Secret Lives of Mormon Wives was mired in scandal. Orange County is hoping for a fresh start

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Set us as preferred When “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County” premieres Thursday as the first spinoff of the popular but mired flagship series, it faces a test tougher than learning a viral TikTok dance: figuring out if the reality TV property that became an unexpected hit can successfully franchise beyond its Utah backdrop — and baggage.Born from a confession that took off online by influencer Taylor Frankie Paul about “soft swinging” — an arrangement she and her then-husband had with other couples that involved group drinking and intimacy short of intercourse — “Mormon Wives” turned intrigue about a salacious suburban scandal into a reality TV hit.Suddenly the time-honored reality TV format built on documenting the personal lives and social dynamics of women, pioneered by Bravo’s “The Real Housewives” franchise, underwent a modern makeover in Hulu’s series by casting its lens on a group of Utah-based TikTok influencers known as #MomTok.

It premiered in September 2024 — showcasing a messy cocktail of flexuous faith, fracturing friendships and fascinating marriage dynamics — and was such a hit that four more seasons have been pumped out in the time since.Now the original show is facing cast departures and internal fallout driven by outside career moves, deteriorating friendships and serious domestic abuse allegations involving Paul, which led to filming disruptions and renewed scrutiny over reality TV casting standards.

The Times requested to speak with executive producers of the series — Jeff Jenkins and Lisa Filipelli — for this article but were told they were not available .Can “Orange County” and the group of nine women it features brighten its outlook? “I haven’t watched all of it; I’ve watched snippets of it,” says Jen Affleck, a main cast member of the original series who anchors the spinoff.“It was hard watching it back.

It was the first tim...