Any popular reality show generates buzz and drama both on- and off-screen, but the drama tangling the lives and storylines of the The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives cast feels especially one-of-a-kind. For the first two seasons, cast member Jessi Ngatikaura has mostly remained on the outskirts of that drama. She isn’t known for her feuds, fights, or messiness, but rather for her frankness in discussing subjects like vaginal rejuvenation and her successful haircare business. But in the recently released season 3, which premiered on Hulu on November 13, Jessi finds herself smack in the center of a maelstrom of drama.
As fans may recall, Mormon Wives season 2 ended with a cliffhanger cheating allegation levied by Vanderpump Villa star Marciano Brunette at Jessi. But even before the bombshell dropped, drama was already starting to heat up for the haircare entrepreneur, as tensions between her and her bestie-turned-enemy Demi Engemann began to boil over. Season 3 picks up in the immediate aftermath of last season’s cliffhanger, and Jessi is right in the middle of it all. Below, get up to speed on everything you need to know about Jessi Ngatikaura ahead of her whirlwind season.
Jessi Ngatikaura is a Utah-based influencer and the co-owner of JZ Styles.
Jessi Ngatikaura, 33, is a content creator and co-owner of the hair company JZ Styles. She began with a hair-focused YouTube channel and later transitioned to Instagram and TikTok, where she currently has 1.4 million followers. The JZ Styles enterprise includes a Utah hair salon, a brand of hair extensions, haircare products, accessories, and a hair school called JZ Academy, which offers online and in-person instruction. Jessi runs the entire business alongside her family.
In a 2024 Instagram video, Jessi explained that the name JZ Styles was inspired by her couple nickname with her then-husband, which was based on their first initials, and her love for Harry Styles.
"When [I] got divorced, it was never really a question in my mind of whether I should change my business or my Instagram name because it had become so much more than that," she said. She also added that the name of her son is Jagger Zayn (also inspired by One Direction), so "he is the new JZ."
Jessi styles her hair backstage before the SLOMW season 2 reunion
Jessi Ngatikaura left the Mormon church in her mid 20s.
Jessi is one of the #MomTok women on SLOMW who is no longer a member of the Mormon church. She has opened up about leaving the Church of Latter-day Saints during interviews, including an appearance on Live with Kelly and Mark ahead of the second season. "I represent an ex-Mormon on the show, which I love because every religion has people who are super devout and people who have left,” she said. “I love that anyone in any religion can relate."
When asked why she left, she explained, "It can be really toxic where we live and I just felt like it wasn't for me," she said. "And half of my family had already left, so when I was in my mid-20s, I started stepping away."
Jessi Ngatikaura's season 2 portrait.
Jessi has a blended family with her husband Jordan Ngatikaura.
Jessi married Jordan Ngatikaura in October 2020, just eight months after the couple got engaged. According to LinkedIn, Jordan works as an entrepreneur and manager at RISE Energy, a Utah-based solar company.
Before Jordan, Jessi was married to her first husband, Zac Gish, for five years. She now lives in a blended family with Jordan, which includes Jordan's daughter Peyton, whom he welcomed in a previous relationship, their son Jagger Zayn (born in April 2020), and daughter Jovi (born in January 2023).
Jessi (bottom right) and Jordan (top right) at the reunion. Also pictured, Whitney Leavitt (bottom left) and Connor Leavitt (top middle).
Jessi and Jordan have experienced ongoing marital troubles following Marciano Brunette’s claim that he had an affair with Jessi.
Season 3 of Mormon Wives picks up in the aftermath of Vanderpump Villa star Marciano telling Layla Taylor about his and Jessi’s alleged affair when she was a guest on an episode of the Hulu reality series. Demi denied rumors of infidelity throughout season 2 of Mormon Wives, but in the finale, Marciano claimed that he had slept with Jessi and that Jordan didn't know the extent of the alleged cheating.
In the season 3 premiere, Layla confronts Jessi about Marciano’s allegations at an influencer event in Utah. Jessi then divulges to Layla, and later the rest of the #MomTok crew, that she and Jordan separated in September 2024 after “struggling” in their relationship for a while. Immediately after, Jessi went to L.A. and encountered Marciano. Jessi very explicitly states she never had sex with Marciano, but did kiss him twice and engaged in an emotional relationship with the reality TV personality because she wanted validation and a distraction amid her marital issues.
She later told Jordan, who, by the time of season 3’s filming in winter 2025, had known of the affair for “six months.” The two chose to keep the affair private as they worked through their issues in the hopes of remaining together.
Still, Jessi didn’t understand why Marciano would turn on her now, after having previously told her that he “had her back.” Marciano’s allegations also cast doubt on Jessi in her husband’s eyes, driving a wedge in their already fractured relationship.
The two enter into a 90-day separation—with the intention of “finding their way back to each other”—in which they switch off nights with their children, have regular check-ins, and only discuss their relationship in therapy. All the while, Jessi attempts to absolve herself of guilt and prove Marciano’s deceit. Marciano finally confirms during a confrontation with Mikayla Matthews and Mayci Neeley that he lied about having sex with Jessi, which is further confirmed when he and Jessi take a lie detector test during a girls’s trip to St. George, Utah. The revelation, however, doesn’t mend Jessi and Jordan’s relationship. Viewers continue to see the two fight, and Jordan expresses anger over the situation Jessi’s put him and their family in. But by the end of the season, the pair seems to be in a better place.
Jessi at a #MomTok event.
Jessi Ngatikaura is feuding with her former best friend Demi Engemann.
Throughout season 1 of the Hulu hit, Jessi and her then-bestie Demi stood out for their frank conversation styles and penchant for stirring up drama. However, in season 2, viewers saw the pair's friendship start to deteriorate. Halfway through the season, Jessi revealed that she and Demi had a "little disagreement about money.” That’s eventually revealed to be that, during contract negotiations ahead of season 2, Demi expressed being willing to have Jessi leave the show to get more money herself. Taylor Frankie Paul also claimed that Demi was planning to "push [Jessi] to the side."
While Jessi was forgiving about this slight, tensions grew as Taylor revealed that Demi had told her not to go to Jessi's salon and that Jessi was bad at doing hair. This really shook the hairstylist, whose livelihood depends on her reputation, and it seemed that Demi was unapologetic about the incident on the show.
Drama built up even more so in the months following season 2, with the cast winking at the noticeable elephant in the room during press and the show’s July reunion. But once season 3 premiered in November, Demi was nowhere to be seen. In fact, the #MomTok star doesn’t physically appear all that much in season 3 of the show. Her former costars explain her obvious absence was a result of her asking for and being denied higher pay during contract re-negotiations heading into the new episodes, prompting her to depart the series and #MomTok—but her presence is felt in plenty of other ways.
Demi Engemann, Jennifer Affleck, Whitney Leavitt, Mayci Neeley, Mikayla Matthews, Miranda McWhorter, Layla Taylor, Jessi Ngatikaura, and Taylor Frankie Paul at an event promoting The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 3.
By the end of season 2, when Demi delivers an ultimatum to the rest of the women to choose between keeping her or Taylor in the group, Jessi reveals that Demi expressed anger at her for not “100%” backing her up in the meeting and sent her a slew of paragraphs-long rage texts. This, compounded by the contract- and hair-gates of season 2, prompted Jessi to tell Demi she no longer cared for a friendship. She then blocked the other reality star/content creator.
The relationship sours even further when Marciano reveals to Mikayla and Mayci that Demi “influenced” him to lie about having sex with Jessi. He goes on to insinuate that Demi did it to hide her own alleged flirtations and involvement with him, which he claims included kissing. Demi, however, asserts throughout the show and to the press that Marciano is a predator and she is a victim of sexual harassment.
The feud reaches a stalemate after Demi and Jessi finally meet in person in season 3, episode 6, aptly titled “The Book of Confrontation,” to discuss the various allegations levied against each other. In this encounter, Demi refutes ever kissing Marciano outside of a “truth or dare” game and that she was upset Jessi could have any relationship with a person who hurt her the way Marciano did. Jessi expresses a desire to simply “let” the whole thing go and move on, calling the meeting an “impossible conversation” to the camera.
