Obsessive collecting often leads to clutter, but every once in a while, it earns folks some serious bank. If you need proof, watch HGTV’s “Junk or Jackpot?” — a reality series from the mind of former TVLine performer of the week John Cena that helps hobbyists identify valuable items in their collections and sell those “jackpots” to fund home renovations. But how exactly did the retired WWE Superstar come up with the concept?
“He was out at dinner one night with some friends, and they were talking about some of his crazy collections, and how he needed to get rid of some stuff because one of them had taken over too much space in his life and his house,” host Bobby Berk told the Chicks in the Office podcast. “And then they started talking about some of his fans and their crazy collections that they have of his stuff. He’s like, ‘God, this would be a cute show.'”
John Cena wanted Bobby Berk to host Junk or Jackpot
“Junk or Jackpot?” marks Bobby Berk’s first full-time hosting gig since he left Netflix’s “Queer Eye” after its seventh season.
“[Cena] started talking to his team at [the talent agency] WME,” Berk recalled in an interview with Decider. “I’m also with WME, and he was a fan of ‘Queer Eye,’ so he’s like, ‘I want Bobby to host it.’ … When John Cena asks you to host a show he’s created, you say yes.”
Berk, an interior designer in his own right, noted that collection hoarding can put a strain on other aspects of a person’s life, including their emotional well-being.
“We come into people’s lives when something that once was their heart and soul is starting to be the cause of problems in their relationships or the cause of mental health issues,” he said. “The thing that brought them the most joy is the thing that is actually causing the most harm now.”
“Junk or Jackpot?” has been a success for HGTV so far, with the series ranked among the top four most popular shows on the network in 2026.
