Ashley Iaconetti Says Taylor Frankie Paul Should Have Never Been the Bachelorette: 'Wasn't an Appropriate Role for Her to Fill' 

Ashley Iaconetti is weighing in on Taylor Frankie Paul following the cancelation of her season of The Bachelorette.

While promoting The Real Housewives of Rhode Island, which recently premiered on Bravo, the 38-year-old TV personality told an outlet, “I recorded an hour-long podcast on this today, and it’s such a nuanced thing. Overall, it’s a good thing that they didn’t go forth with the season. That was a decision that should have been made more carefully earlier on.”

“We knew very much in detail, based on a lot of the interviews that she’s given, exactly what happened in the video and what led to the arrest. You guys did have her on a TV show for four seasons… It’s an absolutely terrible, terrible video, and the child being there is just awful… She probably should not have been decided to be the Bachelorette. That wasn’t an appropriate role for her to fill, and probably was not something that she was mentally, emotionally ready to take on for many reasons — the fact that she was so intertwined with Dakota going into it being one of them. So many things to say,” Iaconetti added.

Iaconetti first rose to fame on The Bachelor Season 19 with Chris Soules, before returning for multiple seasons of Bachelor in Paradise.

The controversy comes after ABC officially pulled the plug on the upcoming season, which was set to premiere on Sunday, March 22. The decision followed the release of a 2023 altercation video involving Paul and her ex-boyfriend 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 representative said in a statement.

In the footage, Mortensen is heard saying, "This is called physical abuse. See, Taylor? This is all you do. The only thing you know how to do is hurt me. You think this is okay? It's not okay."

Paul can be heard responding that she doesn't "give a f---" before continuing to hit and kick him.

"Let me go! Stop! Dude, leave me alone..." Mortensen pleaded as she hurled silver chairs at him. "Your daughter is right here."

The situation escalated further in the video.

The 8-year-old can be heard screaming for her mother before Paul demanded that Mortensen "get the f--- out."

"Your daughter just got hit in the head with a metal chair...go and help your daughter now," he said in the footage, while Paul screamed at him to "get away" from her child. "Think of your kids...I love your kids. I freaking love them to death."

Paul and Mortensen share a son, Ever, born in March 2024. She is also a mom to Indy and Ocean, whom she shares with her ex-husband, Tate Paul.