Related Articles
Jax Taylor is moving out of the Valley. After a tumultuous, to say the least, Season Two of the hit Bravo series The Valley, Taylor announced Wednesday that he will not return for Season Three to focus on his sobriety and mental health.
“After an incredibly challenging year and many honest conversations with my team and producers, I’ll be stepping away from the next season of The Valley,” Taylor said in a statement. “Right now, my focus needs to be on my sobriety, my mental health, and coparenting relationship. Taking this time is necessary for me to become the best version of myself — especially for our son, Cruz.”
Speculation that Taylor might not return for the upcoming season started before the second season had even premiered, when, in March, he revealed that he had beenaddicted to cocaineon and off for more than two decades. The confession came amid his ongoing divorce from wife Brittany Cartwright and a stint in a mental health treatment center.
Much of Season Two has been centered around Taylor’s transgressions: The first episode addressed a violent incident in which Taylor flipped a coffee table while arguing with Cartwright inside their Valley Village home, which hit her knee. He continued to throw furniture around the house while their son was in the next room.
Following the incident, Taylor checked himself into a mental health facility. And while cameras were not allowed inside, his often rage-filled text messages that he would send Cartwright from the facility were featured on the show. “You took my job away from me…I’ve worked so hard for two years for this and you took it from me,” he wrote, blaming Cartwright for forcing him into treatment. “Now do the work as a single mom. I am watching the cameras and your [sic] not there,” read another. “I will never ever forgive you…you destroyed the only thing that I love doing.” He also appeared to watch Cartwright inside their shared home via security cameras they had installed while living there. “I can hear everything: Childish behavior,” he texted her once while she was filming.
The altercation — and aftermath — ultimately became a driving factor in Cartwright’s decision to file for divorce in August 2024 (the two initially separated in January 2024). Taylor was served with papers on camera.
Bravo has not yet commented on Taylor’s decision to step away from the show. It is unclear if the decision was entirely his own or more of a nudge from production (often times, Bravo will allow a star to announce their own departure and frame it as their own decision, even though their contract simply was not renewed by the network). But fans are already speculating that if he did voluntarily walk away, it was more of a strategic move to allow him the option of returning down the road, rather than waiting to get outright fired.
Season Two of The Valley is currently still airing. The finale will air on July 22 and will be followed by three reunion episodes.
