Sister Wives' Janelle Brown Details Years-Long Estrangement Between Meri and Kody Brown

Janelle Brown is providing insight into her family's dynamics. 

The Sister Wives star said the breakup between her ex Kody Brown and his first wife Meri Brown was a long time coming—even before the couple announced their split in 2023.

In fact, Janelle said Meri, 53, had been distancing herself from the father of 18 for several years despite maintaining a solid relationship with his fourth and last remaining wife, Robyn Brown.  

"She and Robyn were always pretty close," Janelle explained during a Nov. 4 appearance on the Reality Life with Kate Casey podcast, "so I don't know if she was separate. But I mean, she and Kody had been estranged for many, many years."

Once the couple's 29-year-old son Leon Brown—who came out as transgender in June 2022—made the decision to leave the family, Meri became even more withdrawn from their home life. And by January 2023, Kody confirmed that their 32-year marriage was over. 

"I do think when Leon left the house and she was an empty nester before we were, she started to develop a lot more interest outside of the family,” Janelle continued. “Because yeah, she had time."

But for Meri, she would be open to a reconciliation with Kody, who she previously said was the one who ultimately "made the decision" to call it quits. 

"I definitely would," she told People in 2022. "But I don't think that he's interested."

Of course, Kody's marriage to Meri wasn't the only union of his to end. His third wife Christine Brown left their plural marriage in November 2021 and has since tied the knot with David Woolley. And the following year,  Kody announced his separation from Janelle, his second wife.

Since then, the 55-year-old has gotten candid about how difficult it's been to find common ground with his exes. 

"We used to go places as a family and now it's like those who were my partners are now almost like enemies," Kody shared in the Sept. 29 episode of Sister Wives. "It's awkward. I don't know what the solution is."

For a complete breakdown of the Sister Wives stars' love lives, keep reading. 

In January 2024, a year after she and Kody Brown announced their breakup, Meri revealed on Instagram that she had begun dating Amos Andrews the previous October. But in February 2024, Meri confirmed on Instagram that they had called it quits.

"She looked like a soccer mom," Kody Brown once joked on Sister Wives of meeting then-single mom Robyn in 2009. "She had a van, three kids and was divorced. I thought, 'I didn't need a van, a divorced woman, and three kids in my life—that's just trouble.'"

Nearly a decade and a half on, though, they're still kicking it, the pair adding son Solomon, 12, and daughter Ariella, 7, to the squad. As for bringing on other teammates, it's not in the game plan. "I really, really struggle with it because it feels, like, 'Oh, well. Those didn't work. So, on to [someone] new,'" Robyn said on the December Sister Wives: One on One special of Meri, Janelle and Christine leaving the fold. "That's hard for me. That's really, really hard for me. It feels disrespectful."

She got the man and the family. Going official with her and David Woolley's romance on Valentine's Day 2023, Christine Brown shared, "I finally found the love of my life, David. The first time he held me close, it felt like my soul took its first breath. He's wonderful and kind, incredible with my children and an adorable grandpa. I never dreamed I could find a love like this."

Two months later he added to the fantasy with a spring proposal. "David treats me like a queen and tells me I'm beautiful everyday," Christine told People. "I've never been in love like this before and the world seems like a brighter place with him in it."

Tying the knot in Utah Oct. 7, she wrote, "I'm so blessed! I've married my best friend."

The first of the 18 Brown children to walk down the aisle, Janelle's eldest daughter, Madison Brown, now 28, wed Caleb Brush at a 2016 outdoor wedding in Montana captured by TLC's cameras. Nearly seven years later, the two have multiplied their love with Josephine joining big brother Axel, 6, and big sister Evie, 4, in February.  

"One month as a family of 5 and my heart is bursting," North Carolina-based Maddie wrote on Instagram in March. "I didn't know this kind of peace amongst chaos could be had."

Four years after their engagement aired on the TLC reality show, Meri Brown's only child, Leon Brown, has settled in Denver with partner Audrey Kriss. "my sweetest symphony," Leon, 28, raved of their fiancé. "Life with you truly is so sweet." Echoed Audrey, "Being your partner and watching your growth and coming into yourself over the years has been an honor and joy."

Eldest kid Logan Brown, 29, got the gang back together when he married longtime girlfriend Michelle Petty in Arizona this past October. "It was a beautiful day and this mama's heart was mush the whole time," Janelle shared on Instagram of her son's wedding. "You always have such a sense of peace when your children find amazing life partners."

More than six years after her 2016 wedding to Antonio "Tony" Padron, Mykelti Brown joked that they'd already tested the limits of their marriage vows by welcoming twins Archer and Ace into the fold in November 2022. 

"We have 3 kids and 4 moves under our belt," noted the 27-year-old, also mom to Avalon, 2. "A whole lot of good times and some hard times #surprisetwins But here we are still doing this whole marriage thing."

In the five years since they wed, Christine's daughter Aspyn Brown, 28, and husband Mitch Thompson have traveled everywhere from Paris to Alaska. But last December, they put down roots, Mitch sharing on Instagram, "We bought our first home! Just in time for Christmas."

Before hitting their one-year anniversary, Christine's daughter Gwendlyn Brown and love Beatriz Queiroz went to the happiest place on earth and marked six months together with chocolate fondue. Then came the really sweet part. The 22-year-old shared a glimpse at the candlelit, rose-filled proposal on Instagram in November 2022, writing simply, "i'm engaged!!" 

The couple wed in July, sharing the news on Instagram the caption: "Say hello to mrs (x2) queiroz."