Janelle Brown Blames One of Her Fellow ‘Sister Wives’ for Family’s Problems

The Sister Wives family is facing some serious shakeups, and it’s all on display in the new season. ET Online snagged an exclusive clip from the Season 18 premiere, in which the Browns discuss the state of their polygamist marriage. Notably, the sneak peek finds Janelle Brown seemingly blames one of her fellow sister wives for all the family’s problems.

“Once Robyn entered the family, there was a shakeup, and I don’t know if things were ever settled again,” Janelle said. Christine Brown is a tad more gracious, adding, “We became very separate and the family traditions stopped. And I don’t know, and I’m not accusing Robyn of stopping all the family traditions. I don’t know what happened. I just know us getting together again as a family stopped.”

Kody Brown’s first wife was Meri. They were married in 1990, and then legally separated in 2014 but remained together. Janelle was Kody’s second wife, marrying him in 1993. They seemed to have separated in late 2020 and was confirmed in late 2022 that they are also no longer together. Christine became wife number three the next year in 1994. Finally, Robyn married Kody in 2010, making her his fourth wife. Robyn is also Kody’s only remaining wife, after Meri, Janelle, and Christine all left him.

In the exclusive clip, Robyn and Meri meet up to have a conversation about Christine’s exit from the family, which was the most recent, though it becomes clear that the two don’t see eye-to-eye. “If she saw that we were perfect, either we were all really good actors or she had blinders on,” Meri says. “I don’t know. And I’m not saying that to be rude. We, just, we were not perfect. But we were good.”

Robyn tearfully says that the loss of her three sister wives has left her “questioning my reality,” adding, “I’m starting to wonder if I didn’t really know what was happening back then. I’m just looking for answers because I don’t understand this.” Robyn later makes reference to her first marriage, saying that she was in a “tough situation” and looking for a “safe family” for herself and her kids. “When I met Kody’s family, I saw them operating as one family,” she said, “I thought this was a safe place for my kids to be.” Sister Wives premieres Sunday at 10 p.m. ET, on TLC.