Dakota Mortensen, with whom she shares 2-year-old son Ever. The recent claims culminated Thursday in the release of a 2023 video, which shows Paul hurling three metal chairs at Mortensen, one of which struck her daughter Indy, now 8.

Between the new allegations and the video, an insider told Us Weekly that advertisers had already begun jumping ship, which meant the Disney-owned network had “already lost a lot of money” by the time they formally canceled the season, which was set to premiere Sunday.

“ABC is livid over the situation,” said the source. “They face losing $40 to $50 million now that they’ve canceled.”

Both Paul and Mortensen have reportedly been ordered to undergo psychiatric evaluations over the new claims regarding an alleged incident in the past month, and the Utah Division of Child and Family Services has an open investigation.

The Us insider said Paul “had a breach of contract, and they are internally investigating.”

If the season truly never makes it to airtime, sources told Variety that ABC could owe money for marketing as well as license fees to Warner Bros. Unscripted TV.

With roughly $2 million allotted per episode, only one of which has been finished as three more remain in editing, insiders told TMZ the cancelation will also result in massive layoffs for post-production staffers.

ALSO READ: Reality Star Seen Throwing Chairs at Ex With Child Nearby in Shocking Video

Many are wondering how her casting ever passed the sniff test. Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, whose production was paused this week amid the scandal, is a hit at Hulu — also owned by the House of Mouse. It’s also public knowledge that Paul has been on supervised probation since August 2023, when she pleaded guilty to aggravated assault.

The #MomTok influencer was previously facing charges of child abuse and criminal mischief before taking the plea, connected to the filmed incident, which occurred while she was suffering a miscarriage.

TMZ is also reporting Paul has temporarily lost custody of her son, Ever, who she shares with Mortensen, after his request for a temporary protective order was been granted. The publication reports that Taylor won’t be able to see Ever until April.

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