‘The Bachelorette’s Doug Mason Supports Taylor Frankie Paul Amid Scandal
What To Know
- Doug Mason, the speculated winner of The Bachelorette Season 22, has spoken out amid news of the show’s cancellation.
- In a video message posted to his Instagram Story, Doug showed support to Taylor Frankie Paul amid her controversy.
- ABC pulled the show from airing after a 2023 video surfaced of Taylor throwing chairs at ex Dakota Mortensen while her child was in the room.
Doug Mason, the man who is speculated to have won Taylor Frankie Paul‘s season of The Bachelorette, has broken his silence on news of the show’s cancellation. ABC announced on March 19 that it was pulling the plug on airing Taylor’s season amid her domestic violence controversy with ex Dakota Mortensen.
One day after the news broke, Doug took to his Instagram Story to post a quick morning video, in which he showed support to Taylor.
“In light of everything that’s happened, I’m just sending out prayers to Taylor because that was her moment, and her moment was blocked,” Doug said. “All we can do right now is just be hopeful, and I’m headed off to run and watch the sunrise. Hope you guys have a great day. Let’s stay positive and show nothing but support to people in need.”
While it’s rumored that Doug was the man Taylor chose at the end of filming The Bachelorette in November, the current status of their relationship has not been confirmed.
The decision to pull Season 22 of The Bachelorette came after a 2023 video, which showed Taylor throwing chairs at Dakota with one of her children in the room, surfaced on March 19. “Your daughter just got hit in the head by a metal chair,” Dakota claims at one point in the clip, which he filmed on a cell phone.
“In light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of The Bachelorette at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family,” a Disney Entertainment Television spokesperson said in a statement.
Taylor was arrested and charged with aggravated assault back in 2023, and this was documented on Season 1 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. However, her past scandal has come back to light amid Dakota’s new allegations against her.
Earlier this week, a spokesperson for the Draper City Police Department confirmed to People that Taylor and Dakota, who share a two-year-old son, were involved in an open “domestic assault investigation.” Both parties made allegations of physical abuse against each other stemming from an incident at the end of February. TMZ also reported that Dakota has made “multiple calls” to the Department of Child and Family Services.
In addition to ABC pulling The Bachelorette, Hulu has paused production on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. People reported that Taylor’s castmates requested to no longer film with her.
Taylor released a statement through her rep, telling People, “Taylor is very grateful for ABC’s support as she prioritizes her family’s safety and security. 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. 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. Taylor has remained silent out of fear of further abuse, retaliation and public shaming. She is currently exploring all of her options, seeking support, and preparing to own and share her story.”
Season 22 of The Bachelorette was supposed to premiere on Sunday, March 22. A rerun American Idol episode will be airing in its time slot instead, but ABC has not announced plans for Sunday night programming moving forward.
