A guide to 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' cast — and their husbands (2025)

Hulu’s new docuseries “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” takes an intimate look at the lives, loves and scandals of Mormon mom influencers.

The cast is comprised of eight women who gained prominent social media followings with their popular #MomTok videos.

“I would describe it as a group of moms that get together and make silly social media videos. We are able to connect and empathize with each other and what we go through,” cast member Layla Taylor tells TODAY.com.

Taylor Frankie Paul says the group started with her making “fun video,” and inviting people over to make them. Soon, she says, “there were 25 of us in the group message.”

MomTok transformed from a social hobby into a business, Paul says. “It was originally fun. Then the more we grew, the more people wanted to join. Let’s collaborate, get what we need to do and go. We had to do business” she says.

The group more or less imploded in 2022 when Paul made two announcements on TikTok Live: First, that she was divorcing her husband Tate Paul, and second, that she and her ex had an open relationship that entailed dalliances within their friend group. She said, in the video, that she “stepped out of the... agreement,” which led to her divorce.

After her video went viral, many #MomTok followers were left with questions. "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives" will try to answer them.

Read on to find out more about the cast.Taylor Frankie Paul, 30

Follow her on social media: TikTok (@taylorfrankiepaul) and Instagram (@taylorfrankiepaul)

Taylor Frankie Paul is credited as the creator of #MomTok — and she's also behind its biggest scandal.

In 2022, she made headlines when she announced her divorce from Tate Paul and said they were engaging in “soft swinging” with other members of her friend group. She said her divorce was the result of her breaching their open relationship’s rules.

Paul later introduced her followers to Dakota Mortensen, whom she described as the man she “cheated with.” She and Mortensen welcomed a boy in 2024.

The series shows turmoil in their relationship. Paul was arrested on domestic violence charges in February 2023. She was charged with aggravated assault, two counts of domestic violence in the presence of a child, child abuse and criminal mischief.

Paul pleaded guilty to aggravated assault; the other charges were dismissed. She reached a plea agreement.

When asked what she was most nervous to see in the series, Taylor Frankie Paul went back to a moment in her relationship.

“I forgot the cameras were there and Dakota and I get into this fight. My true emotions came out. I open up. It’s the first time I share what’s on in my head. Not that I regret doing that… actually, I don’t regret doing that. It opened up to me being honest about what was going on,” she said.

Mikayla Matthews, 24

Follow her on Instagram: TikTok (@mikaylamatthews) and Instagram (@mikayla__matt)

Mikayla Matthews and her husband Jace Terry have three children.

Matthews first became a mom for the first time as a teenager. On the show, she tells TODAY.com she navigates forging her own identity while being her family’s sole provider following the loss of her husband’s job.

“I had my first kid at 17. I didn’t even know what I liked to do anymore because I was just a mom. That’s what I did. There’s a lot of pressure too, now, being a mom and a full-time provider for my family,” she tells TODAY.com. “Now I am the only provider.”

Matthews has been vocal online about her undiagnosed skin condition.

Whitney Leavitt, 31

Follow her on social media: TikTok (@whitneyleavitt) and Instagram (@whitleavitt)

Whitney Leavitt and her husband Conner Leavitt are currently expecting their third child.

The family relocates to Utah in the premiere of "The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives," following time in Hawaii.

In the first episode, Whitney Leavitt says she and her family moved to Hawaii following rumors her husband was using Tinder. Conner Leavitt said he used Tinder in a YouTube video he posted with his wife in 2022. Whitney Leavitt addresses the scandal more in the YouTube series.

On the show, Whitney Leavitt also addresses the backlash she faced for filming a video of her dancing next to her newborn son as he received supplemental oxygen for an RSV diagnosis. She later deleted the video.

“I didn’t know those things were going to come up. If I knew we would’ve decided differently,” she tells TODAY.com. “As far as my husband and I share our journey through that difficult time we went through, that happened organically. It’s not ;ole we said, ‘Let’s share this to the world.’ It was a question we had been asked and it naturally flowed into sharing our story."

Jennifer Affleck, 25

Follow her on social media: TikTok (@jenniferaffleckk) and Instagram (@jenniferlaffleck)

Jen Affleck and her husband Zac Affleck have two children together. The last name is not a coincidence: Her husband is cousins with actors Ben and Casey Affleck.

While Zac Affleck is in medical school, Jen Affleck is the family’s provider.

“I want to be able to provide for my family, provide for my husband to get through med school and my family. I always wanted to take care of my parents — my mom is a cleaning lady at a hospital,” she tells TODAY.com. “I feel a lot of pressure. So many people are leaning on me.”

“I’m definitely the first Jen Affleck. Not only that, her middle name is the same as mine: Jennifer Lynn Affleck. I don’t know, maybe we can convert them to the church,” Jen said in the second episode of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.”

Mayci Neeley

Follow her on social media: TikTok (@maycineeley) and Instagram (@maycineeley)

Mayci Neeley and her husband Jacob Neeley have a blended family of two kids and are currently undergoing IVF.

Speaking to TODAY.com, she says MomTok is “changing the cultural norms in the church” by making women their family’s breadwinners and “showing women they can do anything they can put their minds to.”

Mayci Neeley previously played D1 tennis at Brigham Young University and went on to create a natal nutrition company called Baby Mama.

Demi Engemann, 30

Follow her on social media: TikTok (@demilucymay) and Instagram (@demilucymay)

Previously divorced, Demi Engemann is now married to her husband Bret Engemann. They have a blended family with three children.

According to her Hulu bio, she is a "passionate advocate for ketamine treatment."

Layla Taylor, 23

Follow her on social media: TikTok: @laylaleannetaylor / Instagram: @laylaleannetaylor

Layla Taylor is a recently divorced mother of two sons.

“Divorce isn’t something that’s encouraged in our church. We’re definitely taught to keep our families together. Families are forever. It’s not something that I think they love, but I’m all for and I’m an advocate for making yourself happy,” she tells TODAY.com.

Taylor and her ex agreed their sons wouldn’t be shown on Season 1.

“If we do keep getting renewed for more seasons, if they come to me and they say, ‘Mom, I want to be a part of this,’ and I would absolutely let them,’” she says.

Per her Hulu bio, she describes the new reality show as an opportunity to “celebrate motherhood and be around girls who understand me.”

“I really want to help other single moms,” she said.

Jessi Ngatikaura, 32

Follow her on social media: TikTok (@_justjessiiii) and Instagram: (@_justjessiiii)

Jessi Ngatikaurais a hairdresser who owns a hair extension company and hair school called JZ Styles. Per her Hulu bio, she refers to herself as the “grandma of the group.”

Ngatikaurawas previously divorced and has since married her husband Jordan Ngatikaura.They have a blended family with three children: Jagger, Peyton and Jovi.