Mikayla Matthews is leaving The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives amid turmoil in MomTok.
The influencer and Hulu star shared the news in a social media post as the cast was recently seen in Italy filming Season 6 of the reality series.
“I made my decision over a week ago, after hearing some news, that I will not be continuing the show at this moment,” Matthews posted on Instagram. “I’ve said from the beginning of this that I’m not comfortable being a part of something that continues to platform behavior I don’t agree especially given my own experience growing up in a home with multiple forms of abuse.”
She continued, “There’s no amount of money worth going against my morals or changing the stance I’ve had since I first saw and heard the things that made me feel this strongly. And for me personally, continuing to directly profit from this behavior feels wrong and unethical. It feels like a disservice to the children, everyone’s healing and the millions of people watching.”
Matthews is seemingly referring to her co-star Taylor Frankie Paul, whose personal life has been at the center of drama on Secret Lives of Mormon Wives since the first season. Production for Season 5 of the series was paused after domestic violence allegations from Paul’s ex, Dakota Mortensen, with whom she shares a child. Legal actions, a custody battle, and an old resurfaced video showing Paul physically assaulting Mortensen were released ahead of the release of The Bachelorette, which prompted ABC to cancel its premiere.
On the most recent season of SLOMW, Matthews and Paul clashed over the latter not wanting any criticism of her life. Although Matthews and Paul mended things on camera, things off-camera didn’t seem to be good.
Matthews points out that the children ultimately suffer from continuing to expose their troubling lives on camera. Hulu will seemingly continue to work with Paul, which Matthews doesn’t think is good for her mental health or for the rest of the cast and their children.
“This show has been a huge part of my life and has helped me provide for my family,” Matthews continued. “I’m so grateful for the experience, and will continue sharing my story, my health and advocating for myself and others this shouldn’t be ‘relatable’ or entertainment in anyway. Supporting an ADULT doesn’t mean constantly making excuses for toxic behavior while giving unconditional sympathy and grace with zero accountability or change. I was in that enabling cycle for years, and I’m not going to be a part of that again! love you all.”
Read the full post below.
