Brody Jenner joins ‘Keeping Up With the Kardashians’

Brody Jenner is joining “Keeping Up With the Kardashians.”

The son of Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner, patriarch of the Kardashian/Jenner clan, will be joining the E! series’ season along with brother Brandon Jenner and his wife, Leah, according to stepsister Khloe Kardashian.

“I’m always excited for each new season of Keeping Up with the Kardashians,” Kardashian wrote on her blog Monday. “But I’m especially excited for this upcoming season because you’re going to be seeing a lot more of the Kardashian/Jenner clan! My stepbrothers, Brody and Brandon, and Brandon’s wife Leah are going to be on the show much more, which means an even closer look into the inner-workings of my crazy, wonderful family! Get ready people!”

Allow us to shed some light on the very “Brady Bunch” Kardashian family tree right about now: The Kardashians — Kim Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian and Robert Kardashian — are children to former O.J. Simpson lawyer Robert Kardashian and Kris Jenner (née Houghton). She divorced Kardashian and married Bruce Jenner, who had Brandon and Sam Brody from a previous marriage to Linda Thompson. (He also has another son and daughter from his first marriage to Chrystie Crownover.) Kris Jenner and Bruce Jenner later had two daughters, Kylie and Kendall Jenner, who are also featured on the reality series and aim to carve out their own brand unaffiliated with their older, more famous stepsisters.

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To further complicate things: Khloe Kardashian is married to NBA player Lamar Odom of the L.A. Clippers, Kim Kardashian is still married to NBA player Kris Humphries and is having a a baby with rapper Kanye West, and Kourtney Kardashian has two kids, Mason and Penelope, with boyfriend Scott Disick. And Kylie Jenner is currently dating Will Smith’s son Jaden Smith. Got it? OK, now back to Brody, whose real name is Sam Brody...

Brody Jenner isn’t new to reality TV. He previously starred in MTV’s “The Hills,” in which he courted Lauren Conrad and later Kristin Cavallari and starred in his own short-lived series, “The Princes of Malibu.” He has also minimally appeared in early seasons of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians,” notably being called on by stepbro Robert Kardashian to babysit their half-sisters Kylie and Kendall Jenner.

He’s looking forward to “getting to know (his) extended family a little better,” according to the Associated Press.

Brandon Jenner and his wife, Leah, a musical duo, recently appeared on “Kourtney and Kim Take Miami,” one of the “Kardashian” spinoffs, to participate in a family dragon boat race in Miami.

Kim Kardashian hinted at potentially taking a backseat in the series and keep her baby private, so it isn’t too surprising that the show is beefing up its cast with new family members and new story lines. At the very least, it’s sobering to see the calmer, collected Jenners interact with their high-strung half-siblings.

Season 8 of the series kicks off in June.

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