Getting Sticky With: Layla Taylor

Layla Taylor is calling from her car, running between her kids’ activities and an extensive press run happening in Utah. The newest season of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is about to premiere, and the internet is abuzz with the much-awaited return of #MomTok and the fantastic ensemble of cast members that come with it. Of course, Layla is one of them.

Any fan of the show will have seen Layla’s evolution from season one, which launched in September 2024, to what is already the fourth season in March 2026. Two years feels like a short stint in reality TV; but two years in “real life,” particularly from the ages of 22 to 24, are cosmic. In that time period, Layla separated from her husband, Clayton Wessel, threw a funeral-themed divorce party (iconic), and navigated dating and breakups as a single mom. Most pointedly, her confidence has flourished: to Layla’s own admission, she’s become much more confident in voicing her own opinions rather than nodding along with the rest of the group.

Below, we spoke to Layla about dating after divorce, respecting her children’s faith while not practicing it personally, and, yes, we also briefly asked about her dream MomTok addition: “I would say any of the Kardashians or Jenners. They’re also part of Hulu, so like, come on girls!”

Words by AnaMaria Glavan, Photos by Michael Fribgerg, Styling by Ellie Fleming

Grateful for #MomTok

I had very messy upbringing—a lot of abuse in my household that I saw growing up and a lot of trauma surrounding that. But my mom, for the most part, was a very loving mom and she was very protective over me and my sister, sometimes to a fault. 

But ever since I was little, my dream was to be a mom. I remember sitting in class and they would go around the room asking what you want to be when you’re older. Someone would say firefighter, someone would say teacher, all the random things kids want to be when they grow up. And every single time I would answer: a mom.

Both of my kids were not planned. It’s hard because I don’t want to say the word “accident” or “oopsie baby” because we weren’t actively preventing it. Me and my ex-husband were dating for a year on and off, then I got pregnant and we got married really quickly after that. 

So when I became such a young mom… yes, it was scary, but also it was what I’ve wanted my whole life. It definitely happened before I thought it was going to happen. But obviously, if it wasn’t for becoming a mom, I wouldn’t be on MomTok and I wouldn’t be talking to you right now. Everything in life happens how it’s supposed to.

On supporting her children’s faith while holding different beliefs 

One thing about Mormon culture is they’re very helpful and they love to serve the community. People would stop by and bring us food and check to see if we needed anything. Honestly, that’s one of the reasons why I gravitated toward church when I first became a member. It’s so structured and community-oriented, which I love. 

Now, their dad takes them on his Sundays—we have alternating weekends because we have 50/50 custody—to church. The boys will tell me about it. They’ll say things like, when they’re sick, “It’s fine, because Jesus will heal me.” And I’m just like, “That’s awesome, buddy!” I would never discourage my kids.

That’s the thing: I don’t believe in it and it’s not something I’m going to participate in at my house when my kids are with me, but I would never discourage them. If they choose that path and they choose to become a member one day, I’m going to be supportive either way.

I’ll remind them that just because daddy’s a part of this doesn’t mean that’s something they have to do. They don’t have to go on a mission. They have agency to choose what they want. But I would never discourage them or say that they’re wrong for that. There have been times when they’ve been sick and I’m like, “Do you want to do a little prayer to make you feel better?” So it’s not that I’m a member, but I can’t stand anyone bringing it up. I get aggravated. It’s not for me, and that’s okay. I don’t need to make it my whole personality to be anti-Mormon.

“I have daddy, boys. I love daddy. Daddy’s the best”

There are definitely times that me and my ex-husband bicker. Overall, we were not great partners to each other. I don’t necessarily think he was the best husband, and I don’t necessarily think I was the best wife to him. But he is one of the best dads I’ve ever seen. He loves my boys so much, and I’ll always have so much respect for him because of how amazing of a father he is. I try to remind myself of that when we’re in the middle of an argument. I want to keep it as cordial and civil as we can be. 

At the end of the day, I’ve seen what it’s like to be in a very toxic environment with parents that hate each other. My parents got divorced when I was seven and they couldn’t be in a room without glaring at each other. I would go to my mom’s house and she’d be talking crap about my dad, and vice versa. It’s so toxic to see that as a little kid.

Your kids think that you’re their whole entire world, so when they hear mommy and daddy saying bad things about the other parent, that’s not healthy and that’s not okay for them.

I always try to show them that even though me and daddy are not together, daddy’s my friend and I love daddy and daddy’s the best. The other day I was crying about my ex-boyfriend Mason and they were like, “It’s fine because you have daddy.” And I was like, “I have daddy, boys. I love daddy. Daddy’s the best.”

Dating as a single mom = a lot of trial and error 

I’m still figuring out dating. I’ve done it two different ways now. I dated someone in the past—we saw him on season three, Cameron—and he was full-on dad mode from the start. He was around my kids immediately. He really wanted to show that he could take on that stepdad role, which I was very grateful for.

I also think I introduced him maybe a little bit too soon. And now I’ve done kind of the opposite, which you’ll see on season four, where I’ve been a little more wary about letting someone I’m seeing be too involved. It’s hard because you just never know. There’s no textbook answer for how to introduce someone to your kids or how to incorporate that person into your children’s lives. 

I don’t want to be the mom that brings a bunch of boyfriends around my kids, but I also want to show them that I’m going to date people and sometimes it’s not going to work out. That they’re going to date somebody one day and maybe that won’t work out either. I think it’s healthy to model that to your children as long as you’re not involving them in the toxic sides of it. 

I’ve had two different scenarios with dating and the show. Cameron, my ex-boyfriend, wasn’t a part of this world. He didn’t know any of the people on the show. He was never against the show—it definitely wasn’t his thing—but he was supportive of me. Mason was a different scenario since he was already connected to people in the group. That was more of a natural fit. He had already wanted to pursue social media before I even knew him. 

At the end of the day, this is a very polarizing world that I’m a part of. You have to be vulnerable. If you’re dating somebody who’s on reality TV, you have to be willing to open up and share your relationship. That can be really daunting, but finding a partner who is willing to go through the ups and downs and be open to the experience is what matters.

On deciding how (and if) to show her kids 

I didn’t show my kids at all until this season. I actually filmed a scene with them but their faces are blurred and even doing that was scary for me because I’ve been wanting to keep them separate from this world.

But they’re also such a huge part of my life. It goes into my daily decision-making as a mom. Every single thing I do, they’re at the forefront of my mind before I think of anything else. And by not showing them, I feel like the audience is missing out on such a big part of my life—being a single mother, dating as a single mom, and showing what it is like to be a single mom at a very young age.

It felt like the right setting to introduce them a little bit on the show. Again, very loosely. You can barely make out that they’re my kids because you can’t see anything, but I think it was a good, healthy way to introduce that part of me to the show. I’m excited for the audience to be able to see that. I wouldn’t show them having a tantrum on the show or things like that. I’m showing the bare minimum that I need to for the story to be portrayed properly without exposing them too much. 

Human! Beings! Make! Mistakes! 

It’s hard being so young in this world, and sometimes I get a little hate online for past things that I’ve done on the show. But I’m literally 24 years old and my brain’s not even fully developed. I’m not going to use that as an excuse, but…

I’m still trying to navigate being a single mom in a state where I don’t have family. I’m completely on my own. I have so much on my plate on a daily basis. I’m also dating as a single mom, and there are so many things I have to take into account every single day. Sometimes that’s caused me to act out of character from what I want to portray myself as, and that’s life. 

But I’ve dealt with a lot and I’m trying, daily, to be a better person and put my best self forward. I just think showing the imperfect parts matters. I’m not a perfect human. No one’s perfect, and I’m going to have moments where I fall short and do things I’m not stoked that I’ve done or said. Hopefully the audience can see that I’m human and give me grace in those situations.

When it comes to public opinion, I think you have to be okay with people not agreeing with you. There are going to be people who love you in the world and people who hate you in the world. Unfortunately, when you’re part of this, you’re giving away that right to care too much.

In season two I was a little more of a people pleaser. I would follow the popular opinion in the room, and that’s something I’ve been working through in therapy. I’ve always wanted to belong, and because of that I feel like I would morph myself into the people around me just so I could feel included and like a part of the group.

Over time I’ve started to not do that anymore and to have my own opinions. But it’s hard. We’re a group of eight women who are all very opinionated. Some of us get very heated in situations.

I try to hold space for the fact that all of us are going through so many things that don’t even get shown half the time. Even in season one, looking back, everyone said I was so quiet and that I didn’t speak, but behind the scenes I was going through a divorce and there were so many things happening in my life that weren’t being shared about what I was experiencing every day. Genuinely, we have a cast of really amazing women—amazing women who are also human. And humans are imperfect.

From season one to season four… 

After the reunion, I got so many DMs from people talking about how they’ve dealt with similar mental health struggles and self-harm issues or body image issues. Being able to talk to them and say, “I relate, I’ve been through this,” and offer advice based on what I’ve learned is really meaningful.

If sharing my story helps someone in a similar situation learn how to navigate it, then that’s really meaningful to me. That’s one of the main reasons I love being part of the show—because by sharing our stories, we’re helping people.

And it’s definitely hard sharing some of the things we share. Sometimes it reopens wounds I didn’t even know were there. The hair story, for example, opened up a lot of deeper trauma around that subject that I didn’t even realize I had. It wasn’t until I started talking about it that I realized there were things I needed to work through and understand about why I felt that way and where those self-image issues came from. In a strange way, it’s really eye-opening. People are sometimes bringing things to my attention that I didn’t even know I was carrying. It’s challenging, but opening up about it has honestly helped me heal.

I feel like I’m a very different person than who I was in season one. This version of Layla feels really different, and I honestly don’t think I would have gotten to this place if it wasn’t for the show.

"That might not edit well”

I don’t think the level of success that the show will ever really hit me. I feel like I’m still in La La Land and I can’t fully process it. It hasn’t even been two years since season one came out, and we’re already four seasons deep. It’s unreal. 

I would love to explore another reality show. I think that would be really fun. Two of the girls from our show went on Dancing with the Stars, and that would be really fun to do one day. That’s definitely something on my dream board. I also want to pursue modeling more seriously. 

One thing about being on the show is that sometimes the audience reaction surprises you. A lot of us in the group have a very blunt, sarcastic sense of humor. Michaela, me, Miranda—we’ll joke around with each other and make these really blunt jokes.

Sometimes we’ll say something and immediately be like, “That might not edit well.” It might look like we were being rude, but at the moment we were just joking and that’s our humor.

But at the end of the day you can’t control how people are going to perceive something you say. If someone takes it negatively when it wasn’t intended that way, that’s just how they chose to interpret it.