Jonathan Knight Opens Up About New HGTV Show, Performing with NKOTB and Why 'I Don't Say No Anymore' (Exclusive)

Sonal DuttTue, June 2, 2026 at 8:00 PM UTC

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Jonathan Knight's new HGTV show Crashers features 72-hour surprise room renovations for unsuspecting homeowners

Knight says his previous series, Farmhouse Fixer, ended because the lengthy production schedule and conflicts with New Kids on the Block's touring commitments "became too much"

The fast-paced Crashers format challenges Knight's skills and offers emotional reveals that he says will resonate with families

Jonathan Knight has spent years restoring centuries-old farmhouses on television, but his latest show is putting him on a much tighter deadline.

The New Kids on the Block singer returns to HGTV as the host of Crashers, a modern revival of the network's popular ambush-style renovation franchise that originally aired from 2008 to 2011.

The series (premiering June 8 on HGTV) follows Knight as he surprises unsuspecting homeowners in public places — from hardware stores to furniture showrooms — and offers them a free room renovation with one big catch: They must leave their homes immediately, surrender full creative control and trust him and his team to fully reimagine their space in just 72 hours. (Watch the exclusive trailer above.)

For Knight, the reboot feels like a natural next step after the conclusion of Farmhouse Fixer, the HGTV series that followed him and design partner Kristina Crestin as they carefully and painstakingly restored historic homes in his native New England. The star announced in June 2025 that the series would not be returning, amid a series of high-profile cancelations at the network.

Jonathan Knight on "Crashers"
Credit: HGTV

While he remains proud of the series, he admits the format had become increasingly difficult to sustain.

“Farmhouse was the greatest show. That was my baby,” says Knight, who spoke to PEOPLE in May during a visit to the Sacramento set of Crashers. “But on Farmhouse, it took 16 months for me to do the last season. It was so much time.”

The home design star says the lengthy production schedule, coupled with NKOTB's performance commitments, eventually became too much.

“We'd go on tour and I'd have to fly home [to Boston] on my days off and finish filming, and then fly right back to some city for a show,” he says. “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."

Rather than stretching the show's concept beyond its original scope, Knight knew he had to let the show go and look toward the next opportunity. “I think of Farmhouse like a classic movie,” he says. “It's out there, you can watch it on streaming anytime you want.”

Crashers offered a different kind of challenge. Unlike Farmhouse Fixer, which often focused on entire homes, the new series concentrates on a single problematic space, dramatically reducing the scope while increasing the intensity and impact. Those specific parameters appealed to Knight immediately.

“I love this one because I can crash anything,” he says. “It could be a backyard. It could be a kitchen. It could be a bathroom, a bedroom.”

Before filming began, Knight says he started by "bingeing" the original shows to see "what I was getting myself into."

“I watched a whole bunch of [the old series] to prepare for this,” says Knight. “It was just such a great show. And I was like, 'Wow, I have to fill these people's shoes?' So I really studied, 'How does it work? What's this going to be? Can I do this right?'"

Although the concept may be a reboot, the new version won't simply recreate the past. “We definitely have a lot of the elements of the [old] Crashers, but it's revamped,” Knight says. “It's a lot more and different and fresh. When you have a great show, it's fun to bring it back, but you have to do it right.”

The fast-paced nature of the show has tested a different set of his skills, he says. “I am so lucky that I did Rock the Block for two seasons because I think that really prepared me for the chaos of Crashers,” Knight says of the HGTV competition series that pits hosts against each other to do full house makeovers with tight deadlines and high stakes. “We did a room a week on Rock the Block and now we're doing a space here on this show in three days. So I'm making things hard on myself!”

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Jonathan Knight on "Crashers"
Credit: HGTV

Knight says the three-day renovation deadline is "intense and really real," no matter what obstacles may get thrown his way.

The accelerated timeline often leads to last-minute pivots involving weather, inventory shortages, and logistical surprises. Knight recalls one renovation where heavy rain left machinery stuck in the mud, forcing the entire crew to grab shovels and finish the work by hand. "I was knee-deep in the mud with everyone. It was stressful but that's what I love, getting my hands in there. I'm not a sit-on-the-sides kind of person."

Despite the pressure and physical labor, he says the payoff is worth the long hours and labor.

“It's such a gift,” Knight says of the moment the finished space is revealed to the homeowners. “You're changing people's lives. I've [filmed] six episodes and all six couples have cried,” he says.

The emotional reactions are one reason Knight believes Crashers may connect with viewers in a different way than Farmhouse Fixer. While restoring historic properties was rewarding, he feels the new series tackles design issues that many Americans encounter every day.

"I'm going to get emotional now thinking about it, but it's such a simple act. If a kitchen doesn't work for a couple and their kids, and I can help make it better for their family, that means everything. Now every morning, every evening, they are happy in that space and it's become the hub of a family. Just the joy on their faces, it makes my heart melt and it makes all the chaos and the 14-hour days so worth it."

NKOTB's Donnie Wahlberg, Danny Wood, Joey McIntyre, Jonathan Knight and Jordan Knight
Credit: Ethan Miller/Getty

It's a feeling, he says, that mirrors his life performing with the New Kids on the Block.

"When we're on tour and on a bus and not sleeping and the food is horrible, and I'm just like, 'I just want to be home.' And then I step on stage and see the joy we bring everybody and I'm like, 'Okay, today sucked up until now, but it's so worth it and I will go through it all again tomorrow.' So yeah, it's pretty special."

Jonathan Knight and Harley Rodriguez
Credit: Paul Marotta/Getty

Although the new show ramps up the speed of production, it still means Knight is on the road for extended periods of time. Unlike Farmhouse Fixer, which often filmed in cities within driving distance of his farm outside Boston, the new series has required spending weeks in locations in California and Colorado, and time away from friends, family and his husband Harley Rodriguez.

"He's the most understanding guy," says Knight of Rodriguez, whom he married in 2022. "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.'"

Harley Rodriguez and Jonthan Knight
Credit: Harley Knight-Rodriguez/Instagram

Says Knight: "Just knowing that piece of home is there is everything. Before I left [for filming], we put out Ring cameras because I wanted to see the animals and all that stuff happening at my farm. So I'll now go on the Ring camera on my phone and he'll walk by with the dog and my heart just sings."

As Knight balances his home life with his HGTV return and the New Kids' revamped Las Vegas residency, he finds himself reflecting on an unexpected second act. At 57, he never imagined he would be hosting renovation shows while still performing for sold-out crowds.

And while he still loves performing with NKOTB, home renovation has become something uniquely personal. “I love music and I love being part of the band. It's really important to me. But if I'm being honest with myself now, New Kids is an eight on my scale of one to 10,” Knight says. “And this is a 10.”

Crashers premieres Monday, June 8, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV, and will stream the following day on HBO Max.

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”