Biggest HGTV Scandals of All Time: Tarek El Moussa’s On-Set Feud With Christina Haack and More

Credit: Stewart Cook/Shutterstock

Biggest HGTV Scandals of All Time: Tarek El Moussa's On-Set Feud With Christina Haack and More

Crafting controversies! Tarek El Moussa, Christina Haack and more HGTV stars have raised eyebrows while appearing on the network. The Flip or Flop alums started hosting their series in 2013 while they were still married, and their time on the show didn’t come without a few roadblocks. Shortly before the duo called it quits, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department was called to their home in May 2016 following an alleged dispute. Several months later, the twosome announced their separation. “Like many couples, we have had challenges in our marriage,” they noted in a December 2016 statement. “We had an unfortunate misunderstanding about six months ago and the police were called to our house in an abundance of caution. There was no violence and no charges were filed. We chose to get counseling to sort out our relationship. Together, we have decided to separate while we reevaluate the future of our marriage.” [sendtonews type="float" key="xlF86EqxL2-2832653-14453"] Despite finalizing their divorce in 2018, El Moussa and the Christina on the Coast star continued to work together on their original HGTV series. However, things took another tough turn for the former couple in July 2021, when reports surfaced that the Flipping 101 personality got into a shouting match with Haack on set. “It’s called winning,” El Moussa allegedly told his ex, seemingly comparing her to his second wife, Heather Rae Young. “The world knows you’re crazy!” Though the verbal argument raised eyebrows among fans, the Selling Sunset star reassured Us Weekly in September 2021 that things had calmed down between El Moussa and the Wellness Remodel author. “People have to remember they’re coworkers and they are exes,” Young explained at the time. “There’s going to be little frustrations here and there. … It’s blown over, and everyone’s moving on. Like I said, it’s just exes that work together, and things come up sometimes.” Less than one year later, the California natives confirmed that Flip or Flop was ending after 10 seasons. “They mutually agreed they didn’t want to go forth with another season,” a source exclusively revealed in March 2022. “They’re both very busy working on their own projects and have a lot going on in their personal lives.” Filming the series “took up a lot of time,” the insider added, noting that the pair “weren’t the happiest on set together” in recent months. The Flip or Flop controversies go beyond cohost feuds — keep scrolling for a look at some of the biggest HGTV scandals through the years: [podcast_block]

Credit: Stewart Cook/Shutterstock

Biggest HGTV Scandals of All Time: Tarek El Moussa's On-Set Feud With Christina Haack and More

Crafting controversies! Tarek El Moussa, Christina Haack and more HGTV stars have raised eyebrows while appearing on the network. The Flip or Flop alums started hosting their series in 2013 while they were still married, and their time on the show didn’t come without a few roadblocks. Shortly before the duo called it quits, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department was called to their home in May 2016 following an alleged dispute. Several months later, the twosome announced their separation. “Like many couples, we have had challenges in our marriage,” they noted in a December 2016 statement. “We had an unfortunate misunderstanding about six months ago and the police were called to our house in an abundance of caution. There was no violence and no charges were filed. We chose to get counseling to sort out our relationship. Together, we have decided to separate while we reevaluate the future of our marriage.” [sendtonews type="float" key="xlF86EqxL2-2832653-14453"] Despite finalizing their divorce in 2018, El Moussa and the Christina on the Coast star continued to work together on their original HGTV series. However, things took another tough turn for the former couple in July 2021, when reports surfaced that the Flipping 101 personality got into a shouting match with Haack on set. “It’s called winning,” El Moussa allegedly told his ex, seemingly comparing her to his second wife, Heather Rae Young. “The world knows you’re crazy!” Though the verbal argument raised eyebrows among fans, the Selling Sunset star reassured Us Weekly in September 2021 that things had calmed down between El Moussa and the Wellness Remodel author. “People have to remember they’re coworkers and they are exes,” Young explained at the time. “There’s going to be little frustrations here and there. … It’s blown over, and everyone’s moving on. Like I said, it’s just exes that work together, and things come up sometimes.” Less than one year later, the California natives confirmed that Flip or Flop was ending after 10 seasons. “They mutually agreed they didn’t want to go forth with another season,” a source exclusively revealed in March 2022. “They’re both very busy working on their own projects and have a lot going on in their personal lives.” Filming the series “took up a lot of time,” the insider added, noting that the pair “weren’t the happiest on set together” in recent months. The Flip or Flop controversies go beyond cohost feuds — keep scrolling for a look at some of the biggest HGTV scandals through the years: [podcast_block]

Credit: Vince Flores/startraksphoto.com

Tarek and Christina's On-Set Feud

In July 2021, the exes reportedly got into a spat on the set of Flip or Flop, with El Moussa shouting insults at Haack, calling her “crazy” and a “washed-up loser.” Following the incident, the Tarek’s Flip Side star told E!’s Daily Pop that “it can be stressful working with an ex,” adding in September 2021, “We did have an incident where some choice words were said on both sides and I’m sure we both wish the whole thing never happened. … The whole thing just sucked for everyone involved.”

The former couple revealed the following year that their shared HGTV series was ending after 10 seasons.

Credit: Catherine Nguyen Photography/HGTV

'Love It Or List It' Lawsuit

Homeowners Deanna Murphy and Tim Sullivan, who participated in a 2015 episode of the renovation series, sued the production company Big Coat TV and one of the contractors who worked on their house in April 2016. The couple alleged at the time that funds weren’t used properly, leading to subpar results, and that they weren’t shown homes in their area by a licensed real estate agent. In response, Big Coat TV claimed that they intended “to vigorously defend what [they] consider to be false allegations.” The suit was settled confidentially in 2017.

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Jonathan Scott Bar Fight

In 2016, security footage surfaced of the Property Brothers personality allegedly getting involved in an altercation at a local bar in Fargo, North Dakota, and shows him being placed in a chokehold by a bouncer. However, the city attorney later stated, “Upon review of the police report and associated evidence, I found there was not sufficient evidence to establish a violation of either simple assault or disorderly conduct.” Scott did not face charges.

Credit: Jennifer Boomer/HGTV

Chip and Joanna Accused of Being Anti-LGBTQ

After the Fixer Upper duo attended a church led by a pastor who had vocally opposed same-sex marriage, rumors about their own beliefs began to spread. While speaking to The Hollywood Reporter in June 2021, Joanna reflected on the supposed controversy. “Sometimes I’m like, ‘Can I just make a statement?’” she said. “The accusations that get thrown at you, like you’re a racist or you don’t like people in the LGBTQ community, that’s the stuff that really eats my lunch — because it’s so far from who we really are. That’s the stuff that keeps me up.” Chip, for his part, defended the level of diversity within the pair’s businesses, adding, “One of our biggest passions is making this group represent all people.”

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'Windy City Rehab' Drama

In December 2020, Windy City Rehab designer and host Alison Victoria and former cohost Donovan Eckhardt were sued by a couple who alleged that their renovation on the show wasn’t up to snuff. Eckhardt left the series abruptly amid the drama, while Victoria received a phone call about a second lawsuit during the season 2 finale. One month before the series was ordered for an extension, Eckhardt filed a lawsuit of his own against Discovery Inc. alleging defamation and emotional distress, but his cohost was not named in the docs.  

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'Flip or Flop' Lawsuit

Before their series came to an end, El Moussa and Haack were sued for $37,800 in alleged unpaid wages by a North Carolina man who claimed he was hired to help the twosome scout homes to expand their house-flipping business across the U.S. The 2017 lawsuit claims that the pair never paid the man for his work, despite being promised a significant commission for each home. The TV personalities did not comment on the allegations at the time. 

Credit: HGTV

Is 'House Hunters' Fake?

In 2012, a blog post written by an alleged former House Hunters participant outlined the reality show experience — and claimed it wasn’t all that real. “[Producers] just wanted to emphasize how our home was too small and we needed a bigger one desperately. It wasn’t true, but it was a smaller house than the one we bought so I went with it,” the author alleged. “They didn’t even ‘accept’ us being a subject for the show until we closed on the house we were buying.” The writer also claimed that the houses she and her family were shown on the episode “weren’t even for sale.”

In a statement to EW at the time, the network noted, “To maximize production time, we seek out families who are pretty far along in the process.”

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Chip Gets Sued

Chip’s former business partners Richard Clark and John Lewis claimed that they were encouraged to sell their shares in Magnolia Realty after the crafty couple signed their HGTV contract. In 2017, the men filed a lawsuit against Chip alleging fraud and demanding $1 million in damages, arguing through attorney David Tekell, “Chip Gaines conspired to eliminate his business partners — notwithstanding their longstanding friendship — to ensure that he alone would profit from Magnolia Realty's association with Fixer Upper.”

The TV personality seemingly addressed the claims via Twitter, writing, “Fyi: I've had the same cell # 15 yrs … same email for 20 yrs. No one called or emailed? 4 years later, 'friends' reach out via lawsuit. Humm.”

A judge dismissed the suit in February 2020.

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Cheating on 'Ellen's Design Challenge'

The short-lived competition series sparked controversy in 2015 after season 1 winner Tim McLellan was accused of plagiarizing his seemingly innovative table idea from European designer Simon Schacht. Runner-up Katie Stout was later crowned the champ and given the $100,000 prize during a taped segment on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.  

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'House Full of Spouses' Canceled

After its highly debated pilot aired in 2019, the reality series — which featured a husband and wife duo who help renovate homes for Mormon and polygamist families — appeared to be pulled from the network. Its one and only episode is not available to watch on demand.