The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Heads to the OC: Meet the Cast Everyone Will Be Talking About
Hulu is taking The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives to the OC, rolling out the franchise’s first spinoff later this year as a new squad of young moms collides in a community where faith fuels friendships, rivalries, and every decision.
Hulu is officially franchising The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. The streamer announced on Wednesday, April 22 that the first spinoff, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County, is dropping later this year. New cast, new city, same messy mix of faith, family, and the kind of influencer drama that keeps group chats alive.
What the OC spinoff is selling
The pitch: a crew of young moms in Orange County navigating a community where belief isn’t just a Sunday thing, it ’s the whole identity. Some are clinging tight to tradition, others are pushing into modern life (and the algorithm), and the tension between those two camps is very much the point. Expect secrets, crumbling facades, and a lot of fallout as they try to build their own flavor of #MomTok. If that sounds engineered for maximum chaos, well, it probably is.
The new faces
- Aspyn Ovard
- Bobbi Althoff
- Avery Woods
- Salomé Andrea
- McCall DaPron
- Chandler Higginson
- Ashleigh Pease
- Madison Bontempo
Quick refresher on the original series
The OG Mormon Wives premiered on Hulu in 2024 and moved fast: four seasons in, plus some crossover moments with Vanderpump Villa for that reality-TV multiverse synergy. The cast has included Jen Affleck with husband Zac Affleck; Demi Engemann with husband Bret Engemann; Whitney Leavitt with husband Conner Leavitt; Mikayla Matthews with husband Jace Terry; Mayci Neeley with husband Jacob Neeley; Jessi Draper with Jordan Ngatikaura; Taylor Frankie Paul with then-partner Dakota Mortensen; and Layla Taylor. Miranda McWhorter joined in season 2 after her split from Chase McWhorter. Between them, the show has spotlighted a whole lot of kids too — 24 across the cast, if you’re keeping score.
Why production hit pause — and what changed
After those first four seasons, filming stopped in March following an alleged domestic violence incident in February involving Taylor Frankie Paul, 31, and Dakota Mortensen, 33. Both filed temporary restraining orders. A judge granted Dakota temporary custody of their 2-year-old son, Ever, while Taylor was allowed supervised visits until their next court date.
Then it got even stranger: ABC yanked Taylor’s season of The Bachelorette just days before it was supposed to premiere. And this month, prosecutors said Taylor will not face charges connected to the February incident.
"After reviewing reports and evidence submitted to the Draper Police Department and West Jordan Police Department, the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office has declined to file charges against Taylor Frankie Paul."
With that, production on the main series is set to resume. Taylor has hinted she might be back on camera, but whether she reunites with the rest of the cast is still up in the air.
The takeaway
Hulu rolling out an Orange County spinoff while the flagship regroups is a savvy (and a little ruthless) move. The OC cast is influencer-heavy, the premise is tailor-made for TikTok discourse, and the mothership’s legal saga practically guarantees everyone will tune in just to see who shows up where. More to come when Hulu drops a date.