Aloha, Reputation: HGTV's Tristyn & Kamohai Kalama Face Ruinous Legal Blow

HGTV shows may be totally fake, but the legal trouble that Tristyn and Kamohai Kalama are in is very real. An April 2026 episode of their hit show, "Renovation Aloha," reportedly contained footage of the couple uncovering human remains on land they were scouting for development purposes. Hawaiian law forbids both the photography and broadcasting of iwi kūpuna (native burial remains), which is also a spiritual and cultural offense, according to Civil Beat. Now, the Kalamas are facing consequences that could forever tarnish their reputations.

After Hawaii's Attorney General viewed promo for the episode, entitled "Bones on the Big Island," they named Tristyn and Kamohai in a temporary restraining order, alongside HGTV itself, to force them to take it down. "The broadcast of footage depicting iwi kūpuna on national television causes profound and irreparable harm to the Native Hawaiian community, to the State's interest in protecting its cultural resources, and to the dignity and sanctity of the ancestors whose remains were depicted," the Attorney General asserted in the complaint. They also noted that iwi kūpuna require "the highest level of protection" from the law (via People).

Although the restraining order was swiftly granted, HGTV still went ahead and aired the episode, after removing the offending footage in question. It's worth noting, however, that the Kalamas are no strangers to legal issues.

Following the episode, Tristyn and Kamohai Kalama issued a public apology, alongside the network itself. But this matter could still potentially turn into one of HGTV's biggest scandals of all time. Toni Schwartz, a spokeswoman for the Hawaii Attorney General, announced that they're not done fighting the airing of the controversial footage either. "The Department of the Attorney General [...] successfully obtained a temporary restraining order prior to the program's airing," she confirmed (via Civil Beat)."We are aware that the segment aired notwithstanding the court's order, and we take this matter very seriously. The Department will pursue additional action as necessary." If they do escalate the matter, it'll be the latest legal battle that the HGTV stars, who have been known to be a little shady, were involved in. 

According to a February 2025 report by Civil Beat, the Kalamas have been issued several notices relating to their habit of forging ahead with their home renovations before receiving the required permits to do so. While the reality stars don't always sort out their permits before embarking on extensive house flipping projects — in an effort to skip over the lengthy approval process — the eventual authorization, crucially, doesn't always cover all of the property's extensive renovations. Skipping this key step in the process puts the homeowners at risk, not only of future fines, but also of structural damage. In fact, one of the homes that was renovated and later sold by the Kalamas had accrued over $31,000 in fines as of this writing.