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Taylor Frankie Paul was officially the next face of The Bachelorette<\/a> until ABC canceled the season three days before its scheduled premiere on Sunday, March 22. The update comes after reports of a domestic incident involving her ex, Dakota Mortensen,<\/a> surfaced via People and TMZ on March 16.<\/p>\n Once a clip of Taylor throwing chairs at Dakota leaked to TMZ on March 19, ABC issued a statement on the status of her Bachelorette season, writing, \u201cIn 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.\u201d<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Taylor addressed the controversy in a statement released to People<\/a>.that same day. \u201cIt\u2019s sad to see the latest installment of his never-ending, desperate, attention-seeking, destructive campaign to harm Taylor without any regard for the consequences for their child,\u201d they said. \u201cReleasing an old video, which conveniently omits context, on their son\u2019s birthday is a reprehensible attempt to distract from his own behavior. Thankfully, the public has seen this act before and knows who he is and sadly, many will recognize this pattern of manipulation, both in his actions on the show and from their own experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n Paula Lobo\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n As for the men competing for Taylor\u2019s heart this season, a source told Us Weekly<\/a> that they \u201chave all been rallying around each other in solidarity and feel extremely upset and let down by Taylor and the situation,\u201d while TMZ<\/a> reports that they were all \u201cshocked\u201d and \u201cblindsided\u201d by the headlines.<\/p>\n Amid the reported drama and cancellation, several Bachelor Nation alumni have shared their thoughts on Taylor\u2019s involvement on The Bachelorette. Here\u2019s what former cast members of the fan-favorite reality series, from Charity Lawson to Ben Higgins, have said.<\/p>\n Sydney Warner Instagram<\/p>\n On the flip side, Sydney had her criticisms of Taylor stepping in as the Bachelorette after Dakota claimed he had allegedly slept with her the night before she left for filming.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is so upsetting,\u201d Sydney wrote on her March 16 Instagram Stories. \u201cI am a result of being on The Bachelor, I owe a lot to that franchise. The Bachelor is one of the most iconic shows of all time & was so highly respected because they held the contestants to such a standard. It was such an honor to be on the cast, let alone be casted as the LEAD. That\u2019s life changing.\u201d<\/p>\n She added, \u201cTo watch this and see the soon to be lead completely disrespect the stage that she has been given, the men who put their entire lives on hold to come and meet her is horrible. What has happened to morals and values?\u201d<\/p>\n Sydney Warner\/\/Instagram<\/p>\n Charity Lawson Jamie McCarthy\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Charity, who served as The Bachelorette back in 2023, seemed to react to reports of Taylor and Dakota\u2019s dispute when she posted a TikTok video on March 16 where she claimed \u201cDating shows are not for you to find healing.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis is for whoever \u2014 I\u2019m speaking from a mental health standpoint and let\u2019s be very clear in this day, I\u2019m going to advocate for the well being of cast members whoever they are if I see a noticeable problem,\u201d Charity wrote in the comments section of the clip. \u201cMental health is not a joke and should be taken seriously.\u201d Sydney also chimed in with a comment, writing, \u201cPreach. Thank you for speaking with your chest and stating that what is going on is actually not OK.\u201d<\/p>\n TikTok \/ Charity Lawson<\/p>\n Ben Higgins Jesse Grant\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n On the March 17 episode of his Almost Famous podcast<\/a>, Ben admitted that the franchise \u201cdoesn\u2019t have the best track record of casting people or doing background checks on people.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s forgiveness, and there\u2019s grace\u2026but it doesn\u2019t mean you come on a reality show looking to find your partner in front of all of us and make yourself susceptible to the criticisms and the praise that come with this show. That, mentally, is taxing in itself,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n DeAnna Pappas Monica Schipper\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n During the March 18 episode of the Almost Famous podcast<\/a>, DeAnna shared she feels \u201cso sad\u201d for Taylor, her ex, and their child amid the reported drama.<\/p>\n \u201cIt doesn\u2019t feel good the way they\u2019re releasing things and making this woman \u2014 the lead of a show \u2014 making her live through it over and over and over again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The season 4 Bachelorette, who was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence in February 2025, later added, \u201cShe went to an event, she showed face, because she is trying to promote a show that she has done, and she sounds broken. I almost cried, Heather, listening to it, because you can hear the pain in her voice when she is speaking \u2014 that it took all she had to get there that night.\u201d<\/p>\n Amanda Stanton Jesse Grant\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Amanda, who competed on Ben\u2019s season of The Bachelor in 2016, shared her thoughts on Taylor\u2019s casting during the March 18 the Between Us Moms podcast<\/a>, which was recorded before reports of Taylor and Dakota\u2019s dispute had surfaced on March 16.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought it was an interesting choice,\u201d Amanda said at the time. \u201cI was so happy that they chose her\u2026so happy to see that they picked someone who wasn\u2019t that exact fit that they\u2019ve gone with for so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n Grant Ellis Matt Sayles<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s an unfortunate situation,\u201d season 29 Bachelor, Grant Ellis, told TMZ<\/a>. \u201cI think ABC needed to take a stance and they did that.\u201d<\/p>\n He added, \u201cI think if they would have aired this season, it would have left room for interpretation, and you know, they did the right thing. They made the right choice. Although it\u2019s going to take some time to recoup, it\u2019s the right thing to do morally.\u201d<\/p>\n Rachel Lindsay Michael Loccisano\/\/Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"TAYLOR](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1efb7167-673d-433b-ab27-21810e72f5a7.jpeg\" "\\"TAYLOR")
<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1fe0c8d8-653a-4049-8690-3b94273edfbb.jpg\" "\\"A")
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<\/p>\n![\"alice](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/342b5e45-3594-42ab-8284-5222eaeccdc9.jpeg\" "\\"alice")
<\/p>\n![\"Comment](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/f0443147-168f-4a31-8330-152013100dbe.png\" "\\"Comment")
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<\/p>\n![\"iHeartRadio](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/72a11fcb-9d43-4a3d-9682-7ffe1b337444.jpeg\" "\\"iHeartRadio")
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<\/p>\n![\"the](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/174304-3243-v3-677d96dd6bd5a.jpg\" "\\"GRANT")
<\/p>\n![\"Real](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/dbcb2642-2406-454a-80a7-384fd85ec4a3.jpeg\" "\\"Real")
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![\"ABC's](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/ba72a845-7b7d-4cb5-b782-b22f2c1fc1d7.jpeg\" "\\"ABC's")
<\/p>\n![\"CAROLINA](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/6151f4a2-3f1e-4c85-bf5c-84438e7446b3.jpeg\" "\\"CAROLINA")
<\/p>\n![\"HGTV](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/b7af8c2d-9742-4ee7-9e8e-56edf53a2633.jpeg\" "\\"HGTV")
<\/p>\n![\"HGTV's](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/9be38931-c1d8-4c26-81be-ea5059d6b0e2.jpeg\" "\\"HGTV's")
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