‘The Flip Off’s Christina Haack & Tarek El Moussa Applauded by Fans for ‘Real’ Conversation on Show

Martin Holmes January 30, 2025, 10:01 am

Christina Haack and Tarek El Moussa — Christina Haack Instagram/HGTV

HGTV‘s new renovation competition show, The Flip Off, premiered on Wednesday night (January 29), and fans are praising stars Christina Haack and Tarek El Moussa for being “real” and showing “vulnerability.”

The season premiere became more than just a house-flipping battle as it documented Haack’s breakup with her estranged husband, Josh Hall, leading to a moment viewers found surprisingly emotional between Haack and her ex-husband, Tarek.

In the episode, which was meant to be the start of a house-flipping competition pitting Haack and Hall against Tarek and his wife, Heather Rae El Moussa, Haack called Tarek up to invite him over to her house to fill him in on her relationship troubles.

Viewers praised the exes for how they interacted during the sit-down.Fans took to social media to praise the episode, especially the emotional scene between Haack and Tarek, with one Reddit user writing, “That scene where Christina told Tarek about the breakup was so insightful. That was the first time I said it’s too bad their marriage didn’t work out.”

Another agreed, replying, “That scene was way more emotional and real than I expected. I started watching Flip or Flop a decade or so ago and it’s my all time favorite HGTV show so that scene really got me.”

“People might say forced emotions for TV but that definitely was not forced. That was not acting and that was definitely two people that still care about each other a lot and very very emotional,” added another.

“I liked it a lot more than I expected to. I appreciated their vulnerability honestly,” said another.
Another wrote, “I knew I would watch it, but didn’t think I’d like it. I told my husband, this is the most real thing I’ve seen on HGTV, and it’s from some of the fakest people on HGTV!”

“I thought that it was great!! From the raw moments, to the back and forth banter, to the designs! Can’t wait for next week!” said one commenter.

Another added, “I did not expect to like the show as much as I did. I loved the mix between showing their personal lives while watching them transform their flips. I was surprised to see Tarek open up as much as he did.”

During their talk, Haack told Tarek she got into a fight with Hall and officially ended the relationship. “We had a blowup over nothing. Truly nothing. [He was] in my face, middle fingers in my face,” Haack said. “Things with Josh have been bad for a long time. Not just kind of bad. Like, bad. The kids literally asked me to leave. They told me he’s not nice to me.”

Haack, who shares two children with Tarek, told him that Hall gets “insecure” when she laughs with Tarek. “Every time we would barely joke at soccer or I laughed at you, he would not speak to me for two to three days,” she shared. “I would get the silent treatment. He doesn’t like me. He calls me cocky, calls me arrogant. When we both know I’m not cocky or arrogant.”

Tarek supported his ex-wife, calling her a “great mother” and stating that Hall was projecting his own insecurities. With that, Haack broke into tears, saying how her life has been so “hard and so horrible” since their separation in 2016, apologizing for how she treated Tarek after their split and asking him to forgive her.

For his part, Tarek said he “100 percent” forgave her and also apologized himself. Haack told him, “You’re a great dad. I’m proud of you. You’ve come a really long way. I can see it. You’re so much calmer and you’re so much wiser, for real.”

Christina Hall's 'The Flip Off' Was 'Better' Without Josh Hall

Haack and Hall, her third husband, filed for divorce in July 2024 after three years of marriage. Since then, the exes have been embroiled in a tense legal battle over spousal support, including the selling of Haack’s $4.5 million Tennessee farmhouse.

Appearing on The Jennifer Hudson Show on Tuesday (January 28), Haack said filming on The Flip Off became easier after Hall left, stating, “It’s so much easier without somebody else bothering me. I mean, I don’t have to ask approval from anyone, no one’s weighing me down.”

The Flip Off, Season 1, Wednesdays, 8/7c, HGTV