Sister Wives Inaccurately Depicted The Impact Of Meri's Catfish Scandal On Her Marriage With Kody

In 2015, the Brown family was rocked to its very foundations when Meri Brown's catfish scandal was exposed. Meri, who was patriarch Kody Brown's first wife, struck up an online relationship with someone she believed to be a man named Sam Cooper. Their exchange of messages and photos continued for months until Meri discovered that Sam was actually Jackie Overton, a woman posing as a man.

During Season 9 of "Sister Wives," TLC viewers witnessed the aftermath of the incident, and, according to Meri herself, the show inaccurately depicted its impact as detrimental to her marriage with Kody. When reflecting on the situation eight years later in a conversation with People, Meri clarified, "A lot of people look at the catfishing as a defining moment of the demise of our marriage or even the family, and it's really not, because there [were] a lot of things that were happening for years prior."

While the online affair might not have broken up Kody and Meri's marriage, it most definitely pushed them farther apart from each other. "From [the catfishing] experience, Meri and I sort of saw our marriage just dissolve," Kody shared in an episode of "Sister Wives" (via People). However, while Meri and Kody agree that the incident didn't break them, they hold differing opinions about the nature of the situation.

Meri and Kody Brown finalized their separation in January 2023 but their disagreements persist. In particular, the former couple still butts heads over who's to blame for Meri's catfishing incident. In the show's 2023 special, "Sister Wives Look Back: How We Started," Kody expressed frustration, stating, "The experience of Meri's catfish makes me extremely angry [because] she's in full denial of what actually happened." He was referring to Meri's insistence on being the victim (via People).

When speaking to People in 2023, Meri still adamantly denied having an affair, despite the release of explicit photos and messages she had sent to "Sam Cooper" in 2015. Throughout the show, Meri continuously questioned Jackie Overton's motives in the catfishing saga, conveniently overlooking the fact that what she had done to Kody is considered by many to be cheating.

In a Season 9 confessional, Meri tearfully recounted being deceived by "Sam," explaining, "He was just saying all the right things; being very kind, very compassionate, and understanding." While the reality star may not acknowledge the nature of her actions as infidelity, the underlying question remains: What led Meri to find herself in such a situation in the first place?

While they may differ in their views on cheating, both Meri and Kody Brown acknowledged the unresolved issues that existed before the catfishing incident. During "Sister Wives Look Back: How We Started," Kody recalled the strained relationship he had with Meri from the very beginning, claiming that she was the reason he pursued polygamy in the first place. "Divorce wasn't an option in my world, [so] just diluting the relationship was the only option I had. I'm going, 'Hey, I need another wife because I can't spend all my time with [Meri],'" the controversial reality star claimed (via People).

Kody previously touched upon the topic during a Season 17 "Sister Wives: One on One" special, informing host Sukanya Krishnan that he thought bringing in Janelle Brown, his second wife, would help Meri get over her insecurities (via Today). However, Meri's jealousy raged on, and she ultimately never got along with either Janelle or Christine Brown. When Robyn Brown, Kody's only remaining wife, entered the family in 2010, Meri's relationship with Kody continued going further downhill.

In September 2014, just months before the catfishing incident started, Kody legally divorced Meri to marry Robyn so he could adopt three of her children from a previous marriage. Although Meri never explicitly said this was her tipping point, it conveniently fits the catfishing timeline. Despite Meri's subsequent attempts at reconciliation, Kody brutally ended their marriage, sparing no feelings in the process.