“I didn’t know s–t about being a good dad and husband, and I thought I did,” the Sister Wives star says through tears, before also revealing the “pros and cons” of his polygamist lifestyle.
Kody Brown appears to be taking the first steps to own up to his past mistakes.
In a preview for Thursday’s episode of Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, the Sister Wives star and dad of 18 gets emotional as he’s grilled by Directing Staff (DS) instructors about not taking accountability for his strained relationships with many of his kids.
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When former US Marine Rudy Reyes asks Kody if he believes he’s “taking your proper responsibility in the fallout of your kids,” Kody replies, “I don’t want to admit I’m wrong sometimes. I don’t like being wrong.”
“No one does. That’s ownership,” ex-SAS Sergeant Major, Mark “Billy” Billingham, says.
“There was a point in my life when I was concerned about everybody,” Kody continues, before Billingham interjects, telling Kody, “You’re concerned about everybody as long as they sang to your tune. As long as they agree with everything you believe in. I don’t think you’re being honest with me.”
“I’m the discrepancy,” Kody admits. “I should have had a stronger relationship with my children.”
Reyes notes that they are finally “getting somewhere,” with Billingham asking Kody, “What are you going to do about it?”
Kody then becomes emotional as he replies, “I’m at a place in my life now where I’m very willing to say that I’ve been wrong.”
After Reyes asks if he’s “taking ownership,” Kody breaks down in tears, saying, “My failures were because I didn’t know s–t about being a good dad and husband, and I thought I did. I really thought I did, and I misunderstood that. I did it wrong in so many ways, and I hated being blamed for it, and so it made me resistant to ownership.”
Reyes calls Kody’s resistance to being “blamed” for his mistakes an “adolescent way of looking at things,” to which Kody admits, “I’ll take that.”
Billingham chimes in, telling Kody that his “faults” are his and his alone, before adding, “When you really f—king own that, you’ll do something about it. Dig deep and keep going.”
A tearful Kody nods his head in agreement, “Yes, Staff.”
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The family patriarch’s polygamist relationships with four women have been documented on 20 seasons of Sister Wives. Kody first married Meri Brown in 1990 legally. He would then go on to “spiritually” marry Janelle in 1993 and Christine the following year. Robyn joined the expanded family with a “spiritual” marriage in 2010. Kody then divorced Meri so he could legally marry Robyn in 2014. But they didn’t stay one big happy family in the end.
Christine was the first to split from Kody, leaving in November 2021 after more than 25 years together. Janelle soon followed, ending her relationship with him a year later. Then, in January 2023, Meri confirmed that she and Kody were also done for good.
Through his four marriages, Kody is a father of 18 children — ages 14 to 30. He welcomed kids Logan, Madison, Hunter, Gabriel, and Savannah with Janelle. The former couple also shared son Garrison, who died by suicide last year. Kody shares Aspyn, Mykelti, Paedon, Gwendlyn, Ysabel and Truely with Christine, and Leon with Meri. He welcomed Solomon and Ariella with his fourth wife, Robyn, and through their marriage, Kody adopted her children from her previous marriage: Dayton, Breanna, and Aurora.
Meanwhile, in another preview clip for Thursday night’s episode, Kody opens up to some of his fellow recruits about his experience as a polygamist.
When former NFL star Andrew East asks Kody about the “pros and cons of his lifestyle,” Kody reveals, “I had 18 kids with four wives.”
“Do you see a downside to it?” asks East, who shares kids Drew, Jett, and Bear with wife and fellow recruit Shawn Johnson.
“It has been three divorces and I would never do it again — I would never marry again,” Kody admits.
During his conversation with East, he also recalls how he got into polygamy. “I was a believer. I grew up in an entire culture that had it as a side note to their belief system,” Kody explained, before sharing that his father was also a polygamist. “My dad had three wives.”
In a confessional, he further discusses the family drama that ensued following his divorce.
“There ended up being some bad blood with family over the divorces. In some cases with my children, communication has ceased,” Kody says.
“When you don’t have a deep connection with your children, that is a disappointment,” he adds. “But there are probably certain things I won’t own. I will own where I should.”
See how it all goes down when Special Forces airs tonight at 9 p.m. ET on FOX. Stream episodes the next day on Hulu.
