Why did Kody divorce Meri in 2014? Sister Wives stars’ relationship timeline explored as the couple split

Sister Wives stars Meri and Kody Brown have announced their split. The former couple were “spiritually married” but were living separately for years after getting legally divorced in 2014.

Kody divorced Meri to marry Robyn and to formally adopt her three children from a previous relationship. At the time, Kody told Us Weekly, that they had chosen to "legally restructure" their family and made the decision together as a family. He added that they were grateful to their family, friends and fans for their support and love.

Now, after 32 years of being together, the pair have parted ways and in a clip from the upcoming Sister Wives: One-on-One, Kody is seen saying that he doesn't consider himself married to Meri. He said that if she wanted to move on and marry another person, he wouldn't have an issue with it.

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Sister Wives star Meri confirms split from Kody

Confirming their split, Sister Wives star Meri said that that she and the father of 18 children, Kody, had never discussed their breakup before. In the clip, she says:

“It just doesn’t make sense to me that he would be so frustrated with Christine [Brown] and be like, ‘She just made this decision. We didn’t consult. We didn’t talk.’ … And then he says, ‘No, I don’t consider myself married to Meri.’” He just made the decision. I have never heard him say that to me.”

Meri was even more surprised with Kody’s decision as the latter had supposedly made her believe that he was trying. She said she felt so when the family moved from Las Vegas to Flagstaff, Arizona, in 2018 along with Sister Wives' Janelle Brown and Robyn Brown.

However, during the their last anniversary, Kody questioned why she called him as he considered the two of them to be married or even acting as if they were married. Meri also asked Kody to address the issue publicly, but she denied as Kody didn't want the judgement.

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Sister Wives star Meri was Kody’s first spouse

TLC fans were introduced to the Brown family in 2010 on Sister Wives. At the time, Kody was legally married to Meri and spiritually married to Janelle and Christine. Meri legally married Kody in 1990, which made her his first spouse. Season 1 then followed Robyn’s introduction to the group after 16 years of Kody with his three other wives.

Kody and Meri’s relationship hit a rough patch after their divorce in 2014. During an episode of season 15 of the show, the former pair opened up in an emotional therapy session with Meri saying that their romance is dead and over.

Kody even admitted to Us Weekly in 2021 that the two don’t share same opinion anymore. He added that their relationship Meri was in a very dark place for a very long time.

Kody and Meri’s relationship troubles even played out during season 17 of the reality show, which aired in 2022. During the season finale, Kody stated that he didn’t want to be in a relationship with her anymore.

The former couple have now parted ways. Kody and Meri share one child, a daughter named Mariah. She was born five years after the former pair got married.

While Christine left Kody in late 2021, Janelle announced her separation from Kody in early December 2022. Kody’s only remaining sister wife is Robyn, whom he spiritually wed in 2010 before legally getting married four years later.

Tune in on TLC on Sunday, December 18, 2022 at 10 pm ET to watch part one of the Sister Wives: One-on-One special.