Rehab Addict star Nicole Curtis has claimed she was blackmailed with footage of her using a racial slur before it was publicly released.
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Nicole, 49, addressed speculation a member of her Rehab Addict production crew had leaked the offensive video of her using the n-word to RadarOnline, who posted it on February 11.
Nicole -- whose show was canceled by HGTV due to the slur -- wrote Wednesday, February 18 on Instagram, "I was not contracted to any network or show. (think free agent in sports) Any crew hired, paid by me, The footage is mine. My crew didn't steal my footage."
Nicole went on to claim a person close to her was extorting her.
"I don't have 'sets'. I own all my properties. In other words, no one is my 'boss', I'm the boss. I create product & sell the rights of it & my likeness for limited contracted use," Nicole explained.
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"Someone personal (not crew) had access, demanded [money], I didn't pay -- here we are."
New episodes of Rehab Addict had been scheduled for release the same day the video of Nicole caught using the n-word while working on a renovation project circulated online.
The video showed Nicole immediately realizing she had made a mistake and then asking to "kill" the cameras.
Amid backlash, HGTV posted a statement announcing it was pulling Rehab Addict off the air.
"[HGTV was] recently made aware of an offensive racial comment made during the filming of Rehab Addict," the network said, according to People.
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"Not only is language like this hurtful and disappointing to our viewers, partners, and employees -- it does not align with the values of HGTV."
"Accordingly, we have removed the series from all HGTV platforms," the statement continued. "We remain dedicated to fostering a culture of respect and inclusion across our content and our workplace."
Nicole subsequently apologized for using the racial slur in a statement to TMZ.
"I want to be clear: the word in question is wrong and not part of my vocabulary and never has been, and I apologize to everyone," she insisted.
Nicole also said she's "grateful" for the 15-year journey she shared with HGTV.
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"It's been a meaningful chapter, but my focus isn't on my career. My focus, at this moment is rightfully on my relationships, and my community -- the people who truly know my character and where my heart is," she added.
Nicole later posted a message to her followers via Instagram Stories.
"There is more to this, but my family comes first and I need to be mom right now more than anything else," she explained.
"I will take the time to be as I've always been with you, transparent and honest. TMZ called me as I had just turned my phone on after being at school -- I said this briefly -- but there is more."
Rehab Addict featured Nicole renovating and restoring old, historic homes into functional properties, often saving them from demolition.
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Rehab Addict premiered in 2010 and took a break after it aired its eighth season in 2018.
Nicole then returned to HGTV in 2021 with a spinoff called Rehab Addict Rescue, before Rehab Addict's ninth season debuted on the network in June 2025.
However, the show's ninth season did not fully air and went on hiatus in July after only two episodes.
Nicole reportedly said at the time that filming halted due to a "setback" in her life that "rocked" her "to the core."
"It was one of those moments where I thought, how do I get through this one?" Nicole reportedly said.
"I prayed on it and it was just devastating for me. I had to make a decision right there and then like, 'Okay, we're going to let this affect us for a very long time, or we're going to pick it up and go.'"
Nicole announced that she had made an "executive decision to shelf the rest of" her new shows until Fall 2025.
In October 2025, Nicole shared on Instagram that she "recut" the season's remaining episodes.
Nicole then teased a possible return in January, before she and HGTV revealed earlier this month that new episodes of Rehab Addict would begin airing on February 11.