Clockwise from top left: Malik, Doug, Shane, Brandon, Aaron, Michael B, Marcus and Johnnie Evan Mulling/Disney (8) Logo text ABC’s decision Thursday to pull Taylor Frankie Paul’s season of The Bachelorette just three days before its scheduled premiere has raised major questions about the franchise. But what about the men?
Contestants often take time away from their families, leave jobs and pause their lives to appear on the series.
The decision to shelve season 22 followed reports earlier in the week of an alleged domestic incident involving Paul and her ex, Dakota Mortensen, with whom she shares a son. After TMZ published a video Thursday tied to Paul’s 2023 arrest — to which she later pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, as documented on her other reality series, Hulu’s The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives — the network opted not to move forward.
“In light of the newly released video that 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 Thursday.
Not airing the season could cost the network $30 million or more.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter earlier this week, Paul acknowledged the toll of the headlines. “It’s been really difficult and heavy, given, you know, all the headlines and what’s going on,” Paul said. “I am handling it like any normal human would, like struggling but trying to show up at the same time.”
Paul rose to fame after going viral on TikTok in 2022 amid a “soft swinging” scandal involving MomTok creators and has since starred in four seasons of Mormon Wives, which was recently halted amid the allegations.
In a November interview with THR, she encouraged viewers to keep an open mind: “I feel like if you were to ever watch me, hear my story, I think I come off a little bit differently than people would just assume.”
The series is produced by Warner Horizon Unscripted Television, part of Warner Bros. Television Group, with Scott Teti serving as executive producer.
Below, meet the 22 men ABC had cast to compete for Paul’s final rose — who may now never get their time onscreen — with ABC’s description of each of her suitors. (Read here to find out what Paul told THR about her season’s ending and rumors about her final pick that, she said, were “incorrect spoilers.”)
This story originally published on Feb. 23 and has been updated after ABC pulled Paul’s season of The Bachelorette.
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Aaron, 32
Image Credit: Disney/Evan Mulling Logo text Vineyard, Utah Product Manager
Aaron is total husband material. With a smile as sweet as his personality, he loves making others feel welcome and radiates positive energy wherever he goes. He can’t wait to get married and takes pride in being a loyal, supportive partner. Aaron is incredibly close with his family and dreams of the day he can start one of his own. A devoted member of the Mormon church and a first-generation American born to immigrant parents, Aaron loves to travel and has even led humanitarian trips around the world. After years of putting others first in both his career and personal life, Aaron is finally ready to focus on his own love story and see if Taylor could be “the one.”
Fun Facts:
- Aaron’s FYP is exclusively food content.
- Aaron cannot sleep past 7 a.m.
- Aaron says that while his car is old, it is always shiny.
