Jen Affleck and Whitney Leavitt from Hulu’s hit reality show The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives are joining the upcoming season of Dancing With the Stars.
The news was announced at the end of The Secret Wives of Mormon Wives’ second season reunion special. Both women were eagerly hoping to be chosen, it appeared. The special’s host, Nick Viall, shared that most of the MomTok ladies had auditioned for the season. He first announced Affleck as joining the cast, before adding a second “surprise” that Leavitt would also be joining.
The main cast – Taylor Frankie Paul, Leavitt, Layla Taylor, Affleck, Mikayla Matthews, Mayci Neeley and Jessi Ngatikaura, Miranda McWhorter – and their husbands gathered for a drama-filled evening. Demi Engemann was noticeably absent and a large topic of conversation throughout the special as nearly all the women have publicly distanced themselves from her. Although Engemann wasn’t at the reunion, she was on Viall’s podcast, which was shown in clips throughout the night; the reality cast member said she couldn’t attend because of a scheduling conflict.
MomTok picked right back up on the drama that the 10-episode second season ended with. Some of the night’s topics included showing receipts of the Engemann’s cheating allegations and taking a hand vote on if Leavitt can take accountability on things and Leavitt’s husband’s past.
Despite a reentry into MomTok, Leavitt remained at-odds with several members of the group. “Newsflash, Mikayla, that’s being a bully,” Leavitt shouted at her cast mate and fellow friend. Leavitt lobbed claims at McWhorter and Neeley, who both told Leavitt they have always been there with her.
At one point in the evening, Viall even took a hand vote to see who thought Paul takes accountability – nearly the whole group – and if Leavitt takes accountability – just McWhorter. Viall even noted that he saw times when Leavitt didn’t take accountability.
Paul’s dysfunctional relationship with her now-ex Dakota Mortensen was rehashed in the reunion special. “We will never be together,” Paul told Mortensen. The central figure of MomTok shared several times that Mortensen had been unfaithful to her.
Engemann, despite not being present, was a massive topic of conversation. At one point during the special, someone even said, “She has no morals and values.” Leavitt, who is now close to Engemann, came to her defense several times. When Affleck shared a voice recording of Engemann telling Affleck what her story to camera should be, Leavitt acted shocked – the special, in one of its cheekier moments, showed a clip of Leavitt three hours earlier being coached by Engemann on what to say about her on camera. Affleck’s husband claimed Engemann threatened the couple with a cease-and-desist.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives cast members and their husbands also used the night to discuss some of the more serious topics they touched upon during the season. Leavitt’s husband, Connor Leavitt, spoke about his porn addiction before bravely sharing to the audience and other members of the cast that he was raped as a child. Taylor reflected on her decision to open up during season two about her body image issues and past suicide attempts. McWhorter shared about her past sexual abuse. Despite her feud with Leavitt, she shared that Leavitt’s husband reached out to encourage her to go to therapy, which lead to the two women hugging at Viall’s suggestion.
The reunion special ended with a first-look at season three, which kicked off Neely shouting, “MomTok survived.” In the short clip, the divide between Engemann and the rest of the group seemed to grow wide; the teaser even showing the once-feuding Engemann and Leavitt walking and holding hands before cutting to a clip of Leavitt saying she’s starting her own MomTok.