by Eric Blume
And now for something completely different. Not sure how many folks have caught it yet, but a few weeks ago, HGTV, center of home improvement and home selling shows, launched a new program called Celebrity IOU. The concept is that a famous person treats a loved one to a home/property makeover, working in conjunction with the network’s twin “Property Brothers” Jonathan and Drew Scott.
Usually we wouldn’t write about this here at TFE, but HGTV got some really big guns for their first three episodes, all recent Oscar winners or nominees. Episode one featured Brad Pitt; episode two was Melissa McCarthy; and episode three, Viola Davis...
The show is your typical home makeover show (opening set-up, middle block all renovation, then the reveal), but this version is a low-key and fun way to see Pitt, McCarthy, and Davis off-the-clock and “being themselves” in a world out of their usual element. I’d guess that each celebrity gave the production team about three two-hour windows: a stretch for shooting each of the three sections of the show (the middle section has each actor swinging some hammers to demolish things, and then quickly gets them out of harm’s way). They’re really there for the set-up and the reveal.
Brad Pitt comes off the best of the three. He works with the brothers Scott to redesign the backyard bungalow of his makeup artist of almost thirty years, Jean Black. Pitt’s hangdog charm propels the episode, and you believe his love for this woman who has taken care of him for decades. Pitt smartly defers to the Scott brothers, and is casually awed by their talent. And he never feels like he’s straining or “acting like a regular person” for the cameras. He comes across exactly how you hope he would: easy-going, intelligent, and kind. One can only imagine the work it must take for one of the biggest stars in the world to maintain some sort of connection to reality, but you couldn’t tell that with how Pitt seems in this show. And his relationship with Black is so sweet and touching, made better by the fact that Black isn’t a great camera subject (she’s awkward on camera, in a terrific way), and you can see him take care of her in the world he knows so well. There’s a moment at the very end, when Pitt hilariously makes her do line readings for a crime show, that is so genuine, it’s actually moving.
Melissa McCarthy proves to be great fun in her episode. As expected, and as you want it to be, she’s playing to camera and for camera more than Pitt. She’s “on” as a comedian throughout the episode, but very aware when she’s on. And she lets her guard down, too. She works with the Scotts to develop a quick rapport while they renovate her aunt and uncle’s house in Chicago, alongside her cousin. You feel McCarthy’s deep connection with her family…they’re weird and quirky together and have a natural rhythm that’s groovy to watch. At the end, she fully credits the Scott brothers for doing all the work, and her generosity feels honest and without false humility.
The Viola Davis episode is the one that works the least. Viola Davis is without doubt (pardon the pun) a great dramatic actress, filled with depth and possessed with enviable technique. Going to the house of her former Julliard roommate on a reality show might be a way to see her in a wonderful new light. But I guess lightness is not Davis’ thing, and you know what, that’s cool, she’s crazy talented. Here, though, she seems like she’s always performing a bit (as does her Julliard friend), and the episode isn’t as much fun.
As for the Scott brothers, they take extraordinarily good care of these stars, building up their stories for them when they’re not around, propping them up, easing them into a foreign world, and remaining very light on their feet by adjusting to each personality. There’s a reason these guys have been the star talent of that network for the last decade.
Have you seen Celebrity IOU? Is it too far out of a movie-loving reality for you? Celebrity IOU airs Monday evenings on HGTV. Michael Bublé and Rebel Wilson are up next.