Kody Brown Admits He “Didn’t Know S–t About Being a Dad and Husband”

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You could say the realization was like a knife to the kidney. 

For Kody Brown, the most challenging part of the November 6th episode of Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test wasn’t the physical challenges like running in the heat or crawling through mud.

After a difficult hostage rescue simulation with Shawn Johnson, the instructors criticized his choices, which made the Sister Wives star think about his own parenting mistakes.

Having a large family with four wives and eighteen children, he often wondered if people thought he played favorites. But he explained that his children sometimes rejected him, saying they didn’t want or need him in their lives.

Kody admitted he was hurt by the choices his older children had made, feeling like they had distanced themselves from him.

He explained that he always provided for his children, saying, “Whenever they reached out to me, I always responded in kind.”

Although he admitted it’s hard for him to admit when he’s wrong, the 56-year-old was willing to take responsibility for the rift within his family.

“I’m the discrepancy,” he allowed. “I should have had a strong relationship with my children.”

After years of being distant from most of his older children, he admitted, with emotion, “I now realize I made mistakes.”

He explained that his mistakes stemmed from a false belief in his own abilities as a father and husband. He admitted he thought he knew what he was doing, but he was wrong and made many errors as a result.

Honestly, watching Kody, it became clear that he really struggled with taking responsibility. He admitted he just couldn’t stand being blamed for things, and that made him push back whenever anyone tried to hold him accountable. It was like he just shut down instead of owning up to his mistakes.

Now, he’s ready to do what it takes to maintain relationships with his family, including his former spouses Meri Brown, Janelle Brown, and Christine Brown.

He admitted it wouldn’t be easy, but he wants to mend things with his family and even rebuild relationships with his former wives.

But he was willing to pull up his bootstraps and get to work. 

He expressed regret for any pain or offense he caused his children, including daughters Madison Brush and Mykelti Padron, as well as some of his older sons. He added that he needs to regain that sense of humility in his life.

He delivered a comparable message to the remaining contestants back at camp, admitting he hadn’t been truthful with himself and wasn’t fully accepting responsibility for his actions.

Honestly, the coaches have really been pushing me to be brutally honest with myself. They’ve pointed out that I’ve been hiding things, even from myself, and they want me to break down those walls I’ve built up. They’re saying I need to stop protecting myself and just be real about what’s going on inside.

Although he wasn’t sure where to start, the former polygamist – now committed solely to his wife, Robyn Brown – was eager to begin.

He’s pushing his limits both physically, on the show Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test (Thursdays at 9 p.m. on Fox), and emotionally, as viewers watch his story unfold on Sister Wives. This season, he and his former wives have been very open about their experiences.

Now that her divorce from Kody Brown is final, Janelle Brown shared on the season 20 premiere of Sister Wives that she’s taking a similar approach to Meri Brown.

Though they were married for 29 years, Kody and Christine were never legally married. Christine explained on the show’s premiere that she’d considered a ‘spiritual divorce’ years ago and didn’t know it was possible. When Meri pursued one, Christine asked her who she should contact to do the same.

Janelle’s former sister wife, who had previously been released from their church due to feeling abandoned, was glad to offer some information. Janelle explained, “She’s been helping me reconnect with everyone.”

Madison Brush is still dealing with the fallout from her father’s actions. She revealed on the September 28th episode of the show that she’s still upset about her strained relationship with her dad, Kody, and is finding it difficult to move forward.

Speaking honestly, she admitted she hopes her husband’s father will be present, and that she desires a resolution to their issues. She acknowledged her own role in the situation, but also expressed frustration as she continues to work on managing her expectations and avoiding disappointment.

She’s finding it difficult to accept him as he is. She explained that she’s working on understanding that he may not have known how to be there for her, and that he could be going through his own pain.

He also might not be willing to cede too much ground. 

Kody expressed wanting to repair his relationships with Meri, Janelle, Christine Brown, and their kids. He feels they’ve reached a standstill, stating that any progress depends entirely on them deciding if and how to move forward.

As a lifestyle expert, I’ve seen many relationship dynamics, and Robyn Brown recently shared something really relatable. She explained that when she and Kody Brown connected, it wasn’t just about him – she truly desired a family. She even revealed she’d had other opportunities for marriage before, with men who were very interested in building a life with her. It wasn’t always a grand, romantic proposal, but several men expressed how quickly they’d commit to her.

She consistently stated she was open to the idea of plural marriage, saying, “I basically told him I was willing to consider it.” She added that if Kody hadn’t already been married with three wives, she would have given him the same answer.

Kody explained that, despite not planning to be exclusive, he and his current partner had unintentionally become a monogamous couple, playfully declaring, “It’s just you and me now.”

Though he admittedly had one concern. 

Kody hinted to Robyn that he desired a more fulfilling intimate life. He later explained in a private interview that he believed polygamy offered more satisfaction than a traditional, monogamous relationship, where he felt one person might be left wanting.

Meri is actively dating and has a clear idea of what she wants in a partner. She’s looking for a tall man who loves to travel and, importantly, prefers dogs over cats, as she shared on the October 5th episode.

And she definitely needs someone who won’t scare easily. 

She recounted a difficult dating experience, explaining that a man she was talking to ended the conversation as soon as he learned she practiced polygamy. He told her he wasn’t interested in continuing a relationship with someone who did, which she found very hurtful. She was upset that he dismissed her simply because of her relationship style.

Meri explained that it was the first time she truly understood that some people would be hesitant to even begin a conversation with her because of who she was.

Janelle firmly believes she was the only one in her large family who really desired to settle on Coyote Pass.

On the October 3rd episode of the show, Janelle revealed she wasn’t sure she ever truly wanted the whole family to live on their 14-acre property, Coyote Pass, which they bought before moving to Flagstaff, Arizona in 2018.

Although Kody’s second wife thought living there could work—she said it was a nice property and wondered why not—she believed it was just a temporary idea for him and his other wives.

She explained that no one was eager to live in that area, especially not Christine. Meri would have agreed to move if others had as well.

Janelle explained that Kody and Robyn’s former property, a two-acre home with five bedrooms that they recently sold for $1.7 million, felt unfinished despite being mostly built.

Janelle explained that despite all the arguing about dividing the land, she quickly realized after moving to Flagstaff that they wouldn’t actually be able to split it into four separate pieces.

Kody believes he knows why his relationships with most of his adult children – excluding Robyn’s oldest, Dayton, and her daughters Aurora and Breanna – aren’t very good.

He admitted on October 5th that his relationships with his adult children are difficult. He explained that constant teasing and subtle jabs have created problems with trust and loyalty within the family.

And these days, not many of his grown kids are on Team Kody. 

Even though Mykelti Padron, one of Christine’s six children, had seemed the most publicly supportive of her father, she shared her thoughts on the family split several months after she, her husband Tony Padron, and their three children moved to North Carolina.

She believes that if he simply took responsibility for his actions, at least some of his children might try to reconnect with him. Instead of constantly blaming his kids, their feelings about his new marriage, or anyone else involved, a simple apology and willingness to discuss what went wrong would make a huge difference, she explained during a fan Q&A in October 2024 shared on Instagram (@withoutacrystalball).

When Coyote Pass was sold in April 2025, Janelle and Meri finalized their separations from Kody, each receiving money from the sale. Christine had previously given up her share of the land in exchange for keeping the profits from selling her house in Arizona.

Okay, so Janelle totally nailed it when she was talking to Meri on the show! It was like, she was being playfully shady, but also, you could feel the real message: ‘I’m done, and honestly? Good riddance.’ It was such a perfect, casual way to say ‘I never want to deal with this again!’ I’ve replayed that moment like a million times, honestly.

But she certainly wouldn’t have waved off an even nicer present. 

If she had been legally married to Kody, she said she would have expected to receive half of his possessions, as she would have been entitled to it.

Before Kody and Robyn gave up on building their dream home at Coyote Pass, they first had to finalize the purchase of a new, $2.1 million house. Kody explained on the October 12th episode that selling the Coyote Pass property only became possible once they decided they really wanted this other house, after months of discussions with his former wives about getting rid of the large property.

Oh my gosh, you guys, I just read that the dad of those eighteen kids said they really want to leave their old house behind! He said they’ve been through so much sadness there, and all they want is a fresh start – something totally different, a brand new chapter for their huge family. It just breaks my heart thinking about it, but I’m SO excited for them to find a place where they can finally be happy!

Kody believed that loving multiple wives should mean his love simply expanded, but he admitted he didn’t always give each wife equal attention. On a recent episode of the show, he explained that he struggled to fully devote himself to each of his wives, and they, in turn, didn’t always feel fully devoted to him or to each other as a unified family.

Looking back, he realized one mistake was giving Robyn a lavish lifestyle – a $1.65 million, five-bedroom house – while his other wives had more modest living arrangements. He admitted he didn’t understand why his marriages to Meri, Janelle, and Christine failed, but he believed providing Robyn with such a nice home created jealousy. He felt his wives struggled with his willingness to go to great lengths to ensure Robyn’s comfort and security.

Christine found it difficult to relax around Kody. As she explained on the October 26th episode, he was a very demanding husband with many preferences and routines, including specific diets and grooming habits.

Bottom line, she noted, “It was a lot.” 

Janelle isn’t interested in starting a new relationship anytime soon, especially after her breakup with Kody. She admitted to Christine and her husband, David Woolley, that being with Kody was exhausting, and she believes relationships in general require a lot of effort.

That’s why she’s pushing back against David’s suggestions she join FarmersOnly. She explained to the cameras, ‘David just doesn’t accept that I’m not interested in dating right now. I keep telling him, ‘No, no, no!”

Kody generally made an effort to avoid mixing up his wives’ names. As Christine explained on the November 2nd episode, he almost never called them by the wrong name. She described how painful it would be to hear another wife’s name in a private moment, and confirmed that this never occurred.

Though there were some close calls. 

I often found myself doing that,” Kody confessed. “I definitely used to start arguments and then quickly change the subject or direction of the conversation.

To hear Christine tell it, she felt quite stabbed in the kidney by her former sister wife. 

She told David on the November 2nd episode that she felt deeply betrayed by Robyn, explaining she’d lost all trust in her. She shared that she used to tell Robyn private things, but those secrets would get back to Kody, causing problems and making him angry. Because of this, she stopped sharing anything personal with Robyn.

But Robyn insisted she was just trying to play marriage counselor. 

Christine often told me she wished Kody could see things from her perspective and understand what she was going through. I was a bit naive and thought I could offer help, but looking back, I realize I should have let them handle it themselves.

Meri used to be flattered by the idea that Kody saw her as his favorite former wife, but when he tried to chat with her over video about selling their house in Arizona, she wasn’t interested in being friendly.

He reflected on a conversation with Janelle, saying he wasn’t sure what caused the change in their relationship with Meri. He remembered helping her move to Parowan, Utah, and at the time, everything was friendly and enjoyable. But since then, things have become strained and awkward.

Look, after hearing Kody’s comments over the years, I really felt like I needed to prioritize my work and focus on building my business. It wasn’t about seeking anything else, honestly – it was about staying strong and independent. I was just putting my energy into things I could control.

Honestly, I’ve had to completely cut him off. It’s so frustrating! Like, we’ll be on a video call and he’ll act all buddy-buddy, pretending everything’s okay after everything he’s said – not just to me, but about my friends too! I just can’t deal with that, it’s totally unacceptable. I’ve made it clear, he needs to understand that behavior isn’t going to work with me anymore.

Christine happily accepted her now-husband David’s proposal last year, but her ex-spouse believes he should have been consulted beforehand.

Kody explained that his and Christine’s youngest daughter, Truely, lives with David, and he feels he should get to know him.

In fact, he mused, he “should have had the right, even, to discriminate David.”

Janelle was happy to get her investment back from Coyote Pass and wasn’t upset about the money she’d already given to Robyn and Kody for their house in Arizona.

She explained on the November 2nd episode that her children think she should try to recover the money she invested in Robyn’s house, but she anticipates a difficult legal battle to do so.

She explained that trying to get money from Kody is difficult, because he always has a long list of excuses for why he doesn’t owe it.

He felt he’d already fulfilled his obligation. “Janelle helped us buy our house, and I paid her back in January,” he explained. “After that, in January or February, she told me our debt was settled and that I didn’t owe her anything more. She said it was more than fair.”

Should Kody still be interested in having his love multiplied, there’s no shortage of options. 

He told Robyn on November 2nd that he’d received another email from a woman inquiring about plural marriage.

He told Robyn that his former wife was upset with his decision to end their plural marriage. Then, surprisingly, she offered to join their family. He explained she was both criticizing him and, at the same time, expressing interest in becoming part of their household.

Robyn didn’t immediately reject the idea. She later confessed that for a moment, she actually considered it, thinking it could be exactly what she’d always hoped for and wondering if it would be a good fit.

Ultimately, though, it was a no. 

She was upset they contacted Kody directly. She believes it’s generally considered disrespectful to approach a man who is already in a polygamist relationship; you should always go through his wives first.

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2025-11-07 06:22