Sister Wives Recap: Janelle Confesses Her Dislike for Kody and Robyn
Janelle Brown is no longer playing nice with her ex-husband Kody Brown and his wife, Robyn Brown, and she’s perfectly fine with that.
“I can still be quite amicable with Kody. I never really formed a close relationship with Robyn,” Janelle, 56, admitted during part 2 of the Sister Wives: One-on-One special, which aired on Sunday, June 1. “I don’t harbor any hate or negative feelings; I just don’t want to engage with them.”
Host Sukanya Krishnan asked if Janelle could pinpoint any “specific examples” for her disinterest in a friendship with Robyn, 46, but she struggled to provide any.
“I could casually chat with them, and that would be fine if it’s all surface-level. I wouldn’t mind talking to them, that’s not an issue,” Janelle clarified. “However, I won’t be friends with them or meet for lunch.”
When pressed about “why” she doesn’t maintain a relationship with Kody, 56, and Robyn, Janelle simply said she’s over it. “I don’t need it. I don’t want it. I’m not searching for that,” she reaffirmed, emphasizing that it’s not about a lack of trust but rather differing personalities.
Janelle added, “I genuinely don’t like them. I have no desire to know them or be pals with them.”
Regarding future encounters, Janelle mentioned that she dislikes the atmosphere when Kody and Robyn are together under forced circumstances. “I just don’t like them. I don’t want to form a friendship with them,” she concluded.
Janelle and Kody had a spiritual wedding in 1993, three years after he legally wed first wife Meri Brown. In 1994, the plural family welcomed Christine Brown to the union. Robyn joined the family in 2010, but it wasn’t until 2014 that she legally married Kody after his divorce from Meri, 54.
After Kody and Robyn’s marriage — and his legal adoption of her three children from a previous marriage — Kody remained in a spiritual union with Meri for nearly a decade. Since then, his relationships with his first three wives have deteriorated.
Christine, who has six kids with Kody, announced their separation in November 2021. Janelle, who similarly has six children from her marriage, confirmed her own split from Kody in December 2022. Meri, who shares one child with Kody, disclosed in January 2023 that they too had parted ways.
While Janelle and Kody came together in March 2024, following the tragic passing of their son Garrison Brown — who died by suicide at the age of 25 — she made it clear during the one-on-one special that they’re not close.
“I’ve never seen him this mean before. Never. He’s never acted this way,” Janelle told Krishnan during Sunday’s episode, noting that Kody’s tendency to “rewrite” history and “try to hurt people” is uncharacteristic of the man she married.
“I believe it’s a smokescreen,” Janelle said regarding Kody’s behavior post-divorce. She also asserted that Kody seems to be altering the past to “focus on himself” rather than on Robyn’s alleged faults to shield her.
Janelle explained, “Many people want to place the blame solely on Robyn. I don’t think she’s completely innocent. It takes two to tango. In many respects, Kody has portrayed himself as more villainous to deflect blame from her.”
Reflecting on their past, Janelle remarked that comparing their current lives to the inception of the plural family over twenty years ago is “very perilous.”
“It’s genuinely challenging to compare who we were then and how our relationships evolved to the current version of Kody 2.0, who is now married to Robyn,” Janelle reminded viewers, noting that at the start, they had “very little money” and faced “personality” conflicts.
Janelle jested, “Honestly, if I was marrying someone like Kody now, with all of his history and perspective, it would likely be an entirely different relationship.”
Episode 3 of the Sister Wives: One-on-One special airs on TLC Sunday, June 8, at 10 p.m. ET.
