Kody Brown hinted at having “f— and fight” style relationships with his first three wives during the latest episode of Sister Wives.
“I was in terrible relationships but wasn’t willing to discard them, didn’t want to discard them,” Kody, 55, told the cameras of exes Meri, Janelle and Christine Brown, during the Sunday, October 20, episode. “[I] didn’t even know I was in terrible relationships.”
He confessed, “You don’t know you’re in a bad relationship. You just think you’re in a normal relationship because all your friends have the same problem until you’re in a normal relationship that has deep emotional intimacy instead of the [butting heads].” (Kody appeared to be referring to fourth wife Robyn Brown as his “normal relationship.”)
Kody explained, “Some people call it F&F. And the second word is fight. Or F&F and the first word is fight.” The reality TV star quipped: “That doesn’t create intimacy, that just creates orgasms.”
While Kody seemingly pointed to his past marriages with Meri, 53, Janelle, 55, and Christine, 52, as unhealthy, he explained that his relationship with Meri was the worst. (Kody and Christine split in 2021 while he and Janelle parted ways in 2022.)
“This marriage was on the rocks the entire marriage,” he said of Meri, whom he wed in 1990. “And how would I know that? Because I had such a better relationship with Janelle, with Christine, with Robyn and Janelle and Christine didn’t survive.”
He revealed he “should have gotten out of the relationship 25 years ago” instead of sticking it out for 30-plus years.
Kody’s relationship with Meri was the last to officially come to an end, but they had troubles for years. The pair legally divorced in 2014 so Kody could marry Robyn, 46, and adopt her three children from a prior marriage.
Kody and Meri remained spiritually married for nearly another decade before she confirmed in January 2023 that they were done.
“My choice was always to stay. Had I wanted to leave sooner, I would have left sooner,” Meri told Kody on Sunday’s episode, noting she took the steps to “terminate” their union with their church.
While Kody was OK with moving on from Meri, he didn’t like how the church categorized their split. “They said they’d give Meri a release, a divorce on account of abandonment, and I just don’t believe that that’s true at all. She was never abandoned,” he said in a confessional.
Meri was adamant that Kody “knew what was happening” throughout the process and could have come with her to the church elders.
“I know that they use the words abandonment, and he really didn’t like that. Most people don’t like what is truth,” Meri quipped.
Despite all their drama, Kody revealed that he was hopeful his relationship and friendship with Meri wouldn’t end after their breakup.
“I don’t want any more enemies, and I don’t want another loss,” he told the cameras. “I just hope that in the future, Meri will call me when she’s got something fun to share.”
Kody added, “I’m embarrassed that my other divorces have created contempt and contemptuous enemies.”
Sister Wives airs on TLC Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.
