There is a major double standard when it comes to consequences for men and women in domestic abuse or assault incidents.
On March 19, just three days before The Bachelorette’s 22nd season was set to premiere, ABC announced that it was moving forward with cancelling the entire season. The fans of this reality show enterprise were stunned, realizing that the network would be losing up to $60 million dollars, according to Forbes.
The season had a not-so-typical Bachelorette pick from the start – the star of Hulu’s “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” Taylor Frankie Paul.
Paul, already famous as a reality TV star, has already been married and also had a very public, tumultuous relationship with another man, which surprised Bachelor Nation fans as the chosen Bachelorette. Although this was an unorthodox choice, no one expected the news that would break, causing an unexpected cancellation, especially just days before the premiere.
With 72 hours until the premiere, a controversial video from 2023 resurfaced of Paul, showing her during a physical altercation with her then-boyfriend, Dakota Mortensen.
The video depicted her physically abusing him and throwing barstools at him, all near her sleeping child.
Paul’s actions in the video, while they are not showing her in a good light by any means, were allegedly the result of Mortensen’s relentless cycle of manipulation and abuse.
Re-releasing the video of this situation three days prior to an important day for Paul – and on their son’s birthday – is another example of Mortensen’s patterns of manipulation, which viewers of the show can plainly see.
This situation ended with an arrest and probation, all previously discussed and documented on ”The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” season 1.
While this situation is extremely serious and the cancellation of the show is for a good reason, shouldn’t the same things be happening to male actors, athletes or singers in similar situations?
Typically, male celebrities face fire for allegations against them, and then the incidents are swept under the rug. It’s unusual for a man to have a movie role taken away or to be suspended from a season.
Take rapper Chris Brown, for example; he has faced domestic abuse charges multiple times, one incident being an extremely public battle with pop singer Rihanna.
Despite this, he continues to release albums, own a clothing line and sell out stadiums, recently wrapping up his twelfth tour.
Brown also won a Grammy in 2025, for his album “11:11.”
On an even larger level, think about our president.
Donald Trump has been accused of sexual misconduct by over 25 women. Despite this large number of accusations, Trump has only denied them and, since then, has overtaken our government’s rankings and is now sitting in the highest position in the US.
How is it possible that these men are achieving the greatest accolades of their fields while having such atrocious accusations being held against them?
Taylor Frankie Paul, being put under scrutiny for abusing her boyfriend, is a prime example of women receiving more hate and backlash than any powerful man ever does, all for the same actions. While no one would expect her to be excused for her actions, it wouldn’t make the most sense to hold famous men to the same standards?
The question that anyone would ask is: If it were a Bachelor lead with these allegations, would their whole season be canceled, too?
Just because Paul’s actions were not typical or “feminine” for a woman to do, like throwing chairs and pulling hair, does not mean she should face more backlash for them than a man would.