HGTV/CNBC/YouTube Longtime HGTV host Nicole Curtis and new host Marcus Lemonis
Business expert and media personality Marcus Lemonis is pumped to premiere his brand new HGTV show, “The Renovator” — but not everyone is thrilled about his new venture. As Lemonis was filming the first season of his show, set to debut on October 11, 2022, longtime HGTV host Nicole Curtis made it known that she does not agree with his approach to fixing up old homes, dissing the new host and the network on social media over his renovation tactics.
Nicole Curtis Shames Marcus Lemonis & HGTV in Instagram Post
Lemonis is CEO of Camping World and has spent years helping small businesses make big changes on CNBC’s “The Profit.” In a June 2021 press release announcing Lemonis’ new show, HGTV said “he’ll help homeowners fix their most valuable personal asset — their home. In each one-hour episode, he will rescue frustrated families who have no idea where to begin to renovate a house that no longer meets their needs.”
As Lemonis began filming the first season of “The Renovator,” he periodically posted sneak peeks of the projects on social media. One post caught the attention of Curtis, whose expertise is restoring old homes on her “Rehab Addict” series and its spinoff shows.
On February 16, Lemonis shared a brief video of himself taking a sledgehammer to knotty pine cabinets in one of the homes he was renovating. He wrote, “Tell me how many hours it took to demolish this kitchen. Use #TheRenovator #BTS @hgtv”
Curtis, whose three-episode “Rehab Addict Lake House Rescue” special will air on HGTV in November, quickly jumped on the post to comment, appalled that Lemonis was destroying instead of restoring the wood.
“This is the saddest thing @hgtv,” Curtis wrote, adding a crying emoji and then addressing Lemonis directly. “Not cool -been a fan of yours forever, but this is not your expertise and you are destroying historic knotty pine”
After Curtis commented again, suggesting he send her a direct message, Lemonis replied, “rotted with mold in the room. How’s that judgement free New Years resolution going?”
“You could dm me and we can chat or we can do this,” Curtis replied. “If it was rotted, why the sledge”
A fan named Lisa jumped into the fray, writing to Curtis, “it would be more helpful to offer your expertise, not judgement. I think it’s amazing how much you save but even you can’t salvage mold ridden rotted pine.”
To that comment, Curtis responded, “come on -if those are rotted -I’m 25…and we definitely offered our help.” Curtis added several emojis for emphasis, including a crying-laughing emoji and three applause emojis.
Fans Flood Marcus Lemonis’ Post to Echo Nicole Curtis’ Critique
Marcus Lemonis/YouTubeMarcus Lemonis, host of HGTV’s “The Renovator”
Many fans agreed with Curtis’ critique, piling on in the comment section to defend her and slam Lemonis’ demolition tactics.
One person wrote, “@detroitdesign – I couldn’t agree more. Makes my heart hurt to see the destruction and if they didn’t want the cabinets they could have carefully removed and sold to an architectural warehouse. This is one of the biggest problems with people who don’t know what they are doing. They destroy with no heart.”
“This hurts to watch,” another fan wrote. “Please make HGTV stop encouraging such destructive TV.”
When someone wrote, “Omg that knotty pine… that is criminal,” Lemonis replied, “rotted.”
Another wrote, “Funny…. I don’t see mold or rot anywhere, and as an architectural historian I’m pretty well versed in spotting those. But silly me, what do @detroitdesign and I know? In all my years I’ve never had to sledge out rotten wood, but maybe this is some magical form….”
Meanwhile, a man whose Instagram profile shows that he restores old homes weighed in, taking issue with Lemonis clapping back at Curtis for judging him.
“@marcuslemonis Uncalled for! Stating that you could have done something differently is NOT judgement,” the man wrote. “It’s speaking up and speaking out. People attack preservationists like this all the time and all we’re trying to do is teach people the value of what they destroy in hopes that needless destruction stops happening.”
Some fans also called out Lemonis for not putting safety first, complaining that he should have been in protective gear for the demolition if the room truly had mold issues.
One person wrote, “wow moldy wood. Probably should have worn proper ppe for removal then…smh”
Another commented, “You keep saying ‘it was moldy.’ If it was so bad, where is your respirator? As a contractor you should know the difference between mold that is cosmetic and mold that is serious.”
Multiple HGTV hosts have faced steep fines from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for featuring unsafe renovation practices during their shows. There are strict governmental rules around protecting against lead contamination during demolition. In April, “Good Bones” host Mina Starsiak Hawk and her company, Two Chicks and a Hammer, settled the EPA’s lawsuit against them by agreeing to pay $40,000 in fines and record public service announcements for the EPA.
Fines are probably the last thing Lemonis is worried about, however. As “The Renovator” debuts, he becomes HGTV’s wealthiest host, with an estimated net worth of $500 million.