Ben and Erin Napier detail filming 'A Christmas Open House' in Mississippi
HGTV stars Ben and Erin Napier spoke with Fox News Digital about making their acting debut in the holiday film "A Christmas Open House."
HGTV stars Ben and Erin Napier are taking their talents to filmmaking.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, the home makeover stars shared they will be making their acting debut in the upcoming holiday film, "A Christmas Open House."
"It felt crazy that anyone would make a movie in Laurel, Mississippi and the people in Laurel, Mississippi also thought it was crazy. Not something I ever would have put on my bingo card of life," Erin jokingly shared.
The Napiers live in Laurel, Mississippi with their two daughters: Helen, 4 and Mae, 18 months, where they famously renovate dream homes for their show "Home Town."
Ben and Erin Napier portray Henry and Sarah Wright on "A Christmas Open House." (HGTV)
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The Discovery+ movie also stars Katie Stevens, Victor Rasuk and Bobbi Eakes. The holiday movie follows an Atlanta property stager returning to her hometown to restore her mother’s home when she reunites with her high school crush to try and sell the property.
"It felt crazy that anyone would make a movie in Laurel, Mississippi and the people in Laurel, Mississippi also thought it was crazy. Not something I ever would have put on my bingo card of life."
Erin and Ben portray Sarah and Henry Wright, home restoration specialists, in the holiday film.
HGTV's "A Christmas Open House" is available for streaming on Discovery+. (HGTV)
"While we were filming the movie, we were also filming ‘Home Town’ season six and ‘Home Town Takeover’ season two," Ben shared.
"While being home every night at 5:00 to be with our baby girls," Erin chimed in.
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The couple shared that Helen started school this year, attending class three times a week, which was a "monumental" moment for the Napier family.
On top of everything, the couple has finished renovating their own 4,000 square-foot farmhouse in Mississippi.
"We bought a 1920s English Tudor style farmhouse that's out in the county outside of town. It's really rural, and it's quite nice," Ben shared. "We both grew up on a farm. I grew up in rural settings and [was] always working on farms, so we wanted our daughters to have that experience."
"A barefoot, tangled hair childhood," Erin added. "They've never looked at iPads or phones or anything like that. And we want to keep it that way as long as we possibly can. And our kids just want to be outside."
"We both grew up on a farm. I grew up in rural settings and [was] always working on farms, so we wanted our daughters to have that experience."
"Home Town" will start filming season seven of their HGTV show soon. When asked about the success of the show, both Ben and Erin admitted that they never saw it coming.
Ben and Erin Napier seen on their show "Home Town." (HGTV)
"The pilot, we felt like this is not going to be anything," Ben began. "This will be a lot of fun for a few weeks, and it'll be a good story to tell our kids one day and here we are."
"We feel incredibly blessed, and it's all surreal," Erin added.
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Ben described "Home Town" as "stretchy pants" or their "favorite pair of sweatpants" because they are so comfortable with everyone involved. They shared they are home by 5:30 every day to spend time with their daughters and are even able to spend lunch with them.
"I mean, it's a dream," Erin said. "Then when you do new things like ‘Home Town Takeover’ where we go to a different town that flexes muscles we have never used, that all feels like a big learning experience and also, it feels very meaningful and impactful because you see the difference it makes."
"Home Town Takeover" made its debut in May 2021 and features Ben and Erin, alongside a team of home renovation professionals, who travel to different communities to bring people’s dream homes to life.
Erin and Ben Napier live in Laurel, Mississippi, with their two daughters: Helen, 4, and Mae, 18 months, where they famously renovate dream homes for their show "Home Town." (HGTV)
"You go to a new community, and you get to introduce the power of the show," Ben shared. "And yeah, it stretches new muscles for us, but at the same time, it feels like a really great thing to be doing, you know, for the world."
He added, "Then the movie was a totally different creativity muscle. Different muscle we've never used. Yeah, we're using all the muscles."
A challenging time filming the shows for Ben and Erin was during the coronavirus pandemic when Erin was pregnant with their youngest daughter, Mae, while simultaneously filming both "Home Town" and "Home Town Takeover."
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"There are all these challenges that come along with making it, but I always tell everybody, it beats the heck out of digging ditches," Ben jokingly shared.
Erin added, "If it wasn't challenging, it might not feel as satisfying to see the final product."
"A Christmas Open House" is now available for streaming on Discovery+ and will also premiere on HGTV on Dec. 7 at 10p ET/PT. "Home Town" is returning to HGTV with new episodes on Dec. 4 at 8pm ET/PT.
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