'Sister Wives' Stars Janelle and Kody Brown Confirm They Have Officially 'Separated'

The split news was revealed toward the end of Sunday's Sister Wives

Kody Brown has lost another one of his Sister Wives.

The Brown family patriarch was asked to address his relationship status with Janelle Brown in a sneak peek for the upcoming Sister Wives: One on One special, which aired toward the end of Sunday's episode.

"I am separated from Janelle," said Kody, 53. "And I'm divorced from Christine [Brown]."

Janelle, also 53, confirmed: "Kody and I have separated."

Janelle, who entered into a polygamous marriage with Kody in 1993, is the second Brown family matriarch to go solo after Christine. In November 2021, Christine announced her separation from Kody after 25 years of marriage.

SISTER WIVES, Kody Brown (center), surrounded by wives Meri, Janelle, Christine, and wife-to-be Robyn Sullivan, (Season 1), 2010-. photo: Bryant Livingston / © TLC / Courtesy: Everett Collection
Kody Brown (center), surrounded by Meri, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn Brown. Bryant Livingston/TLC/Everett

Kody still remains in a polygamous bond with Meri Brown and Robyn Brown, though his relationship with Meri has become platonic.

Kody's issues with Janelle — and Christine, too — have persisted all season long. In last week's episode, Kody and Janelle contemplated whether or not their relationship still worked. Kody even felt as if he was "begging" Janelle to have a deeper bond with him.

Janelle Brown
Janelle and Kody Brown. Gabe Ginsberg/FilmMagic

Though Janelle felt as if she needed to "do everything [she] can to make this work," she was "not even sure it's possible to come back from where we are."

"I never thought that I would ever be in a place where I would be questioning my relationship, but the last few years, I began to wonder if we're compatible anymore," she later said in an interview. "Maybe this doesn't work anymore for me. I don't know."

RELATED VIDEO: Sister Wives' Kody Brown Says His Marriage to Janelle Is Strained over Her RV Living Situation

This week's episode saw Kody and Janelle engaging in a blowout argument over her failure to comply with his COVID-19 safety rules. But Janelle believes she's done everything she could given the severity of the circumstances — and she doesn't think she should have to "defend" herself.

"This is the same ol' argument. I don't need to be beaten into submission, made to kowtow. I'm just not. I just don't need this," she said. "In the last 18 months, I've realized that I'm pretty good. I'm independent, and I'm not going to stand here and be yelled at. I just don't need it. I don't deserve it and I don't need it."

In that same episode, Janelle also questioned the future of the Brown family.

"I just think we've never had divides this deep," she said. "Christine has left, and that's obviously [a] very, very big departure for what our family has looked like for many years. This is like the ultimate test of our family. Can we hold it together with all of this?"

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Sister Wives airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on TLC.

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