HGTV’s “Rock the Block” promises big builds and bigger personalities — but for Brooke Hogan, the new season is also marked by something deeply personal: life after the loss of her father, Hulk Hogan.
Nine months after the death of the wrestling legend, Brooke spoke with Fox News Digital and revealed the painful regrets and unanswered questions that still haunt her.
“I talk to my dad every day and… I’m like, ‘What in the heck were you doing? I just wish I was there because you would still be here today. I have this feeling in me that, like, I could have saved you,’ but it’s that saying… ‘if love would have saved you, you’d be alive today’ because of how much love I have for him,” she said.
When Brooke was asked what she would say to her father today if she could speak to him, she said, “I’m so glad you’re out of pain.”
“He was in so much pain, so much, pain. And I’m glad that I get to have, I hate to say this, but almost an even better relationship with him now, where I can, like, talk to him honestly.”
On July 24, 2025, the WWE icon, born Terry Gene Bollea, died at age 71 after suffering a cardiac event at his Florida home. Brooke was estranged from her father at the time of his death.
“And the only thing that sucks is that I just will never have answers. I’ll never get to ask the questions I wanted to ask,” she told Fox News Digital. “I tried even when he was alive. I tried to have conversations, and he was like, ‘I’m not talking about that.’… He didn’t ever want to be soft.”
BROOKE HOGAN EXPLAINS DECISION TO SKIPS HULK HOGAN’S FUNERAL SERVICE: ‘PEOPLE GRIEVE IN MANY WAYS’
Brooke recently took to social media to upload a black-and-white illustration of her father holding her in his arms, a stark image that underscored the bond she said never faded, even in loss.
Alongside it, she wrote a single line that captured the depth of her grief: “If my love could have saved you, you would have lived forever.”
Despite that emotional distance, Brooke said her connection to her father hasn’t disappeared.
“I’m honest with him now, and I talk to him all the time, even if that seems like I’m a cuckoo bird,” she told Fox News Digital. “If he showed up today, I would just be like, ‘I love you so much, and I wish you would have just let me in.’”
The emotional toll of their estrangement has also surfaced in her professional life.
WATCH: BROOKE HOGAN EXPRESSES REGRET AFTER HULK HOGAN’S DEATH: ‘I COULD HAVE SAVED YOU’
While filming the new season of “Rock the Block,” Brooke found herself questioning whether her father truly understood the life she had built on her own.
“[It’s] tough because, obviously, my dad and I weren’t really speaking prior to his death — not because I didn’t love him… it’s that he had become a little bit calloused in the direction he was going in his life and the people he was surrounding himself with,” she said.
“I am the daughter that wanted to save him. And it’s kind of like, you can try to save somebody and if they don’t want to be saved… it’s a tough position to be in.”
WATCH: BROOKE HOGAN FIGHTS THROUGH GRIEF ON ‘ROCK THE BLOCK’ FOLLOWING FATHER’S UNEXPECTED DEATH
Brooke said moments during filming forced her to confront lingering insecurities about whether her father ever fully grasped her independence and success.
“I don’t think he ever really understood the business that I had built… I don’t really think he fully understood just how hard it was to build from the ground up with nobody’s help by myself,” she said. “So, getting ‘Rock the Block’ was like a huge… medal for me… in that moment I was like, ‘I wonder if he knows what a big deal this is.’”
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
The “Brooke Knows Best” reality star launched her interior design firm, BB Designs by Brooke, in 2018.
She’s also built a life far beyond the spotlight. She married retired NHL player Steven Oleksy in 2022, and the couple recently expanded their family, welcoming twins in January 2025.
WATCH: HGTV ‘ROCK THE BLOCK’S’ SCOTT MCGILLIVRAY SAYS BROOKE HOGAN BALANCED GRIEF, PRESSURE DURING COMPETITION
The upcoming Las Vegas-based season of “Rock the Block” pairs Brooke with real estate expert Scott McGillivray as part of a celebrity-designer duo competing for renovation glory.
McGillivray told Fox News Digital that he was acutely aware of what Brooke was carrying behind the scenes.
“100% it did — absolutely,” he said when asked if her personal struggles changed how he showed up as a teammate. “Being human is also a big part of what this is.”
He described their early days on set as “like therapy,” noting that their partnership went beyond design and construction.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
“There was a lot of times in our house where Brooke and I got into some pretty heavy conversations… I think people are going to see more than just the renovation — they’re going to see people transformations as well in this one,” he said.
As the competition unfolds, Brooke is channeling both her father’s drive and her own hard-earned resilience — even as she continues to grapple with what was left unsaid.
HGTV’s “Rock the Block” is doubling down on star power this season, pairing fan-favorite designers with celebrities stepping into the high-stakes world of home renovation.
Brooke and McGillivray are joined by other pairs, including designer Taniya Nayak and 98 Degrees band member Drew Lachey, as well as Mina Starsiak Hawk and former NFL star Vernon Davis. Season 7 is hosted by design expert Ty Pennington.
The high-pressure competition gives each duo just six weeks and a $275,000 budget to transform identical homes into standout properties.
HGTV’s “Rock the Block” airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.
