‘Sister Wives’ Star Meri Brown Calls Out the ‘Divide’ With Robyn

For years, Sister Wives gave viewers a front-row seat to one of TV’s most complicated families. But behind the scenes, tension was building — especially between Meri Brown and Robyn Brown. Now, in a new sneak peek from the second half of Season 19 — shared by People on Thursday, April 17 — Meri, 54, opens up about the distance that’s formed between the former wives.

In the clip, Meri — who was Kody Brown’s first wife from 1990 until their 2023 split — sits down with longtime friend Jenn Sullivan to reflect on the fallout. At the time, Meri was one of four sister wives: Janelle (married to Kody from 1993 to 2022), Christine (1994 to 2021), and Robyn, who became Kody’s legal wife in 2014.

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“There’s so many people that are like, ‘She was a fraud, she was a liar, she was manipulating,’” Meri says of Robyn, before clocking a glance from Jenn. “I know the look,” Meri laughs. 

Jenn says she’s just being “cautious,” but admits something definitely shifted. “I don’t think it was intentional manipulation,” she explains. “I think Kody decided he had this new person, this new insider with him.”

“The new shiny toy,” Meri interjects.

Jenn agrees and continues, “Then it just became them against everybody else. She’d act like she was your best friend, and then completely ignore you and hurt your feelings. Like, that’s really f***ed up. Like either be an a**hole or don’t.”

Meri later tells the cameras she felt her relationship with Robyn “was a good one” and “very solid,” but eventually, “there was a divide.”

Meanwhile, Christine, 52 — who said “I do” to David Woolley in October 2023 — has no plans to rekindle old ties.