Sister Wives patriarch Kody Brown has been open about his motivations with his exes, even the sinister reason behind his consistent pursuit of Janelle Brown long after she rejected him. Kody, who was married to Janelle, Christine Brown, and Meri Brown collectively for over 30 years before their divorces in 2021 and 2022, has struggled to maintain his relationships with his co-parents outside of his marriages. While he still manages well with his remaining wife Robyn Brown when it comes to their younger children, his relationship with his exes and adult kids remains scarred after years of distrust and misunderstanding.

In a recent episode of Sister Wives, Kody shared that he’s consistently interested in getting back together with Janelle because of his kids’ perception, not because of his romantic feelings for her. Janelle, who’s the most hesitant of Kody’s exes about officially divorcing and moving forward, shared that she’s “so happy that I don’t foresee a long-term thing for us” because of his mind games. “I don’t even know who he is anymore,” Janelle explained. For Kody’s part, he’s still holding anger towards his kids, explaining that “they’ve shut me out,” and without Janelle’s endorsement, they’ll continue to do so.

What Kody’s Misguided Plays For Janelle’s Attention Mean

He’s Trying To Show His Kids He Cares

Although Kody has been trying to exploit his relationship with Janelle for the sake of his relationships with his kids since before their split, it’s clear that he’s getting more desperate as it becomes obvious that the kids aren’t interested in reconciliation. Kody’s behavior has been insensitive toward his adult children, to say the least, and when the kids are prompted about their relationships with their father on Sister Wives, it’s clear that there’s little, if anything, happening between them when the cameras aren’t rolling. The majority of the Brown kids are looking for a genuine apology from their father.

While Kody isn’t interested in having a dialogue or apologizing for his actions, his behavior toward Janelle has been tough to watch without the added element of him using their potential reconnection as a bargaining chip. It appears Kody thinks if he’s in Janelle’s good graces, he’ll have won some brownie points with the kids. Though this likely isn’t the case at all, Kody feels it’s true so strongly that it’s pushed him to pursue Janelle even when she’s told him outright that she doesn’t want a romantic relationship with him again. His pushiness is unsurprising but overwhelming to watch.

Kody’s Faux-Sense Of Care Is Yet Another Lie

Although Kody seems to understand that it’s his actions that have pushed his kids away in the first place, his revisionist history of Sister Wives events makes it clear that he doesn’t feel he’s at fault for their estrangement. While it does take two parties to separate, Kody’s the parent in the situation and has a responsibility to pursue relationships with his kids if he wants them. Rather than trying to win back his ex-wife to curry favor with his kids, Sister Wives patriarch Kody should focus on rebuilding his relationships with his adult children and talking to them directly.