Brad Pitt is a ‘true gentleman through and through’ according to 'The Property Brothers'
In their new HGTV series Celebrity IOU, Drew and Jonathan Scott get hands on with some of Hollywood’s biggest A-listers. While they shared a lot of laughs — “We almost couldn’t film because we were all laughing so hard,” Jonathan says about Melissa McCarthy — they also shared a lot of heart. “Michael Bublé says he's not a handy guy,” Drew tells Yahoo Entertainment. “But because this is giving back to his grandpa's nurse, the woman who took care of his grandpa for the last six years of his life, he wanted to make sure that he was all hands on transforming this house for her.” Throughout the series, the brothers help stars from Viola Davis to Rebel Wilson give back to people who have had a deep impact on their lives by surprising them with big home renovations. “All the stories are ... truly amazing and touching. When you watch Celebrity IOU, you will cry guaranteed,” says Drew. The first episode, which premieres tonight on HGTV, features Brad Pitt, who surprises his friend and makeup artist by making over her garage. What was Pitt like behind-the-scenes? “The very first day, Brad met every single person and had a moment with every single person,” Jonathan reveals. “And at the very end … he remembered every single person's name on the crew, the construction crew, the production crew … he was a true gentleman through and through.” Besides dishing on the celebrity gossip with Yahoo Entertainment, the brothers also shared tips on creative ways to manage life at home amidst the coronavirus pandemic. “There are lots of little things that you can do around the house just by getting creative thinking outside the box,” Drew says. One way Drew is getting creative is by going camping … right at home. “Growing up … we used to go camping all the time,” Drew says. “So we thought … a cool thing to do is transform one of your spaces into a campground.” Just grab your favorite pillows and blankets and bring the adventure right into your living room. Another creative idea they have is to repurpose old frames into new ones. It’s easy, according to Drew. “Paint it, sand it down, assemble it.” The brothers also note that having multiple surfaces for writing and hanging things is important, especially for parents juggling their kids’ school work. “If you just have an old cardboard box or something that you're able to cut out, you could actually stick them on the back of a piece of art that you have and turn that into a calendar,” Drew explains. “Or you can turn that into somewhere that you can peg some of the kids' artwork or tasks.” What are the brothers up to when they’re not brainstorming at-home DIY projects? Like many, they’re having virtual game nights along with Zooey Deschanel, Jonathan’s girlfriend, and Linda Phan, Drew’s wife. According to Jonathan, the winner always tends to be Drew. “I feel like Drew cheats,” Jonathan jokes. “I’m just going to say, why does he always win?”
Video Transcript
DREW SCOTT: Growing up, our family, we used to go camping. All the time, we were out in the mountains. We love camping, and we know a lot of kids-- like, when we were kids, inside the house we would always be making pillow forts. So we thought maybe a cool thing to do is transform one of your spaces into a camp ground.
JONATHAN SCOTT: I think taking on DIY projects is a great thing. You need to fill your time with something. Think about what you could take on as a challenge.
DREW SCOTT: If you have some driftwood at home or old frames at home that were busted or worn down, you could always create some frames for some of your family photos you've always wanted to hang. That's easy. Paint it, sand it down, assemble it.
JONATHAN SCOTT: Home schooling is a huge thing, so that's something that you want to have lots of surfaces for writing on the walls or things like that, like having those chalkboards, or cork boards, or something.
DREW SCOTT: Even if you just have an old cardboard box or something that you're able to cut out, you could actually stick it to the back of a piece of art that you have and turn that into a calendar. Or you could turn that into somewhere that you can peg some of the kid's artwork or tasks. There are lots of little things you can do around the house just by getting creative, thinking outside the box.
JONATHAN SCOTT: We've been playing board games like they're going out of style. Drew and Linda got us onto these virtual game nights. I am actually learning piano. I've always just sort of dabbled around a little, but I've never actually learn piano. So I'm determined by the time isolation is finished, I will know how to play the piano.
DREW SCOTT: I've been playing guitar. We're doing FaceTime or Zoom calls with my dad, and he's teaching me a song. I'm teaching him a song. So what we have been doing is a lot of FaceTiming or, like Jonathan said, virtual game nights with these friends of ours-- they're alone-- so that they know they're not really alone. They do have us in there with them. We're all going through this together.
JONATHAN SCOTT: And I feel like Drew cheats at virtual game nights, I'm just going to say. Why does he always win?
When we started filming with Brad, the very first day Brad met every single person and had a moment with every single person. And the funny thing is, subsequently, when he would come back to film for other days, and at the very end when we revealed, he remembered every single person's name on the crew, the construction crew, production crew, he remembered every person's name. He was a true gentleman through and through and just a really, really great guy.
Who was the funniest to do demolition with? Melissa McCarthy. Oh my gosh. Melissa was so-- we almost couldn't film because we were all laughing so hard all the time.
DREW SCOTT: It was actually pretty amazing to see how hands-on all of the celebrities wanted to be. Michael Bublé says he's not a handy guy, he's never really done home renovation. But because this is giving back to his grandpa's nurse, the woman who took care of his grandpa for the last six years of his life, he wanted to make sure that he was in there hands-on, transforming this house for her. And all the stories are truly amazing and touching. When you watch "Celebrity IOU," you will cry. Guaranteed.
