Taylor Frankie Paul’s “Bachelorette” season was canceled before she ever handed out a single rose, but the question around the season has not gone away.
ABC announced in March that it would not move forward with Paul’s season after a video surfaced involving a physical altercation between Paul and her ex, Dakota Mortensen.
“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 spokesperson told People at the time.
“At this time” has become important as new updates surface.
It should be noted that the season is not officially back on ABC’s schedule. The network has not announced a premiere date either.
Still, multiple people connected to the franchise conversation have pointed to the same basic idea: Paul’s season may not be fully done.
Reality Steve Says Taylor Frankie Paul’s ‘Bachelorette’ Season Will Air
Reality Steve is giving the clearest update so far on Paul’s canceled season.
In a May 4 Instagram video, the reality TV insider said his sources told him Paul’s season will air this summer on ABC.
“According to my sources, it is going to air,” Reality Steve said. “And not only that, it’s not getting dumped on a streamer. It’s going to air on ABC this summer.”
That does not mean ABC has officially confirmed the season is back. It also does not mean the network has announced a date.
Reality Steve said he expects an official announcement from ABC in the coming weeks. He also noted that he does not know the exact premiere date or which night the show would air.
The franchise blogger said ABC’s original statement stood out to him because the network said it was not moving forward with the season “at this time.”
Rob Mills Talks Taylor Frankie Paul’s ‘Bachelorette’ Season
ABCABC executive Rob Mills has not confirmed that the “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star’s season will air, but he has spoken positively about it.
In an April 22 interview with Variety, Mills described the situation as “one day at a time,” although he said there was “nothing new to report” on the status of “The Bachelorette.”
Mills also defended the original decision to cast Paul.
“Her motives were really very sincere,” Mills told Variety. “Walking into that, that was a really exciting story to tell through the lens of ‘The Bachelorette.'”
Mills gave another update to Deadline that same day. He said Disney’s first concern was Paul, her family and everyone involved.
He left room for the season to be seen someday.
“I think her season is a wonderful season, by ‘Bachelor’ standards,” Mills said. “If it gets seen, I’m sure people will absolutely enjoy it.”
He also told Deadline that he hopes Bachelor Nation gets to see it “at some point.”
Julie LaPlaca Says ABC May Try To Salvage Taylor Frankie Paul’s Season
HuluFormer “Bachelor” producer Julie LaPlaca also suggested Paul’s season may not be gone for good.
LaPlaca spoke to Entertainment Weekly while discussing her upcoming memoir, “The Love Producer: My Unscripted Journey from a Reality TV Career to My Own Happily Ever After.”
During the interview, LaPlaca pointed to ABC’s original statement.
The network said it would not move forward with the season “at this time,” which left some room for the decision to change.
“I think they’re hoping to salvage it,” LaPlaca told Entertainment Weekly. “If they can find a way, they will.”
LaPlaca’s comments add to the sense that the season may still be in play.
She also pointed to the money involved in filming a full season.
“At the end of the day, though, it’s money and they have a season that they shot and they want to air,” she said.
TMZ previously reported that each episode of “The Bachelorette” costs around $2 million to produce.
The outlet also reported that one episode of Paul’s season was fully finished, while three others were still being edited.
