Latest news with #SisterWives'
Washington Post
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
The most quintessential American TV show is ‘Sister Wives'
One benefit of being a columnist is that every couple of years I get to subject all of you to a close analysis of the reality show 'Sister Wives,' and it turns out today is that day. What is 'Sister Wives?' It is a long-running TLC series about a family of fundamentalist Mormon polygamists who live in Utah, then Nevada, then Arizona and then eventually scatter as the clan breaks up. It's never-ending and dramatic and boring, and the faithful among us now just want to know whether erstwhile second wife Janelle, who moved to North Carolina, will ever open her unpronounceable flower farm (TAY-da? TIE-da? Tie-AY-da? Get it together, guys). Those of you have never seen the show: We know, you wouldn't be caught dead tuning in to this dumpster fire, you have better things to do, etc. etc. Congratulations on your brain cells. Now please leave us in peace to discuss a show, which wraps up its 19th season on Sunday, that has over the years become one of my lodestars for interpreting relationships and America. As a quick refresher: This show first aired in 2010, piggybacking off the popularity of 'Big Love,' an HBO drama about a fictional modern polygamous family, which starred Bill Paxton and which explored what it looked like to live a 19th century religion in a 21st century reality. 'Sister Wives' was that but less premium-cable. It introduced the country to Joseph Smith birthday celebrations, bulk meal prep (18 children!!) and the Utah accent, which pronounces 'real' and 'deal' as 'rill' and 'dill.' As a quicker refresher: The Brown family now hates each other. Kody Brown started off with four wives but now has just one as Christine, Janelle and Meri all spent the previous three seasons lining up to divorce him. The sad patriarch lives in Flagstaff with his single remaining spouse, Robyn, who began the series run as the hot new girlfriend but who now looks so perpetually low-energy that one podcaster I follow speculates that the couple's favorite spicy role-playing game involves pretending to be in hospice. The bulk of this most recent season was spent figuring out what to do about Coyote Pass, the overpriced land on which the family once intended to build a compound before everything went to hell. So now Christine has remarried, Meri is running a B&B back in Utah, Janelle has moved eastward with her grandbabies and her farm dreams, but all of them keep having to trudge back to Flagstaff to bicker with one another about who owes what to whom. As you might imagine, these are not really conversations about money. Why couldn't Kody just admit that he once he met Robyn, he started ignoring his other wives? Why couldn't Meri admit that her mid-series catfishing incident was an emotional affair? Did the family ever really function or was it just held together by a sticky paste of tuna casseroles and scripture? Here is Kody, once an earnest and good-natured lunkhead, gradually getting redpilled by the manosphere. And here is Meri, whose self-improvement journey dumped her at the alter of Brené Brown and Mel Robbins (this woman is always doing the work). And here is Christine, an irritating Disney Adult cheerfully rolling with her gay daughter's wedding, and here is Janelle, donating to the presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. At one point all the wives are involved in multilevel marketing schemes; at one point everyone's trying therapy. I'm telling you, the answer to every political pollster's question of the Trump era — how will the residents of flyover states deal with covid, with vaccines, with transgender issues, with health insurance, with poor retirement savings — is explored in one 'Sister Wives' episode or another. It's got every possible archetype. It's the most American show. There are podcasters who make their entire livings analyzing 'Sister Wives.' There is an honest-to-God communications professor who uses 'Sister Wives' as a weekly opportunity to teach his listeners about communication theory. Tourists travel to Flagstaff and take pictures of themselves at Salsa Brava or Fat Olives, restaurants that appear on the show, and, to be clear, all of these people are much crazier than I am. The biggest question of all at this point is: Why are any of us still here? 'Sister Wives' was marketed as an exploration of how one man could manage four wives, and the ultimate answer is, he couldn't. The original premise no longer exists. We're at the 'Tell All' point of the season now, a multi-part saga in which cast members sit down and dissect whatever we all saw on camera this season. The host, Sukanya Krishnan, does her best, but Robyn compares the experience to a root canal. Reading between the lines, the only reason any of them are here is because the show is now their main source of income. Kody and Robyn are constantly adding to their collection of horse-themed jewelry and art, and to earn their paychecks, the job description is self-reflection. And through that reflection, viewers get a master class on the mechanics of reality television. These five adults managed to put on a happy facade for a really long time. But since the cameras kept rolling, eventually the facade melted. Turns out they spent a lot of the early seasons lying to us and to themselves. Meri and Janelle didn't just have a complicated relationship, they could barely stand to be in the same room as one another. Christine wasn't just going through a rough patch with Kody, she was actively fantasizing about leaving for years. Midway through the season, a tragedy struck, which is so unspeakable that I worry how to even bring it up in this snarky column: One of Kody and Janelle's sons dies by suicide. Garrison had struggled with alcohol for a long time, we are told — something else we didn't see on screen — which had been brought on by the isolation of covid. And viewers, who are human, couldn't help but wonder about the other contributing factors. Was his fractured family to blame? Were we, the audience members who kept tuning in to watch the injuries? I couldn't imagine the show would continue after that event, and yet, there we were the next Sunday, watching grief-stricken parents trying to make sense of the most horrible event that could ever befall a parent and doing it while wearing microphones. We were told that Garrison loved cats. That a good way to honor his memory would be a donation to the Humane Society. I made a donation and wondered if it was time to permanently say goodbye to the Brown family. As for why I, and so many others, hung in for so long — my personal answer is that I wanted to see if they could put it all back together. I'm not asking whether they can all get married again, because they won't. Rather, I'm wondering what it looks like when everything has burned to the ground, but the cameras keep showing up, so you do too, trying to figure out this mess of your life and how it got this way. In the most recent episode, Krishnan kept prodding Janelle on whether she could be friends with Kody and Robyn again. After politely demurring several times, Janelle finally came out with it. 'I just don't like them,' she said. It was weird, frankly, for Krishnan to press the issue. Janelle left Kody, so why should she be expected to pal around with him and his remaining wife? But I got why Krishnan wouldn't let it go. Because this is the most American show on television. Because we all have to understand our past before we map the future. Because these are people who once vowed to spend their whole lives in a united state, and even if they sell Coyote Pass, they're still going to be bound by joy, grief, struggle, memories. Because every one of us living out this broken current reality of America is also trying to figure out whether an RFK Jr. supporter can sit down with a manosphere resident and a chipper Disney princess and an MLM high-seller and try to remember what we have in common. Try to envision what it could look like if we could ever put it back together. Try to remember that a family is still a family and a country is still a country no matter how much you hate each other, so you just have to grit your teeth and try again next season.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sister Wives ' Robyn Brown Addresses Husband Kody Brown's Exes
Originally appeared on E! Online So much for sisterhood. During part two of the Sister Wives season 19 tell-all, Robyn Brown addressed comments made about her throughout the season by her husband Kody Brown's ex-wives Meri Brown, Janelle Brown and Christine Brown. 'I think there's a lot of focus on me,' she told host Sukanya Krishnan in a one-on-one interview during the June 1 episode of the TLC series. 'I actually get really tired of it.' Instead, Robyn—who spiritually married Kody in 2010 before becoming his legal wife four years later—suggested that the trio turn their attention elsewhere. 'I wish really badly that they would all focus on their own relationships,' she continued, 'and work those relationships out without my name coming up.' In particular, Sukanya pointed to Janelle's declaration that Robyn was Kody's 'sacred cow,' prompting the 46-year-old to offer a simple response. 'Moo,' Robyn deadpanned. 'I don't know. Whatever. I don't care.' During part one of the tell-all special, Meri—who was married to Kody from 1990 to 2023—took issue with him wanting her as well as Janelle, 56, and Christine, 53, to change after he began his relationship with Robyn. For more revelations from season 19 of Sister Wives, keep reading. More from E! Online Taylor Swift Gives Sweet Nod to Travis Kelce on Girls' Night With Selena Gomez Why Sister Wives' Janelle Brown Says Ex Kody Brown Is "A Failure" JoJo Siwa and Chris Hughes Get Cozy in Bed Amid Romance Rumors 'I don't think that that's fair for him to even say that,' the 54-year-old said in her own sit-down during the May 25 episode. 'Because we're all supposed to be Robyn? I'm sorry, I am Meri. I'm not going to be Robyn. I don't want to be Robyn. I'm going to be my own individual person. I don't want to be her.' Meanwhile, Kody, 56, dismissed his exes' criticisms and insisted he wanted to move forward without drama. 'There's a divine aspect about my relationship with Robyn,' he explained in his interview. 'We have been b--chslapped for it and I'm sick of it. I love this woman and I want peace in this relationship, but I'm to the point where I'm walking around flipping two birds 'cause I am so sick and tired of being guilted for loving Robyn.' For more revelations from season 19 of Sister Wives, keep reading. Meri Brown Says Kody Brown Gave Her Hope for Their MarriageKody Brown Wanted to Sell Coyote PassJanelle Brown Left Kody Brown for This ReasonKody Brown Feels He's Been "Excommunicated" from His Own FamilyRobyn Brown and Kody Brown's Marriage Was on Shaky GroundMadison Brush Isn't Speaking to Her DadKody Brown Claimed He Never Loved Meri BrownJanelle Brown Threatened Legal Action Against Kody BrownKody Brown Supposedly Divulged Private Information to His Other WivesFamily Money Paid for Robyn Brown's HouseJanelle Brown Questioned How Kody Brown Handled the Family MoneyJanelle Brown and Christine Brown Woolley See Their Kids as the Core Group of the FamilyKody Brown Thinks His Wives Leaving Hurt His Relationship With the KidsKody Brown Said His Marriage to Meri Brown Was MiserableKody Brown Didn't Agree With Meri Brown Wanting a Spiritual DivorceMany of Kody Brown's Kids Aren't Speaking to Each OtherRobyn Brown's Kids Never Felt Welcomed Into the FamilyJanelle Brown Would Do Plural Marriage Again; Kody Brown Wouldn'tKody Brown Started Distancing Himself From Janelle Brown Years AgoJanelle Brown and Christine Brown Woolley's Kids Didn't Love Going to Robyn Brown's HomeJanelle Brown Questioned Robyn Brown and Kody Brown's ParentingMykelti Padron Had a Very Close Relationship With Robyn BrownOne of Kody Brown's Kids Claimed He "Brainwashed" ThemRobyn Brown Was Struggling to Respect Kody Brown as a Parent For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
American Music Awards 2025: See All the Celebrity Red Carpet Fashion
Originally appeared on E! Online These stars are hitting all the right notes. The 2025 American Music Awards are here, and the celebrities showed up and showed out on the red carpet. Among the first stars to arrive was Alix Earle, who donned a bodycon black dress which she paired with black, open-toed heels and a stunning diamond necklace. While on the carpet, the influencer gushed over being chosen as a Dancing with the Stars contestant. "I used to watch it growing up, and I never thought I would be invited to do such an amazing show and be a star on there, it's crazy," she told E! News. "It was a no brainer when I got asked, and I'm excited to challenge myself. It's going to be definitely a different side for me." She added, "And it'll be time for me to slow down a little bit in my routine, hopefully stay in one place as much as possible, stay away from the airport and just challenge myself." (For more from the AMAs, tune into E! News tomorrow, May 26 at 11 p.m.) Heading into the evening, leads the pack of nominees with 10 nods, including nominations for Artist of the Year and Favorite Hip-Hop Male Artist. Six-award nominee similarly made the whole place shimmer when she arrived at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas in TK details. It's an epic outfit worthy of what could turn out to be an equally epic night for the 25-year-old: if Taylor wins in any of her six nominated categories, she will add to her already record-setting 40 AMA wins. Other veteran nominees with their fingers crossed heading into the night? Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Morgan Wallen, SZA and Sabrina Carpenter have all earned six nods at this year's ceremonies. More from E! Online Duck Dynasty's Sadie Robertson Details Final Moments with Grandfather Phil Robertson Sister Wives' Kody Brown Reveals Why He Said He Never Loved His Ex-Wives The Last of Us Season 2 Finale Explained Another highly nominated star is with six nods. If she wins in any of her nominated categories, she will add to her already record-setting 40 AMA wins. Other veteran nominees with their fingers crossed heading into the night? Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Morgan Wallen, SZA and Sabrina Carpenter have all earned six nods at this year's ceremonies. Other first-time nominees include Doechii, Gracie Abrams, Jelly Roll, Lola Young and Benson Boone. Plus, the cast of Wicked—including Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo—could be flying high having earned a nomination I the Favorite Soundtrack category. This year's ceremony is helmed by returning host Jennifer Lopez, who is also set to perform during the show. As CEO of Dick Clark Productions Jay Penske said of the triple threat, 'Jennifer's incredible talent and incomparable stage presence make her the ideal host of the show. We know she will bring her one-of-a-kind energy to the official kick off celebration of summer.' For a look at the above nominees as well as the many artists in attendance at the 2025 American Music Awards, keep reading. —Reporting by Rachel Smith Renee RappKendra Scott & Zac BrownBenson BooneJon BatisteShaboozeyCiaraMachine Gun KellyWayne Brady & Maile MasakoNora FatehiRod StewartHeidi KlumNikki GlaserTiffany HaddishDan + ShayBecky GDavid Guetta & Jessica LedonJordan ChilesLainey WilsonDylan EfronSpencer Pratt & Heidi MontagAlex WarrenMegan MoroneyMontana TuckerAlix Earle For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App
Miami Herald
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Miami Herald
‘Sister Wives' star Kody Brown honors late son Garrison in ‘deeply emotional' way
Kody Brown is mourning his son's death in a unique way. The 56-year-old 'Sister Wives' star announced the death of his son Garrison, whom he shares with his ex-wife Janelle Brown, 56, on March 5, 2024. Garrison was 25 years old when he died by suicide. In the newest episode of the hit reality show, which aired May 18 on TLC, Kody Brown arrived at Penrose Cemetery in Byron, Wyoming, where the family chose to have Garrison buried. But instead of having the sexton dig the grave, Kody Brown wanted to do it himself. 'Here's the thing. I talked to the sexton of the cemetery, and he's the one that would normally dig the graves,' Kody Brown explained in a confessional, per People. 'I just asked him (for) permission if I could dig it. It means something to me. I don't know why,' he added. 'It's something deeply emotional.' Cameras followed Kody Brown as he, his brother, Scott, and his brother-in-law, Tim, dug a hole big enough for an urn. Kody Brown later admitted that he didn't know how big the urn was because it wasn't made yet. 'Mitch, my son-in-law, married to Aspyn, is making something different and I don't know what it looks like yet,' Kody Brown explained to the cameras. 'For the act of effort in this, because we're not digging a grave big enough for a coffin, I'm going to make it a little bit bigger than certainly that I need for this urn,' he continued. He also wanted 'the experience of doing some real effort' in honor of his son. 'Just trying to honor my son as best I can. I don't even know if it's honor. It's mourning,' he added. The urn, which was later revealed in a clip of the emotional funeral service, was designed to look like a Viking ship due to Garrison's strong interest in Norse culture. His ashes were buried alongside other family members. 'My dad is buried here,' Kody Brown shared. 'My mom will be. Janelle's mom, Grandma Cheryl, is buried here.' 'It's just the place and we can see this mountain over here. It's called the Heart Mountain and it's familiar to me,' he continued. Kody Brown then explained how he wanted Garrison 'buried right next to Cheryl' because she 'nurtured Garrison as much as any of us.' 'And I'm putting Garrison in grandma's arms,' he added. Kody Brown went on to describe digging the grave as 'one of the most important things' he had ever done. 'It's the last ode to my boy,' he added. In a confessional of her own, Janelle Brown, who announced her separation from Kody Brown in 2022, praised her ex-husband for wanting to dig their son's grave himself. 'I thought it was perfect,' she said. 'I think it's symbolic and poetic and all the things to have Kody dig that hole.' Kody Brown was appreciative of his ex-wife's blessing. 'I asked her if I could do this and she was kind and gracious,' Kody Brown added, per E! News. 'She said, 'I think that'd be really sweet,' and I'm glad that she saw it that way because I need this.' Aside from Garrison, Janelle and Kody Brown share five children together, including sons Logan, Hunter and Gabriel, and daughters Savanah and Madison, per People. Kody Brown also shares six children with ex-wife Christine Brown, one child with ex-wife Meri Brown and five children with current wife Robyn Brown.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Sister Wives' Star Janelle Brown Reveals Touching Reason She and Kody Buried Their Son Garrison in Wyoming
'Sister Wives' star 's ex-wife Janelle has revealed the heartbreaking reason why the duo chose to bury their son Garrison in Wyoming, and not in their home state of Arizona, while opening up about how his tragic death helped to strengthen their connection as a family. Garrison died by suicide at the age of 25 on March 5, 2024, and now, in a new episode of the family's TLC reality TV series, Janelle and Kody have lifted the lid on how they overcame their bitter rift to honor their son's legacy together. In the May 11 installment of the show, Janelle explains to the cameras that she and Kody were in total agreement that Garrison should be laid to rest in Wyoming. Their family has 'deep roots' in the state, both on her side and Kody's, she explained. 'Kody actually grew up in Wyoming. My mother was married to Kody's father. The Browns have deep roots in Wyoming. Both Kody's dad and my mom are buried there, and I want to bury Garrison next to my mom,' Janelle, 56, explained. 'He was very much shaped by his experiences, going for the summer, working there on the ranch.' Janelle and Kody—who also share children Logan Brown, 31, Madison Brush, 29, Hunter Brown, 28, Gabriel Brown, 23, and Savanah Brown, 20, together—revealed that they buried Garrison's ashes in a small cemetery that feels 'very Wyoming.' 'You can look out, and you see the mountains surround this big basin. The wind is usually blowing. It's just a beautiful view. It's a Wyoming view,' said Janelle, who added that she wants to be buried next to her son when she dies. Garrison's tragic passing had put their family drama to rest, she continued. 'Garrison's death has brought about some healing of relationships, which has been good. Despite all of the flaws and problems that the adults had, we raised these kids that really do feel like they were siblings,' she explained. 'That was our biggest goal, because a lot of plural families raised them as separate households. Sometimes they don't even have anything to do with each other. But we really, really set out to make them siblings. I think we've been successful.' Meanwhile, Kody, also 56, candidly shared that the burial gave him a feeling of 'pilgrimage' with Garrison, with whom he had a tense relationship. 'I want to take his remains, and I want to take him home and I want to put him in the ground next to his grandma and grandpa,' he said. It was a way to 'finish the circle.' The family's decision to open up about Garrison's burial comes after Janelle revealed that she had a feeling something was wrong when she hadn't heard from her son after texting 'all day long.' 'I knew he was struggling. I always just picked up the phone, and I always make it a point to just talk to him. And it wasn't really about anything. I think he needed the connection, and I know he was talking to [and] calling his brothers and stuff, too,' she told the cameras. Janelle noted that worry consumed her when he 'kind of stopped texting me.' 'I knew he'd been drinking again. He would go through periods where he was really good, and then he just would have a binge, just as part of the cycle, I think. So I called [my sons] Logan and Hunter. I texted them … because we've tag-teamed. I said, 'Will you guys see if Garrison will respond to you?' They said, 'Mom, we're on it. We'll just kind of check on him and make sure he's OK.' 'So, I went to sleep, and Gabriel called me, and he's like, 'Mom, he's gone.' And I'm like, 'What?'' she added. Janelle previously revealed that she and the rest of the family members had tried to offer Garrison help amid his alcohol struggles. However, something 'got to him,' and he was unable to pull himself out of his addiction. Meanwhile, Janelle and Kody's daughter Madison confessed that she was attempting to get her brother to move to North Carolina, which is where she and her husband, Caleb Brush, reside. 'I was trying to get him to move out here, and so every step that we get closer to it, we talked a lot about that,' she revealed in a confessional interview. She added that although they came 'close' to getting Garrison to make the move, he was 'too deep' into his struggles. Kody also opened up about the heartache he experienced following his son's death and how the former couple solidified the next steps. The family decided to open up about their son's death after Kody denied accusations he tried to 'rip off' his ex-wives in the sale of their Coyote Pass, AZ, land. Kody, who shot to fame while documenting his life with his multiple 'wives' in the hit TLC series, and his only remaining wife, Robyn, had gone in on the property purchase with the reality TV star's three other partners—Christine, Janelle, and Meri—in 2018 while they were all still together. Homebuilding Giant Is Forced To Slash Prices in Florida—as It Highlights Sunshine State's Housing Market Weak Link Florida Homeowners Are in Crisis. Lawmakers Want To Offer Tax Relief as a Solution Record Number of Homes Pile Up in Florida—Making 2 Major Cities Hot Markets for Buyers
