Dakota Mortensen is breaking his silence after an alleged altercation with Taylor Frankie Paul led to a Secret Lives of Mormon Wives production shutdown.
“His number one priority here is protecting [their son], Ever,” a rep for Dakota, 33, told Entertainment Weekly on Wednesday, March 18. “He knew there was a possibility it could come out, but he was not going to be the one to proactively do that because he has always wanted a decent relationship with Taylor. It’s been really hard to achieve that, but he wants to coparent well.”
The rep denied that Dakota is responsible for the alleged domestic violence dispute with Taylor, 31, being made public after filming for season 5 of the Hulu reality show was halted.
“He was just hoping that if he says nothing, as he usually does, it would go away. He’s never done any kind of sit-down interview about his side,” the statement continued. “He kind of just lets it all happen to him, and I think he realizes with the severity of everything now that he just can’t do that.”
A spokesperson for the Draper City Police Department in Utah previously confirmed to Us Weekly that there is an open “domestic assault investigation” regarding Dakota and Taylor’s alleged dispute. According to authorities, “allegations have been made in both directions” and “contact was made with involved parties on [February] 24th and 25th.”
Taylor and Dakota’s on-again, off-again relationship has been at the center of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives since the series premiered in September 2024. More than one year earlier, Taylor was arrested in February 2023 following an altercation with Dakota. She was 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 to aggravated assault, and the other charges were dismissed.
After the incident, Dakota defended Taylor in a Daily Mail interview, claiming she would never hurt anyone “intentionally.”
“She’s a good mom, she’s going through a lot in her life right now. Taylor’s been struggling, it’s been a hard year for her. She is racked with guilt [over] her cheating scandal that cost her her marriage,” he said, referring to her divorce from Tate Paul following her soft-swinging scandal.
In the aftermath of Taylor’s arrest, she and Dakota welcomed their son, Ever, in March 2024. (She also shares daughter Indy, 8, and son Ocean, 5, with Tate.) However, Taylor and Dakota split again in 2025.
Amid ongoing turmoil with Dakota, Taylor attempted to move on by accepting the role of the Bachelorette for season 22 of the ABC reality series, which is set to premiere on Sunday, March 22. While previewing her stint as the lead in her March Us cover story, she reflected on her tense dynamic with Dakota.
“It was hard because I’m, obviously, a part of that — it’s not like I am pointing the finger like, ‘He is [the toxic one].’ It takes two to tango. We were just not progressing,” Taylor said in her interview, which took place prior to her alleged dispute with Dakota. “We like each other sometimes, and then we fight. It’s really hard to explain to people, and unless you’ve been in that situation, it is hard to understand. If I could just snap out of it, trust me, I would. It’s just a lot harder said than done.”
Taylor broke her silence on the incident while speaking to Us at an event on Tuesday, March 17, before the premiere of her Bachelorette season.
“There’s more to the context to everything and it’s unfortunate. … It’s another premiere that’s been taken away from me,” she exclusively told Us. “I’ve never enjoyed a premiere for any one of my shows. So it’s just been very sad.”
