With the new series of Sister Wives chronicling the breakdown of Kody and Meri Brown’s marriage, many viewers will be curious about the couple’s child, Leon. As an adult living outside of the polygamist Brown family home in Flagstaff, Arizona, Leon’s role in the show has taken a step back in comparison to earlier years.
Recently, it was announced that Leon had married longtime beau Audrey Kriss in a ceremony last year, with reports of the wedding only just coming to the surface. Leon has not publicly commented on the wedding, but it has been widely reported that his parents were not in attendance.
Who is Leon Brown?
Leon Brown was born on July 29th, 1995, as the only child of Meri and Kody Brown. At the time, Kody Brown had three wives – Meri (married 1990), Janelle (married 1993), and Christine (married 1994). Kody later married Robyn Brown in 2014, and Leon has a total of 15 siblings across Kody’s four marriages.
At the time of Leon’s birth, their mother Meri was Kody’s only legal wife, due to bigamy laws in the U.S. The rest were referred to as spiritual unions, as they were non-legally binding. When Kody started a relationship with Robyn Brown, Kody decided to legally wed Robyn in order to adopt her children. Kody asked Meri for a divorce, which she obliged, and transitioned to a spiritual union. Meri and Kody ended their union in January 2023, following a split from Janelle in 2022 and Christine in 2021.
Leon spent their childhood in Utah, until the Brown family moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, in their teenage years. In 2010, the year Leon turned 15, the first episode of Sister Wives aired, bringing the Brown family into global notoriety. Later, Leon graduated with a master’s degree in social work from Loyola University, Chicago, in 2020.
Back in 2017, Leon initially came out as a lesbian to their family, realizing their feelings after developing a crush on a college classmate, which served as a major storyline on the show. In 2022, Leon came out as “incredibly genderqueer, trans, and unapologetic” on their Instagram page. Leon also announced that they use they/them pronouns, and announced that they had changed their name to Leon – or Leo for short.
Leon has been in a relationship with Audrey Kriss, who also uses they/them pronouns, since 2017. In 2019, the couple got engaged, as announced by Leon on Instagram. In August 2023, it was reported that Leon and Audrey secretly wed in October 2022. According to In Touch, the nuptials took place in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where the couple are said to currently reside. Neither Leon nor Meri were said to be in attendance, in a “self-solomized” ceremony without a judge or officiant required to be present.
Are Kody and Meri Brown supportive of Leon?
When Leon came out as transgender on Instagram in 2022, they wrote in their coming out post that the announcement was “to let folks in, and also to set some boundaries.”
Leon was clear about where their relationships with friends and family stand after their transition. “If you choose not to use my correct name or pronouns, then you do not need to speak to or about me. My name is Leo or Leon, and my pronouns are they/them. Please only refer to me in that way,” they wrote.
When Leon came out as a lesbian prior to transitioning, Leon opened up about coming to terms with their sexuality while growing up in the Mormon faith. However, they said that their parents did not share any homophobic beliefs. “I remember being in church and they talked about how being gay was bad, but none of that came from my parents. It was from the church and the people I was around,” they said.
As discussed on Sister Wives, Meri was taken aback by Leon coming out as gay. However, Meri has been vocally supportive of her child on social media, particularly after Leon came out as trans. As documented by People, Meri paid tribute to Leon and Audrey on Transgender Day of Visibility on her Instagram story, writing “I see you! I love you! I got you!”, with a sticker reading “protect trans kids.”
As for Kody, things are a little less clear. When Leon came out as a lesbian, Kody said “My job as a dad is to love and respect and not to judge. I’m just really, glad, [Leon], that you’re comfortable owning your truth, and that you’re safe with us!”
As for Kody’s views on Leon’s transition, Kody has never publicly commented on the matter. It has been speculated that Kody is less supportive of Leon being transgender, but this has never been confirmed. What is known, however, is that Leon has a strained relationship with Paedon Brown, their half-brother through Kody’s marriage to Christine Brown. Paedon’s endorsement of Donald Trump for President, as well as the Blue Lives Matter movement has been a sore spot for the two.
Speaking earlier this year, Leon’s half-sister Gwendlyn said that Leon had separated themself from the Brown family since coming out as transgender. “It’s not that they’re not fitting in,” Gwendlyn added, “it’s that they have chosen to go to people who they can trust, and it’s just they found a safer community for themselves.”
In the same video, Kody said that his children “Leon, Paedon, Dayton, Aurora, Breanna, they don’t fit in well with the rest of the family,” although he did not specify his own relationship with them as an individual, or if Kody’s views on Leon’s gender was a factor.
Neither Kody nor Meri Brown have commented on their relationship with their child in the lead-up to their wedding, but supposed tensions could be why they allegedly did not attend Leon’s wedding – if true. However, both Kody and Meri’s recent comments occurred in 2023, and Leon got married in 2022, so this could be an indicator on where their relationships stand as a whole.
