In a revealing new episode of TLC's long-running reality series Sister Wives, stars Janelle Brown and Meri Brown have laid bare the extraordinarily complex family ties that bind them. The duo, both former wives of Kody Brown, shared the surprising detail that they were legally connected long before entering a plural marriage together.
From Sisters-in-Law to Sister Wives
The intricate connection stems from Janelle's first, brief marriage. Janelle, now 56, was married to Meri's brother, Adam Clark Barber, for less than a year after meeting him during her senior year of high school. This union made the two women sisters-in-law. Remarkably, Janelle was even present at Meri's 1990 wedding to Kody Brown before her own marriage to Barber ended.
"Janelle and I were actually sisters-in-law before we were sister wives," Meri, 54, stated during a coffee shop meeting filmed for the show. She reiterated the point in a separate confessional, noting, "She'd been married to my brother and she was actually at my wedding with [Kody]. And then they divorced after Kody and I got married."
Initial Resistance and Lasting Impact
When the possibility of Janelle joining Kody and Meri's polygamous union arose, Meri admitted to significant reservations. "When the conversation about Janelle coming into our family started happening, it was really hard for me," she confessed. Meri explained that the prior familial link made the situation "a tough thing to wrap my head around on multiple levels."
Janelle, however, viewed her short-lived first marriage differently. She described it as "very short" and countered that it "didn't really matter" because "it was such a small period of time." Despite their differing perspectives on this shared history, both women have been integral parts of the Brown family for over three decades.
A New Chapter of Freedom
The episode also featured a significant personal milestone for Janelle. She disclosed that she has been formally granted a divorce from Kody Brown by the Apostolic United Brethren church, the religious institution that solemnised their spiritual marriage. Displaying the release paperwork, she emotionally declared, "I have it. That was easy... I am free. I am free. I am free. I am free."
Following the meeting with church leaders, Janelle reflected on the weight that had been lifted. "They were all very kind. They'd granted me the release. So there was really kind of a shift in my energy," she told cameras, adding she was glad she had taken the step.
Janelle separated from Kody in December 2022. Meri and Kody have been legally divorced since 2014 so he could marry Robyn Brown, though they remained spiritually married until January 2023. Kody's other spiritual marriage, to Christine Brown, ended in 2021. Kody's only remaining marital relationship is now with Robyn Brown.
Despite the family's fractures, Janelle expressed no regrets about her past. "I love the family that we have, and I would do it all again in order to get the family and the kids that we have," she stated. "[It] just is sort of like that chapter has ended."
