As reality TV fans, we're obsessed with show crossovers - and what better combination than The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and The Bachelorette?
This week, it was announced that Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Taylor Frankie Paul will be the next Bachelorette. She spoke about her upcoming appearance on the show - which started as a joke on TikTok - with Alex Cooper on the Call Her Daddy podcast. 'It has not hit me. Right now in this moment, I’m just thinking about it and it’s not real,' she told Cooper. 'It’s not real. It’s not going to be until I have the limos [full of suitors] pulling up.'
It marks a shift from the way ABC have preciously approached the show. In the past, leads for The Bachelor and the Bachelorette have been contestants from past seasons - while Paul is plucked straight from another reality show.
Season 22 of The Bachelorette will premiere in 2026, but without further ado, here's what you need to know about our new Bachelorette...
Who is Taylor Frankie Paul?
Taylor Frankie Paul is a TikTok mumfluencer and reality TV star, who rose to fame in the first two seasons of Hulu’s reality series, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. Paul and her MomTok friends first gained notoriety on TikTok, when their part in a soft-swinging scandal went viral.
Paul is a Mormon, but she has previously spoken about how she doesn't feel pressure from the church regarding her faith. 'I'm just going to do what I feel is right for me,' she told Decider. 'I don’t take that or the outside world or my family — it’s kind of more like, at the end of the day you gotta do what’s going to make you happy to be your best self, you know.'
What has Taylor Frankie Paul said about the Mormon soft swinging scandal?
Taylor broke the internet in 2022 when she said she and her husband, Tate Paul, were divorcing after she violated a swinging agreement they’d made with their friends. ‘We had an agreement, all of us, and I did step out of that agreement,’ she confessed on TikTok live. ‘That’s where I messed up and I’m obviously losing everything that I have.'
She continued: ‘But no one was innocent, everyone has hooked up with everyone in the situation,’ she continued. ‘So yes, I’m getting shunned… but it wasn’t like I was going around hooking up with my friends husband. We were at a party, I got belligerent, and we went and messed around by ourselves rather than with the whole group… it was a one-time thing because we were so gone.’
How old is Taylor Frankie Paul?
Taylor was born on 23 May 1994, making her 31 years old.
Is Taylor Frankie Paul married?
Taylor was married to Tate Paul from 2016 to 2022. However, they separated after she 'stepped out' of their soft swinging agreement. After their divorce, Paul embarked on an on-off relationship with Dakota Mortensen, and their tumultuous relationship was featured on the show. In February 2023, a domestic incident between the pair led to Taylor's arrest.
She told Cooper the pair are calling it quits with the news of her casting on The Bachelorette. And in terms of what she's looking for on the show? Paul explained she is open to dating outside her faith. 'I'm open to any religion,' she said on Call Her Daddy. 'I mean, I'd be open to Mormons. Obviously, because I'm Mormon, but like, he doesn't have to be.'
Does Frankie Taylor Paul have children?
Yes! Frankie has two children from her marriage to Tate Paul, Indy, 8 and Ocean, 5. She shares a daughter, Ever, with Dakota Mortensen, who was born in 2024.
When does The Bachelorette start?
There isn't an official release date for season 22 of The Bachelorette yet. However, according to Deadline, the show is slated for early 2026.
Alice Hall is the Staff Writer at Grazia UK. She was previously a Junior Features Writer for The Daily Telegraph. At Grazia, she writes news and features about pop culture, dating, health, politics and interiors.