Who Is Demi Engemann? What to Know About 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' Star

Every reality TV series needs a villain, so the hours after any new season's premiere are often spent determining which cast member has taken up that title. The first season of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives found its antagonist in Whitney Leavitt, who began a redemption tour soon after the Hulu series grew into a pop culture sensation. Though Mormon Wives season 2 may have just arrived on May 15, fans who've binged through the 10 episodes already have a strong candidate for this installment's main contender: Demi Engemann.

In season 1, the 30-year-old influencer became a fan favorite for her frank communication style. However, by the end of season 2, she has surprisingly gotten on the bad side of some of her former #MomTok besties, including Jessi Ngatikaura and Taylor Frankie Paul. As you catch up on all the #MomTok drama, read on to learn more about Demi Engemann, from her husband's connections to other reality TV stars to the off-camera drama that crossed over from another Hulu show.

Demi Engemann is a Utah-based influencer.

Demi Engemann, 30, lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, and works as a full-time influencer and TV personality. She's a member of #MomTok with 1.1 million followers on TikTok and 540,000 on Instagram as of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives's season 2 premiere.

According to PEOPLE, Demi has a 7-year-old daughter named Maude, whom she shares with her ex-husband, Blake Corbin. She married Corbin in 2015 when she was 21. Demi has publicly discussed dealing with postpartum depression and anxiety following Maude's birth. Demi began dating her current husband, Bret Engemann, in 2020, and they got married in April 2021, four days after they announced their engagement.

Demi's husband Bret Engemann has a connection to two other reality franchises.

Demi's husband Bret Engemann, 47, is a former college quarterback and NFL free agent who had a storied history with reality TV before Mormon Wives. He met his first wife, Angie Harrington, when they were both attending Brigham Young University, and they went on to welcome two sons, Cole and Rome, before getting divorced. Angie later appeared on the first two seasons of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City and was a "friend of" in season 3, before leaving the franchise in season 4.

Bret was also briefly married to a second woman, whose identity is unknown, before he started dating Demi.

In March 2023, Demi posted a series of storytime TikToks explaining how she and Bret met. The eventual spouses actually first met years ago through a family friend, when Demi was 9 and Bret was 25 and married to Angie. They didn't reconnect again until the late 2010s, when Demi's ex-husband crossed paths with him at the gym.

One day, Demi suggested that then-single Bret should go on The Bachelorette. Though Bret initially said no, Demi and her ex submitted an application for him the same night. He eventually became a contestant on Clare Crawley's season, before production shut down due to COVID lockdowns in March 2020. At that time, Demi had separated from her ex, and she said that Bret had become a "support system" for her during her divorce.

Though they had a romantic spark, they didn't pursue things for several months "out of respect for my ex-husband and the divorce not being finalized." When they did go on their first official date, they were photographed by TMZ, leading to a brief time where the world thought Bret was two-timing Clare, because he didn't tell the Bachelorette producers that he wasn't returning to the show. However, everything was quickly settled, and Demi and Bret eventually went Instagram-public in September 2020.

Demi and Bret faced infidelity rumors after her trip to Vanderpump Villa.

A large part of Demi's storyline in The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives season 2 concerns the fallout from her appearance on another Hulu show, Vanderpump Villa. In season 2 of the Italy-set reality show, Demi, Jen Affleck, Jessi Ngatikaura, Layla Taylor, and Mikayla Matthews check into the villa as special guests. During the trip, Demi hit it off with Villa cast member Marciano Brunette, who said that he was physically and emotionally drawn to her and claimed that there were mutual feelings.

Speaking with Us Weekly ahead of Mormon Wives season 2 premiere on May 6, Demi addressed the rumors and confirmed that she and Bret are still going strong.

"Nothing happened with Marciano," she told the outlet. "At the expense of sounding rude, there wasn’t even a remote attraction to him. It sucks that women can’t be kind and friendly and even playful with men in this world without it being taken as like you’re open. I had a rock on my finger the entire time I was there,” she noted. “I brought up my marriage multiple times and they were told that we were married women—so it sucks that we couldn’t just go and have a good time and that he couldn’t respect that."

Demi is feuding with multiple #MomTok members after 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' season 2.

Even before Mormon Wives season 2 landed on streaming, hints of an off-screen feud between Demi and her best friend Jessi Ngatikaura emerged when they unfollowed each other earlier this year. (Demi has since claimed that Jessi blocked her on all platforms.) It turns out that the first bits of discord surfaced during the women's contract negotiations for season 2. In episode 6, Jessi confronts Demi over claims that Demi told producers that she was willing for Jessi to be off the show if it meant Demi could be paid more. Demi responded in a confessional that Jessi's actions regarding pay felt "selfish" since Jessi was already well off from her hair care business. The other women also claimed they heard Demi say she should get paid the most in brand deals. Though Demi denied saying that, she did say to the women, "It’s not a shock that I’m a fan-favorite [after the first season]. I feel like I’m an asset [and] I should fight for more."

In an interview with PEOPLE, Demi hinted that she is taking some time away from #MomTok to focus on herself. Her feud with Jessi and some other members appears to be ongoing.

"I think I've come to terms and I'm at peace knowing that some friendships are put into your life for a mere moment. It doesn't need to be a lasting connection, it doesn't need to be a lasting friendship, and that's okay. You change and evolve at different rates and in different ways, and you want different things and have a different path, and you can honor that from afar or up close. You outgrow people, and that's okay. Personally, I am just staying in my own lane, focusing on my mental health, my peace."

Demi did appear in 'The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives' season 2 reunion—in a way.

When Mormon Wives announced its first-ever reunion special post-season 2, fans were intrigued to see in promotional materials that Demi seemed to be the only #MomTok member missing. When the reunion hit streaming on July 1, it turned out that Demi did make an appearance, but only in a way that ensured she wouldn't have to confront the other women.

Early in the special, Demi explains, via a video call with Whitney, that she isn't at the reunion filming because her family had a preplanned Disneyland vacation. According to Today, she explained during an earlier Instagram story that the reunion was "short notice" and part of her trip was nonrefundable, so she and Brett couldn't make it.

However, Demi did get the chance to give her perspective on the season 2 drama. She and host Nick Viall pre-taped a segment that was included in the reunion, in which she doubles down on her feuds with Taylor (claiming that everyone's scared of her) and Jen (saying that her video about her prenatal depression didn't seem genuine).

With Demi not in person, the women she's feuding with were able to bring their receipts unopposed. Jessi shared screenshots of flirty texts between Demi and Marciano, while Jen shared a recording of Demi telling Jen how to answer when asked about Vanderpump Villa. Jen then alleged that Demi sent her a cease-and-desist when she didn't follow Demi's script. (Demi had previously denied sending the cease-and-desist during an interview for season 2's release.)

Demi has not responded to the reunion receipts as of the special's release, but a first look at SLOMW season 3 shows that the Demi-Jessi-Marciano drama will remain a large part of the show going forward. In one scene, Marciano claims that he was "influenced" in his allegations about Jessi; when asked who he's referring to, the clip cuts to Demi. Season 3 will likely include new developments, as well as some heated fights between Jessi and Demi.