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The long awaited update is on The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Season 5 has arrived at just the right time, one day before Hulu hosts its first-ever Get Real House 2026 to highlight the streamer and ABC’s unscripted slate. A slew of new programming announcements on Wednesday outside of the presentation expand Hulu’s reality TV offerings and include spinoffs of Disney’s hottest franchises. Dancing with the stars and Mormon wivesthe latter of which is now in “active pre-production,” says Rob Mills, executive vice president of alternative and unscripted entertainment at Walt Disney Television.
with Mormon wives Production is set to resume after a month-long halt in filming and an internal investigation into star Taylor Frankie Paul over domestic violence allegations. Hollywood Reporter We spoke with the president of Unscripted below about the new ABC and Hulu shows, and discussed the pressure around repeating last season’s shows Dancing with the stars Success (“It scares the hell out of me!”), what viewers can expect and when Mormon wives He returns (with or without Paul), if we’re going to see Paul’s canceled season Bachelorette And why Bachelor’s degree The franchise “isn’t going anywhere.”
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The news just came out that Mormon wives Production will resume on season five. I have confirmed from a source close to the production that the investigation conducted by the show’s production (via a third-party law firm) has concluded. We also reported that the door is open for Taylor’s Frankie Paul return if and when she’s ready, and that the show has been supportive of her during this hiatus. Do you hope for her return? And can you share details on how quickly you can get your data back up?
With the pick up again, what we said is that the show is going back into production. This does not mean that we immediately set up cameras. That was a pretty big break. We have to look at where everyone is, and what the stories will be. So I would say we’re in active pre-production now, and we’re figuring it out.
As far as Taylor is concerned, first and foremost for me is making sure she’s good as a human being and taken care of. We’ll discuss professional matters once we get past all that.
A lot has been reported since this all happened with Taylor Frankie Paul, including the investigation and care she took to ensure that Mormon wives The cast was relieved when the cameras backed up. Now it seemed like everything was out in the open, so they would be able to handle the matter freely, which was what concerned Jesse Draper. Have you thought about how the show handles having a lot going on when cameras aren’t rolling?
Yeah, I think a lot of that will be driven by the cast. I think you used exactly the right word. We wanted to make sure they were really taken care of. This is the real reason we proactively manufacture them [the cast] Executive producers [for season four]. They will really be the ones to inform how the story is told.
Does the cast now feel good about returning, whether Taylor is involved or not? Have their concerns been raised? Do you feel like everyone is ready?
Certainly the vibe is that everyone is ready. I don’t think we’ve figured out the nuances, but we wanted to make sure that everyone really wanted to come back. And they feel good about it. We would never have gone back if it had been otherwise.
Also today you announced an expansion mormon wives, With a new series set in Orange County. With the success of the breakthrough Mormon wives – And renewed DWTSwhich is also getting a spinoff — do you think those are your top priorities in terms of unscripted franchises at Disney right now?
Yes. I mean, when you give the green light to something, you never say, “This is a privilege.” However, when we named the show The Secret Lives Of Mormon Wives, We thought, “Well, there’s a possibility of success that you can do: The Secret Lives of Empty Mormon Wives.“And once in the original Mormon wives It took off right away, we definitely started talking about it. But as you can see, there was a lot of time between then and when we announced this offer. So we tried to be really thoughtful, really purposeful. We have explored other regions or the world and other teams. And this was where I finally felt like it was an opportunity to catch it. If you look at mormon wives, This show was produced in an unusual way. Not just the actual producers, but the cast themselves, who are also producing the show. This is an incredibly high limit, so we wouldn’t have done this if we didn’t think it could reach that limit.
Are you looking at Mormon wives Bravo style Real Housewives A model, where the plan would be that you would be in 10 cities within five years?
We just want to make sure we provide the best content as possible. I don’t think we compare ourselves to anyone. We want to make sure we make great content. If that’s what happens in the end, great. And if it’s just these shows, that’s okay too.
There was speculation about that Summer house Ciara Miller could be the next Bachelorette, and now we see today that she’s going to continue Dancing with the stars. Can you share what those conversations with Ciara were like? Did you take any convincing to do? DanceDid you talk about him? Bachelorette?
We didn’t talk about it Bachelorette. Right after this happened[with[withtheSummer house Scandal]we were able to Zoom with her and she was so delightful. We were so excited to be able to continue her story Dance. One of the very cool things Dance is that it’s really about telling that journey of where you are in your life. This was a really exciting opportunity, and it was just a matter of talking about it Dance.
There were reports that Taylor Frankie Paul was being considered DWTS. Was that in the talks at all?
No. We have Dance Casting continues until we announce it in September. We don’t proactively start sending early unless it’s truly purposeful. In the case of Ciara and Maura [Higgins]These were great ads for Get Real [Hulu’s unscripted programming event]. But no, we don’t actually have a crew of 14 people. These are our first ads, and that’s it. I’m not entirely sure where those reports came from.
DWTS Last season saw a resurgence in the ratings as well as in manhood. We spoke with your producers and they attribute a lot of that to the cast. Is there pressure to keep it going, or do you feel like you have to turn people away for Season 35?
There is absolute pressure. It scares the hell out of me! This was an incredibly special cast, but also, as great as it was to have people who really felt in the moment like Dylan Efron and Alex Earle, it was also a revelation. I don’t think anyone thought when we cast Andy Richter: “This is the guy who is going to be this generation’s hero and who has become an adoptive father figure.” Everyone on this crew contributed something and told a great story. Now, it’s not about finding someone who is exactly like Andy Richter or Eileen Hendricks or Alex Earle or Dylan Efron, or even Mormon wives He slanders. It’s: How do we get the same feelings with different people? So it’s definitely a 24-hour, 365-day-a-year job for Dina Katz. They were literally put on this earth to do this. So we’re definitely working hard and it’s going to be really scary to try to replicate that, but it’s a fun challenge.
You announced a lot of news at the Get Real event for your upcoming unscripted list. But there was no news about her Bachelor’s degree privilege. And with all these other franchises expanding, do we have to explain any of that?
No. Not at all. Bachelor’s degree and Bachelor in Paradise They both return next year. Bachelor’s degree Returns mid-season heaven It will be next summer. So I don’t think we are Need to talk about something after a year. Hopefully next year’s Get Real will be where we’ll talk more about that. But no, Bachelor’s degree The franchise isn’t going anywhere.
What about Bachelorette After a two season hiatus now? What are the challenges and concerns regarding bringing this series back after the cancellation of Season 22?
Good, Bachelor’s degree It is a privilege as a whole. So whatever the right stories are to tell, that’s what we’ll tell. I wouldn’t say this has anything to do with it Bachelorette In general. I think when we have the right people to tell any iteration Bachelor’s degree Franchise, we’re going to say that. This also applies to Golden Bachelor What other story can we tell in such an amazing way?
I mean, for example, if you made two Bachelor’s Consecutive seasons and this is not the time for Bachelorettethat doesn’t mean Bachelorette He died? Will the supermodel tell the best story under this franchise?
Exactly, yes. I don’t think I could have put it better myself.
Do you have a measure of interest to bring Bachelorette behind? Or is it a matter of chance, as if Ciara Miller had exercised?
Yes, I think that’s true. For us, Dance The model looked really sexy [for Ciara]. I can’t speak for her, but I think her heartbreak is pretty new. So to immediately say: “There are 25 new people” seems a bit crazy. Why don’t we start with one on Dance And see where that takes us?
What are the key lessons learned or things you will apply when choosing your next stream Bachelor’s/came Season, after How did things go with Taylor Frankie Paul? Will you be doing more crossover casting?
I would say that whatever the right story to tell is, nothing is off limits.
Is it off the table to save Taylor? Bachelorette season? I’m sure you’ve seen speculation about the possibility of it being revived, especially with… No charges were brought Against it.
I think it’s all really day to day. The whole thing about Taylor, first and foremost, is that we make sure that anything you need is taken care of on a human level, and then we can talk about anything from a presentation perspective.
If Taylor doesn’t return, it will take the show to a different era. Do you look at this as Mormon wives 2.0? Do you think it will come back and feel like a reset? What can people expect?
I think we’re blessed with an amazing ensemble, and I think we learned after the first season that they’ll always have great stories to tell, and we’ll always lean into that.
