Lisa Vanderpump reveals if Dakota Mortensen is still in ‘Vanderpump Villa’ Season 3: ‘We didn’t…’
Lisa Vanderpump, the star of 'Vanderpump Villa,' is speaking out over Dakota Mortensen's absence in Season 3, which is all set to premiere on April 16 on Hulu. The 33-year-old Mortensen was announced as a guest star on the show's latest season, alongside other 'DadTok' stars like Jordan Ngatikaura, Mason McWhorter, Chase McWhorter, Jacob Neeley, and Zac Affleck. In 'Vanderpump Villa,' Lisa and her staff are seen creating luxurious experiences for her guests from other reality shows at historic locations across Europe. The show's third iteration is set in Newport Pagnell in the United Kingdom. However, at the start of April, news broke that Dakota's storyline would end up on the cutting room floor. Lisa recently addressed the situation, while speaking to 'Good Morning America' on Thursday, April 16.
The 65-year-old said, "Well, he wasn’t in it that much. I mean, he wasn’t front and center of the storyline. We just thought, 'Let’s just cut it out, you know?' He’s still in it a little bit. But you know, it was all a little bit delicate, really," referring to his domestic violence drama with his ex-girlfriend, Taylor Frankie Paul. The British mogul reiterated that the edits won't affect the season's larger storyline. "But as I say, [Dakota] wasn’t front and center. We didn’t lose any story at all."
Dakota and Taylor rose to prominence due to their on-again, off-again relationship on Hulu's other reality series, 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,' which premiered in September 2024. Production on Season 5 of 'Mormon Wives' was halted last month in March after the duo allegedly got into a physical altercation while filming in late February. The Draper City Police Department launched a domestic assault investigation into the incident, with a spokesperson revealing that they were looking into "allegations … in both directions." Subsequently, both Taylor and Dakota filed temporary restraining orders against each other. As more information began coming out about the stars' troubled relationship, their appearances on hit reality shows came into question.
Dakota and Paul share a 2-year-old son, named Ever. Following the March investigation, Dakota was granted custody of Ever, while Taylor was allowed supervised visits. The fallout occurred as Taylor was set to star in Season 22 of 'The Bachelorette,' but ABC pulled the series three days before its scheduled premiere on March 22. The decision was made after a 2023 video surfaced showing her throwing barstools at Dakota during a heated argument, which led to her arrest in 2023. On March 25, a third domestic violence incident involving Taylor and Dakota from 2024 came to light.
Despite all the drama, Dakota was recently seen on Alex Cooper’s competition series 'Unwell Winter Games' with Demi Engemann, which premiered on YouTube on April 6. The show features 16 contestants competing in "mental and physical challenges over four days at a luxury chalet in Park City, Utah," per its official synopsis.
