It’s been a whirlwind year of ups and downs for Jonathan Knight, but the future looks incredibly bright now. One year ago, in June 2025, Knight confirmed that his HGTV series “Farmhouse Fixer” was among those not renewed by the network, leaving fans stunned.
At the time, Knight wrote via social media that he was “so sad to say HGTV has decided not to move forward with another season” and that he was “still processing the reasons that led to their decision.” But days before the premiere of his new show, a reboot of the ambush home makeover series “Crashers,” Knight admits he may not have been able to continue “Farmhouse Fixer” even if it had been renewed.
Jonathan Knight Says ‘Farmhouse Fixer’ Was the ‘Greatest’ Show
HGTVKnight adored filming “Farmhouse Fixer” with his design pal Kristina Crestin. But in an interview with People published on June 2, he admitted that renovating century-old homes near his own Massachusetts farmhouse while also juggling his demanding NKOTB concert schedule had grown nearly impossible.
“‘Farmhouse’ was the greatest show,” he told the outlet. “That was my baby. But on ‘Farmhouse,’ it took 16 months for me to do the last season. It was so much time.”
“We’d go on tour and I’d have to fly home on my days off and finish filming, and then fly right back to some city for a show,” he continued. “As fun as it was, it was just getting to be a lot. And finally, it got to be where it was unsustainable for me.”
Now that he’s working on a fresh new show in which he surprises unsuspecting homeowners with the chance to makeover a space in their houses, Knight told People he’s hoping fans will enjoy something new while still revisiting the old friend they have in “Farmhouse Fixer.”
“I think of ‘Farmhouse’ like a classic movie,” he said. “It’s out there, you can watch it on streaming anytime you want.”
Jonathan Knight Has Already Fallen in Love with the ‘Crashers’ Format
In “Crashers,” which originally aired from 2008 to 2011, Knight has to approach strangers in public and ask them to let him and his team crash at their house for 72-hours as they renovate one unusable or outdated space in the home. Knight has filmed 13 episodes for the first season, per HGTV.
“We definitely have a lot of the elements of the (old) ‘Crashers,’ but it’s revamped,” he explained to People, noting that he loved bingeing the original series and couldn’t wait to give it a new look and feel. “It’s a lot more updated and different and fresh. When you have a great show, it’s fun to bring it back, but you have to do it right.”
In May, while appearing on fellow HGTV star (and former “Kitchen Crashers” host) Alison Victoria’s “Pap Smear” podcast, he said filming the show “was such a dream.”
“Like, I still get to do what I love,” he told her. “We can still change people’s lives, you know. I can still see the happiness and the sparkle in people’s eyes when they walk back into the space.”
“When we wrapped on the pilot, I was just like, ‘Alright, I am so in,'” he added. “I loved it.”
Filming did not come without its challenges, though. The renovations do take far less time, but Knight is still on the road a lot, juggling NKOTB’s schedule, and missing his husband of nearly four years, Harley Rodriguez, who’s been holding down the fort back home.
“He’s the most understanding guy,” Knight told People. “I think our relationship works because he’s not going to hold me back from what I want to do. And I’ve never held him back from things he wants to do. It sucks not being together, but we call a ridiculous amount of times each day. I call him probably eight times a day and be, like, ‘Where are you?’ because I want to picture where he is in the house and just have that sense of home. And he’s like, ‘Oh, I’m in the kitchen or I’m in the garage.’ And I’m, like, ‘Okay, I’ll call you later.'”
HGTV’s new “Crashers” premieres on June 8 at 9 p.m. Eastern time.
