Taylor Frankie Paul doesn’t have any regrets about participating on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives despite the personal challenges — and she’s already looking ahead to season 2.
In an exclusive interview for Us Weekly’s Reality Stars of the Year issue, Taylor, 30, stood by her decision to discuss her involvement in the “soft swinging” sex scandal on the Hulu series, saying, “I love that I did the show. I have no regrets about that.”
Taylor didn’t mind discussing swinging but she has no interest in returning to that scene. “It was fun and exciting and all those feelings at the time. So I didn’t feel bad at the time,” she recalled. “But I think learning all the after-effects of how it can destroy your life — I absolutely don’t miss that.”
Years before The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives premiered on Hulu, MomTok became a TikTok craze in 2020. The interest intensified when Taylor revealed in 2022 that she indulged in “soft swinging” with other people’s partners — and she was subsequently going through a divorce from ex-husband Tate Paul.
“I don’t know how [Tate] feels. It was a lot less bad than he thought. He saw the trailer and he and his fiancée were worried. Obviously that’s really triggering to hear that, especially for her,” Taylor told Us. “I can’t imagine wanting to hear that with someone else. So I think they struggled, but when they watched it. I guess it wasn’t as bad as they thought.”
Taylor initially remained tight-lipped about the other original members of MomTok involved in the sex scandal. Miranda McWhorter and Camille Mundy have since been named as potential participants — and Taylor wouldn’t be surprised to see them on season 2. (Hulu renewed The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives earlier this month.)
“It’s out of my control and they have a show to do. So I don’t see how it wouldn’t be happening,” she shared. “A lot of those things will be triggering — and when it comes to it — I’ll have to face it. At this point it’s just out of my control.”
According to Taylor, Camille reached out to congratulate her on the show. Miranda, however, hasn’t been as friendly.
“There’s some animosity there from me exposing my story and knowing that she’s probably the one people allude to. So she probably feels all this animosity toward me,” she explained to Us. “I’ve called her out on certain things so I don’t know if she’s a huge fan of me. I could imagine it’s extremely uncomfortable for her to have to come on if she chose to. I think she knows that she’d have to talk about things if she is never talked about as well.”
Taylor knows firsthand about having to address all aspects of her life on screen. When season 1 started, Taylor was trying to figure out a future with boyfriend Dakota Mortensen. The couple found out they were expecting their first baby together in the premiere but Taylor subsequently suffered an ectopic pregnancy. The season premiere ended with footage from Taylor’s February 2023 arrest for domestic violence.
“The first few days [when the show came out], I was actually really busy that I couldn’t just binge it. I had my kids and for some reason I do feel uncomfortable with my kids watching it,” Taylor, who shares daughter Indy, 7, and son Ocean, 4, with Tate and 7-month-old son Ever with Dakota, explained. “It makes me feel uncomfortable. And then it gives me anxiety.”
Taylor was ultimately charged with aggravated assault, two counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child, child abuse with injury and criminal mischief after the incident. She pleaded guilty in August 2023 to aggravated assault, while the other four charges were dismissed with prejudice, reaching a plea deal the following month. Cameras picked back up months later when Taylor was pregnant with Ever.
“It’s really hard for me to watch [the ups and downs with me and Dakota] because it’s all such true feelings. None of it is fabricated or acting or nothing. It’s all real,” she noted. “So it’s really hard for me to watch that back to that. That’s probably one of the hardest moments.”
During her interview with Us, Taylor wasn’t sure about her relationship status with Dakota. She said he “did actually watch” the episodes and wasn’t thrilled with the final result.
“I would say we’re working on things and I actually have no idea where it goes with us from here. We are not fully together, but not fully done. I don’t know where the future holds with him and I,” she admitted. “It’s just a lot. So I’m coping and trying to cope. But I don’t want to watch the show.”
Taylor wished viewers saw more of Dakota’s “good soft side,” adding, “I feel like for him, that wasn’t shown on the show. It did show just defense. So he’s like, ‘I look like this asshole to you while you’re pregnant — when that’s just not the case of how I treated you the whole time. Yes, I did defend myself in cases, but that’s not how I am to you.’ … I can’t speak for him, but I am sure he wants to tell his side as well [on season 2].”
For more with the Reality Stars of the Year, pick up the new issue of Us Weekly, on stands now.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
