‘Sister Wives’ star Madison Brush reveals emotional struggle with father Kody Brown — and it hit us hard
It seems like Madison Brush wants to fix her estranged relationship with her father, Kody Brown. During the premiere episode of 'Sister Wives' Season 20, which saw the light of day on September 28, Brush, the daughter of Janelle Brown and Kody, broke down in tears while speaking about their current bond and revealed that she was no longer on speaking terms with the Brown family patriarch. “I might have to step out. You want your dad to show up. You want reconciliation. I know I played a part, and I’m angry because I’m still trying to learn to not be disappointed," Brush said, during a private confessional, according to E! News.
Last November, two years after Janelle and Kody pulled the plug on their marriage in 2022, Brush had admitted that she cut off her ties with her father due to his lack of boundaries in their fractured family. In a private confessional, Brush further elaborated, “I’m still learning how to just see him for who he is. I’m trying to understand that maybe he didn’t know how to show up. He might be hurting."
Speaking of Kody, who is the father of 18 children between Robyn Brown and his three ex-wives, Christine Brown, Meri Brown, and Janelle, mentioned in the episode that he would “really love” to have a better relationship with the children of his ex-wives. “I literally just compartmentalized the heartbreak. I don’t know what to do. I would love healing with every single person I know," Kody said in a separate confessional during the show. Although the TLC star isn't ready to make any compromises to get to that point. Then, Kody continued, “We’re at an impasse here. Because this healing can only happen on their terms only.”
In the past, Brush has candidly spoken about her complicated relationship with her father. During an episode of her 'The Authentic Society' podcast, which was released on November 11, 2024, Brush shed light on her relationship with her family. “I have no contact with some of my family, and it’s because of stuff that has happened. He doesn’t have any respect for boundaries, and you have to play by his rules, and I just don’t care to do that. My dad would get very angry when I would—I’m a straight shooter. You ask me a question, I’m going to tell you what I think. And he would get very angry when I would be like, ‘I don’t know why you’re surprised here.’ And so that was one of the reasons that I went no contact because it was like, he didn’t like a mirror being held up," Brush said, per E! News.
At that point, Brush mentioned that her father didn't agree with her views in relation to the feelings of her and her siblings. Later in the episode, Brush explained, “There was a lot of anger and he’d be like, ‘That’s not true!’ and I’m like, ‘It is true. I know this firsthand.’” Similarly, Brush stated that she doesn't care about people's opinions on her relationship with her dad. Brush expressed, “I always get messages from people who are like, ‘You should just forgive your dad and respect him.' And I’m like, ‘I don’t think you know what you’re talking about because your experience with your dad could be very different than my experience with my dad.’”