LEAVING STAGE LEFT

Reality TV Star Abruptly Quits Show Mid-Series

Her exit comes as the show’s biggest star dropped out of the show amid a domestic violence scandal.

The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Whitney Leavitt is leaving the embattled reality TV show midway through season 5 production. Leavitt announced her departure on Sunday during her final performance in the Broadway show Chicago. In a video published by TMZ, she shared the news in a cheeky skit as her character, Roxy Hart. “Oh, erm, what is that? Let me see. Whitney Leavitt announces she’s leaving The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” she read from a piece of paper as the crowd roared at the news. It’s unclear in what capacity Leavitt will appear in the show’s fifth season. The 32-year-old has recently prioritized other opportunities over her commitments to the Hulu show, reaching the semi-finals as a contestant on season 34 of Dancing with the Stars and taking on the role of Hart in February for what was originally meant to be a six-week limited engagement. Her exit comes as the show’s biggest star, Taylor Frankie Paul, dropped out of filming after a video became public in March showing her hurling chairs at her ex-boyfriend, Dakota Mortensen. Production for season 5 was paused amid the crisis and resumed in late April.