Pandemic Affecting HGTV's Remodeling Shows

Binge watching has boosted some shows while the virus puts other productions on hold.

According to the Los Angeles Times, HGTV's reality remodeling shows are being affected in good and bad ways by the pandemic. Air dates for some have been pushed back and hosts now appear on screen via FaceTime. “Anything that was shooting is of course on stop-down right now,” said Loren Ruch, HGTV group senior vice president of production and development. “I would guess that’s somewhere in the 20-30 series range.”

HGTV has also pulled shows from its vault for retooling — “creating fun top-10 lists, or shows that have different components than when you saw them originally,” said Ruch, whose network expects to air 650 hours of new content in 2020.

For example, you can soon peek inside the 1921 Hancock Park home owned by Drew Scott, one-half of the “Property Brothers,” and his wife Linda Phan. There, you’ll find Scott filming himself on his iPhone or GoPro-style camera as he delivers pithy commentary about past episodes of “Property Brothers: Forever Home” playing on his computer.

Thanks to a drastically pared schedule, “I finally feel normal for once,” said [Tarek] El Moussa, when reached at the Costa Mesa home he shares with Heather Rae Young (a regular on Netflix’s docu-soap “Selling Sunset”). For example, the star canceled his in-person “Homemade Investor” real estate events, moving them to webinars.