Mikayla Matthews is breaking her silence over The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 3 reunion amid backlash from fans.
“First, I think we filmed for 12 hours, that in itself is a problem,” Mikayla, 25, began her Tuesday, December 9, TikTok breakdown of her unfiltered “thoughts” following the Hulu reunion, which aired on Thursday, December 4. “It’s hard to get 12 hours of footage down to an hour.”
Mikayla, who has been part of the reality show and MomTok crew since season 1, pointed to costar Demi Engemann’s comments at the reunion as the most troubling in her mind.
“With the whole Demi of it all, I obviously have an issue with her using not only my story, but Mayci [Neeley’s] story and then Jessi [Ngatikaura] opened up,” Mikayla said, claiming that Demi, 31, was “almost guilting people for what they’ve been through and not believing what she’s saying.” (Mikayla, Mayci and Jessi have also spoken about being sexually assaulted in the past.)
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Mikayla explained she had a “huge issue” with Demi’s remarks, noting that she was “very triggered” by what transpired at the reunion.
During the reunion, Demi tried to explain how Vanderpump Villa’s Marciano Brunette allegedly crossed a line when she made a cameo on season 2 of the series. After previously accusing Marciano, 31, of sexual misconduct, which he has denied, she told her costars at the reunion that he allegedly put his hands on her when the cameras weren’t rolling.
When Jen Affleck claimed she knew something romantic — and consensual — happened between Marciano and Demi when they were all in Italy, things escalated.
Demi yelled at Jen, 26, saying, “Jen, you don’t f***ing understand because you’ve never been sexually assaulted.” Jen, however, fired back, “Yes, I have.”
Demi then tried to get Mayci, 30, who has been vocal about her own history with sexual assault to back her up, but it didn’t go as planned.
“I’m sorry, I’m not trying to be insensitive but Mayci [what if you said] you got raped by your abuser or you got slapped or whatever. Then afterwards, you’re like, ‘I love you.’ Then later, the group is like, ‘Mayci, it’s really weird that you said that,’” Demi asked.
At the time, the rest of the group jumped in and reminded Demi that Mayci was abused by an unnamed ex and it was not OK to compare the two experiences.
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Mikayla — who opened up during season 2 of the show about being sexually abused as a child — explained on Tuesday that she was “pretty emotional for a long time” after Demi brought up the topic of abuse and rape so casually.
“It was very triggering. I was also postpartum, so that was emotional of itself,” she told her followers. “I feel like I was very disassociated after and while she was talking but I think our faces said it all. It was frustrating.”
Mikayla revealed, “I think it honestly is a slap in the face to victims everywhere. It’s very insensitive and disrespectful the way she talks to people in general but also the way that she talks to victims and navigates that situation.”
Mikayal expressed annoyance over how her story line was also portrayed at the reunion, claiming she wasn’t given enough time to talk.
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“As far as my story goes, I feel like obviously it was disappointing,” Mikayla said in the video. “I’m opening up about things that are very triggering and traumatic and hard to talk about.”
Mikayla explained that she felt like her problems were “almost pushed under the rug.”
“I feel like if we’re filming our story line for weeks, especially the heavy topics that we are talking about and opening up and navigating, the time to dive deeper and ask questions about it is the reunion,” she said, claiming, “It was literally cut down to a minute.”
Mikayla confessed, “I wish it would’ve been handled in a more delicate way.”
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
All three The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives seasons are streaming on Hulu.
