In a recent interview, Kris Jenner decided to open up about Caitlyn Jenner's transition from male to female and what that experience was like for her. Kris and Caitlyn were married from April 1991 to March 2015.
Kris began by noting that these days, the two are doing well. She explained: "We're fine. Yeah, we're friends. And I see her when she's at a family thing so it's, you know, settled down a lot."
But things weren't always so easy for the two. Kris told Robin Roberts that at first, the idea of Caitlyn transitioning was scary. "I think it was a big shock. It's a scary thing to go through because you know nothing about it. It's a subject I never thought that I would ever have to directly deal with [or] confront [or] be understanding about. Something that I didn't you know, understand."
Caitlyn published a memoir in 2017 that didn't help. The book caused a serious rift in the family, with Kris' daughters Kim, Kourtney, and Khloé Kardashian all feeling angry because Caitlyn implied that Kris knew more about her gender identity than she initially shared.
Kim lashed out at Caitlyn after reading the book, telling her, "Mom’s obviously upset about it so … if those are your feelings those are your feelings, but mom feels a certain way about you and she has the right … I’m going to read it and tell you honestly … Talk bad about my mom, I come for you."
For a time, Kris and Caitlyn kept their interactions limited to the time they spent with the kids they share, Kendall and Kylie Jenner. In 2018 a source told People: "Kris and Caitlyn interact when they have to for the kids. It’s important for Kylie and Kendall. They can be cordial, but like most exes, they’re never going to be best friends."
Kris also reflected on the experience during a 2021 interview with The One, sharing, "None of us had been through anything like that before in a million years. And we didn't know how to process that — and it was a process, it was a shock, and then it was a reality, and it was something that we had to absorb and try to wrap our heads around and learn about."
She continued, "What I thought was interesting about that was, I'm sure many people who are fans of our show weren't expecting it either and were as confused at times and sad at times, happy at times, because there's so many different ways of looking at it."
