‘Sister Wives’ star Christine Brown is defending herself and assuring fans she’s not the villain that the show– and the recent rant video she posted– are portraying her to be.
Fans have taken to social media recently to call Christine a villain and a bully, due to her behavior during the latest episodes of the show. Many felt Christine was being unwelcoming and mean to her former sister wives– Meri in particular. Those sentiments grew after Christine and her husband David Woolley posted a video to Instagram on Sunday in which they slammed Meri for talking about Christine behind her back, among other things.
In a follow-up video also posted on Sunday, Christine seemed to be regretting some of the things said in the video, causing her to try to explain her actions.
“This season, I may look like the villain to some, but I’m really just a woman learning to speak her truth after years of feeling unheard,” Christine wrote in the caption of her second video.
Christine also praised her husband David for helping her stand up for herself, something she says she didn’t do when she was married to Kody.
“Having David by my side, loving me, listening to me, and encouraging me to stand up for myself has changed everything,” Christine wrote. “I’m still learning, still growing, and finally realizing my voice matters. And yours does too!”
Criticism for Christine began after the second episode of Season 21 aired. During the episode, Christine met up with Meri and her other former sister wife, Janelle, to discuss their past. The women shared memories and looked through old photos, which eventually led to Meri suggesting the three of them recreate an old photo they took years ago while they were all married to Kody. Christine declined and got upset about the idea, stating the pic showed the “hierarchy of wives” in the family. (Christine was pictured at the bottom of the portrait.)
“I was just last,” she said. “I was put on the bottom, [in] the same clothes I used to wear with the long garments, always having to work everything out, and everything was so damn complicated.”
Meri argued that the three of them weren’t purposely posed to reflect the hierarchy of Kody’s wives. (As fans know, Meri was Kody’s first wife. He then married Janelle, followed by Christine. Kody eventually married his fourth wife, Robyn, who is the only wife that is still with Kody.)
“I don’t think any of us planned to be in the positions we were in in the photo,” Meri told Christine. “I know the photographer really wanted Christine to sit down because she was very pregnant at the time. It’s really unfortunate that it has caused those kinds of emotions for her and I feel bad for that.”
During Episode 3, Meri met with two of her friends and discussed Christine’s outrage about the photo. They sympathized with her feeling like “the basement wife,” but agreed that the feeling was not exclusive to Christine and the photo was not meant to represent any totem pole of wives. Meri also shared that she felt the most awkward when talking to Christine because of past comments where Christine allegedly said she “wouldn’t care if she ever spoke to [Meri] again.”
After Episode 3 aired, Christine and David took to Instagram to slam Meri for her discussion with her friends about the photo. She captioned her video, “I’m fuming and triggered about the last episode. This is totally uncut because I’m too mad!”
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Christine stated that she had been “mad for days” since watching the episode and went on to explain why she didn’t want to recreate the photo— something she says she didn’t get a chance to really explain on the show.
“Look, the deal is, when I didn’t want to recreate the photo, it’s because I felt like I was once again being put on the bottom,” she said. “I feel like I’m not even given the opportunity in the episode to talk about how I feel…”
David went on to slam Meri for talking about Christine behind her back, claiming that what she and her friends were saying was untrue and made them “look stupid.”
“It’s really amazing that [Meri] can have her posse talk s**t on you,” he said to Christine. “And that’s bulls**t, so if that’s the way it goes, then let us have our say on the whole deal, too.”
“[Meri] made a comment saying she’d like to have a relationship with the [other] kids [in the family], but last time I checked, one is still at home and the rest are all adults, so they can have their own relationships,” David added. “Sounds real familiar, like what Kody was claiming all the time too! So, if anybody’s acting like Kody– Meri, you’re acting like Kody.”
David accused Meri of blaming others for her lack of a relationship with the other kids and said that her “posse is feeding into [her] crap.”
Christine also accused her of ignoring “favoritism in [their] family” and “games that were played.”
She later explained that Janelle and Meri are no longer her family members.
“We’re not a unit!” she exclaimed. “We’re not a unit! Why would I want to be a unit with Meri and Janelle when I’m a unit with David?”
On Sunday, Christine took to Instagram again– this time without David– to explain her actions. She said that throughout this season, she’s been made to “look like a villain.”
“What I’ve seen and what I’ve tried to convey is a woman who’s learning to find herself, find peace, learning to find balance, learning how to stand up for herself,” she explained. “For years, I’ve had to keep it in, keep it all down and not really say how I’ve felt. Now, I’m married to David and he loves me and it’s the first time I’ve had support.”
“He listens to me and he supports me, and he’s so passionate about defending me,” Christine said of David. “It’s the first time for me to have support like this [and] it’s incredible to have a partner who really wants what’s best for me. That kind of support changes you.”
She said that having David by her side allows her to give herself more grace and said she appreciates the fans who are working with her as she learns to express herself.
“Sometimes, I get fired up and say things, then I sleep on it and think, ‘Oh, my God,’ and that changes my perspective, so I’m just trying to find balance in all of this craziness,” she said.
Many fans agreed that Christine deserves to feel supported and loved, but criticized her for her misplaced anger towards Meri and expressed concerns over David’s behavior in their first video.
“Your words here and what you displayed in your last video are incongruent,” one commenter wrote. “You don’t seem to have a problem extending grace for yourself. The bigger growth happens when you extend that same compassion and grace to the other women on the show who frankly did not deserve the s**t-talking you dished out yesterday. It was really shameful and disappointing. And David did you no favors [by] acting like a psycho.”
“An apology to Meri and taking down the other video would go farther,” another commenter shared. “The video yesterday made me really question your narrative these past few years. The show isn’t casting you as a villain, the video did. And David came across as a bully. I can respect you made a mistake– acknowledge it, make amends, heal, and move forward. Just because someone isn’t on your ‘side’ doesn’t mean they are always [against you.]”
“Sister Wives” airs Sundays on TLC.
Watch Christine’s “apology” video below.
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(Photos: TLC; Instagram)
I have never been a fan of Meri and I actually started liking Christine after she left Kody BEFORE she got with David. Listen I am happy that Christine has David to love her and give her support. But Meri and her friends “talking shit behind Christine’s back” is laughable. They are on A REALITY SHOW. They are paid to talk behind each other’s backs. I am liking Christine less every episode and David and his know it all attitude gets on my last nerve.
The first meeting between Jenelle and Meri made me see Jenelle differently too because she was very clearly lying about conversations that Jenelle and Kody had regarding screwing over Meri. Anytime Meri tried to press her on it Jenelle wouod try and redirect the conversation “Yeah…I mean, isn’t it great that it’s all over now?”
Shockingly I actually am starting to like Meri now that she has dislodged herself from Kody and Robyn’s ass.
Meri is slim, trim and fit; she is creative and has great taste ;and has cultivated a diverse circle of friends. She is looking to expand her horizons by planning on living in new and challenging environments. Christine has moved into the subdivision with Kody 2.0 who is actually encouraging her insecurities.