Original subtitles

[Jonathan] From Apocalypse Now to The Matrix,

Laurence Fishburne has portrayed some of film's most iconic characters.

But when the award-winning actor isn't commanding the screen,

he's usually hanging out with Greg.

Greg and I have known each other since the mid-'90s.

We have great affection for each other.

[Jonathan] And for the past 15 years...

We have so many things in common that we love.

...Greg has been Laurence's right hand...

He does such a tremendous job of taking care of me.

...but also...

I consider Greg to be family. He's like my younger brother.

...Greg and his partner love their home.

[Laurence] They're the sweetest people.

Oh, this is a great backyard.

[Jonathan] ...And used all their resources renovating what they could.

-What's the biggest issue? -Right now, it's drainage.

It's just cracking and chipping and this is like a wasteland.

[Laurence] They're always having their friends here.

But it just isn't quite what it should be.

- [Jonathan] So Laurence wants to fix it up... -[roars]

...by transforming every inch of their backyard...

-What's this? -Don't worry about that.

Pretend they're not even here.

[Jonathan] ...to show Greg just how much...

He's had my back for a long time.

...their friendship means.

-Whoa. -Right this way.

[Greg exclaims]

-[Laurence] Oh, my God! -[both laugh]

[upbeat music playing]

You have worked with some of the most epic directors in the industry.

-Yeah. -Clint Eastwood.

-Spielberg. -Right.

-I mean, the list goes on. -Coppola...

Spike Lee, John Singleton,

Abel Ferrara.

I just think it's amazing to show for the one and only

Laurence Fishburne.

I can't believe all of the, the franchises

that Laurence has been a part of, movies, TV series,

you have The Matrix,

you have Boyz n the Hood.

Is there a director that you've always wanted to work with

that you haven't yet?

Because it sounds like you've worked with everybody.

Oh, God. I haven't worked with Ridley Scott.

Well, you know, here's something we could do.

Ridley Scott. You know, we're Scotts. So...

-Yeah! -We must all be related.

We'll pitch a new action... superhero type movie

where we're three brothers that renovate houses.

-I think this is a hit. -Wow.

There is no arguing that Laurence

has had an epic acting career.

[Laurence] I've had a really, really beautiful life.

I've enjoyed it and I've gotten to do a lot of things

and if it wasn't for acting, I'd, you know,

I don't know what kind of life I would've had.

Even though his life has been thrilling,

he couldn't do what he does without the support of his right hand man, Greg.

No. Greg helps manage his personal and professional life

so Laurence wants to turn the tables and take care of him.

-[pleasant music playing] -[Laurence] He's everything.

I met him about 20 years ago

in the West Village in New York.

But there was another actor he was working for, Orlando Jones.

-Ah! -Who's a brilliant actor and a great friend of mine,

and I was like, "Orlando, I'm stealing Greg from you."

He was so together

and I just thought, this is the kind of cat I need to watch my back.

Greg is like the younger brother who looks up to you

but who also surpasses you

in the things that he's passionate about.

-Yeah. -Yeah.

We have so many things in common that we love.

-Really into motorcycles. -Oh, yeah.

When I met him, he hadn't been writing for very long.

I had been writing for a number of years.

My nickname for him is Major Speed because he likes to go fast.

-Oh. -Okay.

And his nickname for me is Miss Daisy

because I like to drive slow.

-Oh, my God. -[all laugh]

I-- I always say that whenever I'm driving with Jonathan,

somebody's going slow, I'm like, "All right, Miss Daisy.

Time to pick it up."

[Laurence] So he and Jill, they bought this home,

and it was a dream home for them,

and after they were there for maybe, I don't know, a year?

They started discovering those little things

and they were all, like, out in the backyard.

So it was like, when it would rain,

like the deck would get all, like, flooded

and the water would go into the pool and...

-Oh, yeah. -Then they had a pipe that burst or something

-and the deck chipping and one thing after the other. -Uh-huh.

So they were trying to, like, do their house and,

and make it beautiful for entertaining

their friends and their family and stuff

and they just had to stop.

[Drew] Where's Greg, by the way?

-Is he in town? -Oh, no. No, Greg's gone.

I sent Greg on a, on a very, very important assignment for about four weeks.

He will be away.

-A very important assignment? -"A very important assignment."

He will be away.

Laurence sent Greg away to research the location for his next film

and at the same time, has been working with Greg's partner Jill,

who has given us the keys to their castle

to put together this epic surprise.

There's no place like home.

[Jonathan] Oh, Toto, we're here!

-[Laurence laughing] -[Drew] We made it!

For Laurence to do this for Greg now,

that just shows how close they are.

-Okay. -Did you want me to, like, piggyback you?

-Okay, you ready? -yeah.

Yeah, and the crazy part is Laurence

broke his ankle after we started the plan in motion.

And so, when we were asking him, "Do you want to postpone? Are you okay?"

-Mm. -He's like, "Whoa, whoa!

My arms aren't broken, so I can still swing a sledgehammer."

The nice thing is, because Greg's not here,

-we don't have to sneak. -Yeah.

We don't have to worry about it.

The coast is clear.

I consider Greg

to be family in that, you know,

he's, he's like my, my younger brother.

Oh, this is a great backyard.

Look at the access to the pool. Amazing.

[Laurence] Let me just clue you into some things here first.

-Yeah. -So you see all these holes in here,

those chipping and stuff

-and where the water is pooling over there. -[Drew] Yeah.

Like, sometimes it cools so badly

it actually goes back into the pool which they already redid.

-[Drew] Yeah. -So that was done.

And then, you know, they tried to, like,

do the thing here with this deck

and they wanted to bring it out further

but they couldn't because... of things like

this, like, what's this?

What a bad location.

So they're trying to, like, use this so they want to be able to come out

and sort of, like, to have this be their outdoor living space

but it just isn't quite what it should be.

Greg and I have known each other since the mid-'90s.

We have great affection for each other.

We kid each other and we tease each other a lot

in a really playful way.

He's very protective of me

because he does such a tremendous job

of taking care of me and making sure that things are the way

that I need them to be in order for me to carry on doing what I do.

And that's the thing that I've learned from him

and continue to learn from him almost every day,

is little ways in which you can interact with people

and make those interactions

not just pleasant but productive, meaningful

in ways that have nothing to do with being a celebrity

but just with being a human being.

He's had my back for a long time.

So, what's the biggest issue?

Well, right now, it's drainage and you can see

it's just cracking and chipping.

-It really... it's really weird. -Time to test.

Uh-oh! Here we go.

-Stand back. -[Jonathan] All right.

So watch this.

I can already tell it's all running that way.

-[Laurence] Right. -So the one thing that's good is you don't want it

going toward the house, but right here...

-It's gonna go... -You get enough volume...

-It's going right down. -[Drew] Yeah.

[Laurence] Right into the house.

-Everything should be going that way. -It should be going there.

[Jonathan] That seems to be a big negative grade

and then, right on the corner of the house,

-it's also seeping into the crawl space. -Exactly.

This is the worst location for your AC condenser.

There is literally no reason, when you have a yard like this,

-and then there must be -[Laurence] Mm-hmm.

-a ton of space around the backside. -Yeah.

That was them doing it here for quick ease of access

-instead of just putting where it should go. -Okay.

[Laurence] Greg and Jill,

they're really, really just the sweetest people.

They're always having their friends here.

They're always entertaining.

They're always making the most of life

and the situations that they're in.

Certainly, the back yard has been a big problem for them

so I just felt like it would be beautiful

to be able to give them the opportunity

to not have to think about it or worry about it.

You know what would be nice for them is they like to have their friends over a lot.

It would be great for them to have

-maybe a kitchen that was outdoors. -Okay.

[Laurence] I know that Greg and Jill

love to have people over.

They order these prepackaged feasts

that they cook for their friends and invite them over

and have these wonderful meals out here on the deck.

[Drew] This is definitely not set up for that.

[Laurence] It's not quite right yet.

-[Drew] The outdoor kitchen you're talking about. -Right.

If we move a few things, this might be a great spot over here, yeah.

[Drew] Look how bad the cupping is.

I would have to say they did this, uh...

[Laurence] Yeah, they did this. They did.

They wanted to bring it out further

but because of the other problems that they had,

for example, the window behind you, they couldn't finish,

-doing that. -[Jonathan] Oh, yeah.

You know what would actually be kind of nice in a space like this

is to actually have a pergola or an awning or something--

-Some kind of shade? -Yeah because right now,

-like, I can see they've got a bunch of umbrellas. -Right.

If they had a proper shade structure,

then this could all be clear.

You wouldn't have to have

-any of these obstructions here. -Right. Right. Exactly.

I see another problem, especially for someone

-who has a broken foot from tripping on a step. -Yes.

[Drew] It's dangerous having something that's not a full step

but also right by the pool, that's terrible.

Yeah, it's not good. It's not good.

I'm guessing that this pad was either poured on top of an original pad.

[Laurence] Okay.

[Jonathan] Even though the decking around the pool

looks like it's in better shape,

-I think aesthetically it could be nicer -[Laurence] Yeah. Sure.

if we did a new coating on it.

But over here, I feel like we'd have to actually

-re-pour concrete and redo this deck. -[Drew] Yeah.

-[Jonathan] One chair. -[Laurence] One chair, one umbrella,

they don't really have the privacy that they'd like in the back there.

[Jonathan] It also just feels kind of like a concrete jungle.

-There's no warmth, no texture, -Yes, it's not warm.

[Laurence] Then there's another enclosure back there.

I think it's like the filtration system for the pool.

And they also don't get to use the other side of the space.

-Yeah, that mulch area over there... -Mm-hmm.

...is sort of like a wasteland

because look at the access to the pool.

-That would be amazing... -[Laurence] Yeah, if we could do something with that maybe?

[Laurence] So what could we do to beautify all of this over here?

Greg likes Moroccan tile or Spanish tile.

[Jonathan] You definitely have an opportunity here.

-[Laurence] Yeah. -I love this surface down below

-which right now is just... let go. -Yeah. It's-- It's... yeah.

You could use a real statement tile along there.

-The top the bull nosing is actually in pretty good shape -Mm-hmm.

-and this could be painted. -Oh, wow. Okay.

-We wouldn't be able to put tile on the... -Not on the wall?

-Just because of some of the cracking and whatnot. -Mm-hmm.

But we could do a screening

-all the way across -And give them some privacy?

Yeah, we can go up even higher.

One thing to keep in mind too is there are a lot of concrete surfaces.

You have the cinder block wall.

Maybe we can just warm it up a little bit with some wood--

-To soften it, yeah. -Yeah, soften it, yeah.

-That would be lovely. That would be lovely. -Yeah.

[Laurence] And this is like wasteland.

It's an absolute waste of space

-and this is a lot of square footage. -Yeah.

Imagine if this mirrored the seating over on the other side of the pool.

-[Laurence] Oh! -This could be like 30-40 people

you're entertaining at time.

-We could do like a fire pit. -Yeah.

That's a dance party I want to be at.

I know.

-Show me a little bit of the moon. -Yeah, yeah, how's this?

-Oh! The sexiness on this show-- -Is that right?

-[Laurence] Right. -[all laughing]

That's called the Broken Ankie.

That's the broken ankie.

[Drew] After moving the unsightly AC condenser

to the other side of the house,

we'll remove and level off the concrete patio

to fix Greg's drainage issue and eliminate the trip hazard.

Then take the space to fabulous

by resurfacing the concrete deck around the pool

with a special waterproof epoxy.

Resort vibes continue with a large deck off the house

that features a 5-star outdoor kitchen,

chic Quartzite counters with waterfall edges,

two fridges, storage cabinets,

a 5-burner grill and two retractable fabric awnings.

On the other side of the yard, we'll cover the cinder block wall

with the same decking as the dining area,

laid out in a modern horizontal design.

Even the raised flower beds will get a makeover

with artisanal tiles adding detail and color

to the otherwise overlooked part of the garden.

Finally, we'll build a second deck

on the opposite side of the pool.

Unique planter boxes seamlessly built into the fencing

lends a pop of greenery and gives the pool area

the sophisticated look it deserves

while resort style lounge furniture

and a fire bowl adds style and functionality,

making an invite to the pool party at Greg's house

the hottest ticket in town.

So we're gonna do all this in four weeks?

-That's a lot. -That's a lot to do in four weeks. But--

Can you-- Can we do that? Yeah?

-Can you make more excuses for Greg to stay out of town? -Absolutely.

I can send him on all the wild goose hunts you want.

Do you think when we tackle some of the demolition,

because you've got a... a busted up foot,

do you want us just to get a pool floatie for you

and you can point directions from the pool.

-I prefer to be the man with the sledgehammer. -Okay.

Can I see your sledgehammer in action?

You want to see it? Ready?

Okay.

Whose ass am I going to kick first?

[all laughing]

Okay. My demolition move will be the...

[grunting]

-Wait. I like that. -Huh? Huh?

That's the sound you make when you hurt your foot again.

[all laughing]

I consider Greg to be family

and I'm really grateful to be able to provide this for him.

This will be their oasis.

This will be a place of tranquility, celebration and gathering for them,

and I think, you know, home is everything, man.

So let's start some demo in a couple of days.

-All right? -Let's do it.

Oh, wow!

You already broke the stick!

[roars]

[upbeat music playing]

[Jonathan] All right, here we go.

[Laurence] Go, go. Excited.

Go back and then tilt it?

-There you go, there you go. -Oh, man.

This is a good condenser so we don't want to damage it.

Well, I can't wait to get it out of here.

-Wait. -[Laurence chuckles]

-One, two, three. -Tilt. Tilt!

I have wanted to get this thing out of here since I first came here.

That is the perfect spot for a chair or, like,

an outdoor kitchen or just something,

-if not this. -Yes. Yes. Exactly.

[Jonathan] Laurence wants to be involved with this entire process.

He wants to smash out the old, bring in the new.

All right. Y'all ready? Let's do it.

-[Jonathan] Give it a shot. -[upbeat instrumental rock music]

I had this little, you know, slip.

I fell down some stairs and fractured one of the bones in my feet

but no, I'm-- I'm bound and determined to, like,

pick up the sledgehammer and crack some cement.

We have to fully rip out this cracked and uneven concrete

so we can level it out

and add proper drainage

just to prevent pooling water

and any further damage to Greg's house.

[Drew] While this concrete was poured incorrectly for function,

it was poured to last.

[Jonathan] Yeah, this stuff is so dense.

So I'm thinking rather than jackhammering for hours,

we'll maybe bring in some slightly heavier machinery to handle it.

But we still have plenty to do,

ripping out those warped deck boards.

[Laurence] Come on you!

[grunts]

But I like, you know,

I like the... the deck thing.

[grunts, sighs wearily]

These deck boards are old and warped and they need to come up.

But the substructure is actually in pretty good shape.

So I'm thinking we use that to support our new deck

which will be almost double the size.

[Drew] Yeah, you can't entertain properly outdoors without a grill,

and in this outdoor kitchen, we'll offer that and a whole lot more.

It's a lot of labor.

Yeah, this is like hard work.

[Jonathan] And then on the other side of the pool,

we're adding a second deck to mirror this one.

This is the easy demo.

This is the fun stuff.

Beats shoveling elephant dung.

-That, and Jonathan has done that once. -Which I've also done.

A prerequisite for being in show business.

[chuckles]

When people are talking about the glamorous side of show business,

this is what they're talking about.

[Laurence] That's exactly what they're talking about.

So what's this going to look like, we think?

Well, I think the continuity of the decking material

to the eating area and over here

is gonna add a real nice element

-because you'll have that same tone pulling through. -Right.

But I have, like, once the screening is in here...

-Mm-hmm. -...the deck's down, the fire pit,

I feel like high end hotel vibes.

-Yes. -So that's the goal

because this is such a great area to lounge here.

You get a little toasty, jump in the pool.

Exactly, yeah.

[Drew] So I thought this was irrigation

-but this might actually be their yard power. -Yeah.

-It goes into the pool. -[Jonathan] Oh, yeah.

Jon, do you want to shovel a bit more?

Laurence, if you want to help me, we can cut that out.

-[Laurence] We can cut it out? -Well, it's a waste.

Don't have to tell me twice.

[Drew and Jonathan laugh]

The fencing around the pool equipment is old and worn out.

Can I just point out that you're done

and I'm still on the top plate?

Well, what you waiting on, man? Let's go!

[Jonathan] What is happening over there? Drew!

You're embarrassing yourself!

[drilling]

You know what? Hold on, hold on.

I'm gonna come to the back side and just kick.

Okay, let's kick.

[Jonathan] We want our new fencing to also match the new deck boards

so the overall aesthetic of this would be the same.

[Laurence grunting]

Would you expect any less from a guy who actually has

a martial arts background?

-What? -I can't even get my wall down

and you've completely destroyed yours.

Get it down! [grunts]

What kind of contractor are you, dude?

-Oh, man. -Drew, you're fired!

-Teach me! -Laurence, you're hired.

[laughing]

Laurence Fishburne keeps getting cooler.

You don't even need me here so I'll just leave you to pick this up.

I got it, I got it.

I'm gonna have a Mai Tai.

[laughs]

[upbeat music playing]

[Jonathan] Laurence dominated demolition

but we need to call in a bigger crew and heavier machinery

to break through this concrete.

It's thick and we need to haul it out.

[Drew] With the old concrete out,

we're putting in all the drainage lines that will properly

pull that water away from the house.

[Jonathan] And we're moving that massive AC condenser around the corner.

With that finished, we're pumping in the new concrete

to build a pad with stairs and drainage channels

to move that water away from the house.

[Drew] And while that new concrete dries,

we need to make some decisions on finishes.

All right, design time. [grunts]

-I feel like we're having a picnic here or something. -Yes.

I didn't bring anything delicious, unfortunately.

That looks pretty tasty.

I mean, it's chewy.

It looks very tasty.

-We are cooking up something. -Yeah, yeah.

[Laurence] Greg and I have similar taste.

I think there's an interior designer that lives in me

that's trying to get out.

This is for the deck?

-This is a deck resurfacing material. -Okay.

[Jonathan] The new concrete will never match the look

of the existing concrete around the pool.

So we're gonna resurface all of it with a special epoxy

that goes on like paint.

When it's done, it has this real elegant finish to it.

[Laurence] Okay.

[Jonathan] And this will complement the blue really nicely.

-Yeah. -The challenge they have right now,

because they have something kind of similar to this,

but the problem is, with the blue,

-it doesn't feel like a perfect match. -No, it doesn't.

-This would feel like... -That feels like--

-a striking... -It feels like it pops. for me.

-Yeah. -Yeah.

Probably the most important decision because

originally I was thinking we match the decking

-where the eating area is. -Mm-hmm.

But I feel like there's something cool that could happen

if we take that same material right up the wall

-and create our horizontal slab. -Oh!

-So, with, with the deck material? -Yeah.

-That sounds really clutch. I like that. -Yeah?

-What feels more like Greg? -The warmest?

Well, I'm gonna say it's either this one...

-or it's this one but it's probably that one. -Okay.

-Yeah. -We're gonna take that right up to do the screening

and then we're gonna get in as much greenery as we can to break things up.

There's also an opportunity to do a really cool tile

along that one garden wall...

-Oh! -Yeah. Exactly.

-Ooh la la. -Back wall, we have some different... samples.

[Laurence] This is lovely color.

Look at that. Wow.

It feels really Spanish.

And Greg loves Spanish.

Wow. This is going faster than I thought.

-Well... -Are you always pretty quick at making decisions?

-Or are you like a thoughtful slow... -I'm intuitive.

So when I see it, I know it.

There's a lot of sun that comes down on this yard

so we're adding a couple of awnings

to make sure that they have that shelter

or even if it's raining, they could put it up

and still use their outdoor space.

For the awning, I do feel like the darker color...

-That's the strongest one? -Yeah?

Because otherwise, it's gonna be a lot of matchy matchy

with the deck resurfacing material.

I see. Okay.

So if we go with something like that,

-it makes a statement. -[Laurence] Mm-hmm.

We can go anywhere we want in here with the materials on the actual furniture.

I'm loving this, I'm loving that.

-I think he'll like either of those two. -Of these two here?

And I leave it to you and your team to make the final decision.

-Okay. Sounds good. I like that. -Yes. Yes.

So let me start to piece together kind of how we see this.

Okay, let's see.

-So we see something here. Something in this room. -Hmm! Look at that.

We see the deck resurfacing material

which is gonna be pretty nice.

-[Laurence] Okay. I love that. -You said you liked this tile.

I know that Greg and Jill

love to have people over.

The mirrored decks are just gonna make

this whole thing feel so cozy

and so, like, comfortable and warm.

You're gonna want to lounge out here and decompress

and enjoy your family and your friends.

Ooh!

You like it?

I like... that.

-Okay. -That's much sexier to me.

-All right. That is pretty sexy. -Yeah.

[Jonathan] This is incredible.

-Well done, sir. -Hold on, Let me just get that.

-Yeah, you got that, huh? Perfect. -I got that.

-[Laurence laughs] -There you go.

[upbeat music playing]

[Jonathan] Week one demo went even faster than we expected,

so we are flying into week two a little ahead of schedule

and we are ready to begin construction.

Since we love to reduce waste,

we're using the original joists

and expanding the deck another 20 square feet

to accommodate the new outdoor kitchen and dining area.

And on the other side of the pool,

we're building our deck from scratch on what will become

Greg and Jill's luxurious new lounge area.

We want this outdoor oasis to give off hotel resort type vibes

so we're adding details like cutouts on both the decks

where we'll plant some ornamental grass

for a chic and unique look.

Laurence is in Ireland with Greg.

So the ruse continues to pay off

but he keeps texting and reminding us

that in just two short weeks, Greg will be back

so we need to keep the speed of this build going.

All righty. Okay.

How cool is this?

[Jonathan] It's time to bring the bling.

[Drew] Yeah, these state-of-the-art awnings scream vacation resort chic.

You just like anything that has a remote.

-Yeah, no. That's totally true. -Mm.

[Jonathan] Hold up, yeah.

These are a heavy beast.

And lucky for us, we have Jose

lending a hand and his expertise today.

-Good? -Yeah.

This is gonna transform everything for them.

They were talking about how challenging it was

because there's no shade ever.

-Oh, I know. -Right here.

Feel like it's gonna shift back a hair on me here.

-[Jonathan] There we go. -Yeah.

[drilling]

[Drew] This area of Greg's yard gets a lot of sun.

Smaller umbrellas would not have given sufficient shade

while pergolas in a tight space like this would have been awkward.

Yeah. And so not only do we have the fun remote control aspect

but we also have this all-in-one sunshade solution.

-Okay. -Work your magic.

-[Drew] This is great. -Yeah.

I love how substantial these feel. It's... it's not flimsy.

It's a solid cover and again, it's gonna cover the entire area.

When you're barbecuing out here, you don't want to be sitting

with that glaring sun right in your face.

No, and apparently, the height of this is perfect

so it'll be fine for the grill.

The awning fabric has a special coating

that is gonna help it last a long time.

It's not gonna fade, and it already feels a few degrees cooler.

So it's going to stay cool and stay looking good for a long time.

At this time of day especially, it is so hot over here.

This is what they needed.

How many of these have you installed, Jose?

-Thousands, yes. -[Jonathan] Oh, my gosh.

-Yeah. -[Drew] Wow.

[Jonathan] The awning is gonna make this outdoor kitchen and dining area

even more elegant for entertaining.

[Drew] Yes, and speaking of the kitchen,

there are still a few other things we have to figure out

before we can give the fabricator the final plans.

With a barbecue, you can't have

a surface right above where the smoke and everything comes up.

I feel this is too low.

That's the exact conversation I've been having.

So our company who's doing the outdoor grill for us,

they said that the smoke is all going to get trapped in here

and it's going to cause problems.

We can either install a big hood in here, essentially

and then we'd have to poke through the roof

and have a cap out there and then it starts to be like,

"Well, is that gonna interfere with the awning..."

-What are we gonna do? -So the only thing I can think of

that would potentially resolve that issue,

shift it over and do like an L-shape

and then smoke can escape.

We basically have the grill here,

all this, perhaps, space over here,

still have the dining table.

What's on the backside?

Are you gonna have, like, some overhanging,

like some stools or something?

I don't think anybody's gonna sit over here.

If the grill is here, there-- you're opening the grill in their face.

So I think this is just the backside

where they'll have storage and stuff like that.

The only other option would be to do a bunch of roof work

and cut back this eve.

-But then that wouldn't match anything else. -No.

I mean, I don't know about the roof work

but if we can actually have a little bit of storage

or something over here, that makes it purposeful so, okay.

And you know, with the awnings in,

they are gonna be using this all the time.

[Drew] Everyday.

[upbeat music playing]

Ready for the next one.

Good on my side.

Yeah, I'm pretty good here.

[Jonathan] The same boards we used on the two decks will also go up horizontally

to cover that sterile cinderblock wall,

adding an additional foot of privacy

and just a little bit of a cohesive elegance to the entire space.

Compared to what this looked like before,

like it was just sort of like desert wastelands and prison walls...

-What? -And you walk out here and any of the wood

that was here, you're getting a sliver, you're hurting your foot.

The composite product is soft on the feet,

it's nice, it's gonna last longer,

but the style, even having the planters out here is so awesome.

Hi!

I apologize that we're giving more barrier.

You won't get to see me anymore. [chuckles]

Nice to meet you.

The four planter boxes we've added

are built into the fence at different heights,

allowing the greenery to visually break up the wall

and it acts as a backdrop for our new lounge area.

[Jonathan] Okay.

Everything about this space, you're capturing

what was complete dead space and turning it into an awesome destination.

[upbeat music playing]

[Jonathan] While the deck crew continues on the wall fencing,

the rest of the team is concentrating on more of those

resort worthy design details.

Outdoor lighting installed in the flowerbeds and the decks

will allow for pool parties by day or night,

and the ceramic Spanish-inspired tile on the garden retaining wall

is gonna look amazing too.

[upbeat music playing]

That coupled with the light bright pool surround sealant

will give this modern oasis a Mediterranean flair.

The pool deck itself is actually in great shape.

What I don't like is the difference between

the new concrete we poured and the old stuff.

So when this is done, it'll all look like it was poured at the same time.

Unlike some of the concrete we had to rip out completely,

you don't always have to remove the concrete.

If it's just sort of hairline cracks or discoloration,

you can resurface it and a material like this is perfect because

when this is all done, it will all match,

and it will all look brand new.

The finished product actually has a moisture barrier in it as well

and it's kind of pliable.

So you're not gonna have the same vulnerabilities to cracking

as you would with the traditional concrete surface.

[Drew] Can you imagine Greg and Jill coming out here,

seeing their new backyard with the decking, the lighter color

-which is more stylish than what they had before? -Yeah.

Well, this is gonna be way more comfortable on the feet too

because it's gonna be nice and smooth but it still has that texture

where it's not gonna be slippery.

-It's just gonna be comfy. -Yeah.

I'm gonna mix another bucket.

[Drew] Showstopper.

[upbeat instrumental rock music playing]

-Help! -[chuckles]

-Don't... break it! -I don't want to damage it.

No damage allowed.

There's a big outdoor kitchen.

Sometimes, it takes lots of muscle

to get these pieces into the yard.

-But you don't have to go to the gym today. -That's right.

-This is the workout. -Yeah.

Okay, hold on. Uh, very gentle on this edge here.

[Drew] Okay.

At least it's in two pieces. It'd be impossible if it was in one piece.

These things are so massive.

But I love how it pieces together, bolts together.

Then when the stone is complete and all the facade,

everything will be beautiful once the appliances go in.

Let's just throw it up here for a second.

Get all this cardboard off and stuff.

-[cell phone ringing] -Oh! My phone's ringing.

Oh, no, it's your phone.

-Your phone, I believe. -My phone?

Oh! Is that me? Oh, that's me.

Oh! It's Laurence. One second.

Hey! How you doing?

-How are you? -I am good.

I'm here with Jonathan.

How's it going? How's it going?

-[Jonathan] Oh, my gosh. -[Drew] Oh!

It looks so good.

Look at this. Hold on.

This is the barbecue.

-All right. -Ooh!

[Drew laughs] Ooh!

-Look at this. -[exclaims] Whoa.

Oh, my God. Look at that.

But the greatest thing, because it has been so hot working out here,

-the awning all the way across. -[exclaims]

The awning is all automated.

Oh, my God.

Guys! Yes!

Do that dance! Do that dance!

How much longer you filming in Dublin?

Uh, I've got another...

[mumbles]

...three or four days and then I'll head back.

-Awesome. -Maybe?

But I'll be there for the... I'll be there for the big reveal.

-I'm excited. -[Drew] Oh, yeah.

Yeah. Well, it'll be nice too because we've got assembling furniture,

getting it unpacked, getting it placed

-so we can use help with all that. -All right. Okay.

But we haven't finished closing in all the pool equipment yet

so when you get back here, we can do that with you, yeah?

-Oh, wonderful. -How's your foot?

Oh, my God. Better.

I can walk like a man now.

-[Jonathan laughs] -[Drew] Ah, good!

-Oh, you got your shoe back on, that's good, yeah. -Yeah.

[Drew] I think Laurence Fishburne's voice

is in the back of my head at all times

because he has that bass-y... energy.

[imitates Laurence] Get it done.

You guys are killing it.

That outdoor space just alone is like...

I just-- I just want a frosty Paralyzer in my hand

-and kick my feet up. -[both laugh]

-It'll happen soon enough. -Uh, hold on a second.

It should be a big glass of Guinness

where you are right now.

-That's just more appropriate. -[Jonathan] That's it.

We miss you.

We look forward to you coming back

and finishing this up with us.

Well, guys, thank you. Thank you for keeping me in the loop

and for doing such an amazing job.

It means so much when it's for somebody that you love.

-[Drew] Yeah. -Well it's our pleasure.

-Safe travels. -Will do.

-[Drew] Yeah, we'll talk to you soon. Bye! -Yes.

Gregory, my man.

-What's this? -Don't worry about that.

They're not even here.

Okay! Where we going? We're going this way?

We're going this way. We're gonna go this way. Come on.

-Whoa! -Right this way.

-[Greg] Oh, my God! -Oh, my God!

[both laughing]

I'm loving the way that this looks now.

Come on, baby.

[Drew] You know what I like?

-Yeah? -A lot of people that will come in,

-they come in and all of a sudden, they-- -[drill powers on]

It's like they go super strong and then they scratch the face.

Yeah. Yeah.

Ooh, we are getting close.

Laurence snuck away early

but Greg is still in Ireland, finishing up his "Assignment."

He still has absolutely no idea what Laurence is up to.

You know what? I think it's your martial arts mind.

-It must be. -Because you-- you're calm.

-Yes. -You approach the situation

and you ease into it with power.

That's right.

There you go, baby.

-So-- -And we enclose this

-and it becomes part of the thing. -Yeah, you can--

-You can still access it from the back easily. -Okay, cool.

But at least it gives you a little barrier

and also gives a bit of a sound barrier... so.

Yes, exactly.

So I want to go low?

Yeah, yeah.

This is good.

We're continuing to use the same composite decking around the pool equipment

that we use for the decks and on the perimeter wall.

-Perfection. -Hey!

-Look at that. -Whoo-hoo!

-Right so... -Let's see how you do.

-This? -Oh!

-That the spot? -Perfect.

-All right! -Perfect, yeah.

-Let's get it in. -[in sing-song voice] Sexy!

[Drew] Sun is going down, our plants are going in

and our sleek fire bowl just arrived.

All the design details are going to make this staycation a destination.

[both laugh]

[upbeat music playing]

Hey, wait a second. Ready for this?

-Ooh! -[Drew] Huh?

-[imitates drum roll] -I don't know. Am I ready for this?

[exclaiming]

-All right. -You kidding me.

[Jonathan] Slow and dramatic.

-There we go. -This is magnificent.

[Jonathan] I love it.

You can tell Laurence is a detail guy

just by how much he appreciates

that we catered this design to how he told us Greg uses the space.

-Let's bring the sofa in. How's your ankle? -[Laurence] All right.

You know what?

Really good, much better.

I still have to wear the orthopedic shoes for about a week.

Did you tell your doctor that you kicked down a wall?

-Absolutely. -And what did he say?

He was like, "Really?"

"Man, you should have seen me.

I was kicking all kinds of walls."

[all laughing]

Where's the propane tank for this?

-So our table... right there. -Oh, wow!

And so it goes down under the deck.

-Right here. -Okay.

Pops up over there.

-[shushes] -So no one would even ever know.

-They don't even know it's there. -It's there.

Laurence is like an excited kid.

[Jonathan] It feels like you just want to jump in the pool right now.

[Laurence] A little pop.

Everywhere he looks, he sees these luxurious features.

-This is a huge table. -Yes.

And really, really very sexy too.

[Drew] He knows Greg is absolutely gonna love it.

-So what's the plan? -I'm gonna surprise him with a... a little whiskey.

You know, I kind of got him into Japanese whiskey.

And I think I'm going to...

-[Drew] Oh, really? Amazing. -you know, present him with a...

a little bottle as the surprise.

-So he'll think the whisky is the surprise. -Yes.

-He'll think the whisky is the surprise. -And then this will be...

And then this will be the surprise, yes.

The thing is, when you have a good whiskey,

-you need somewhere nice to enjoy it. -Exactly.

Greg and Jill got into this house in 2020.

You know, with the plan

to sort of do things with it, zhuzh it up, make it more homey,

invite their friends in.

You know, have dinner parties.

I'm really excited.

I'm really grateful to be able to provide this for him and Jill

because they work so hard, both of them.

-The awnings. -I know.

We have the remote.

You can hold the power. Don't lose it.

I have the power!

You're leaving and you're coming back tomorrow.

-I'll hold the power until tomorrow... -[laughing]

just in case.

[upbeat music playing]

[Drew] After four weeks away, do you think Greg has any idea what's going on?

[Jonathan] I mean, if I came home to Laurence Fishburne

and a full camera crew standing in my driveway,

if he didn't... he now does.

-Gregory my man. -Okay!

-I got a little surprise for you. -Yeah?

-Yeah. -Oh, yeah.

[Laurence] Oh, yeah.

-[laughing] You like? -Okay!

Don't worry about that. That's not...

Act as if-- like, this is how I do my job as an actor.

Pretend they're not even here.

Returning to see him just standing there

with... flanked by cameras was like...

What are you... What are you doing?

They're not even here, right?

Okay, where we're going? We're going this way?

We're going this way. We're gonna go this way. Come on.

Whiskey is one thing. Camera crew and whiskey is something else.

And I don't know what to make of that.

-Whoa! -Right this way.

-[Greg] Oh, my God. -Oh, my God!

[both laughing]

[upbeat music playing]

-Oh! -Right this way.

[Greg] What's happening?

-This deck is insane. -[Laurence laughing] Oh, yeah.

[Greg] Oh, that's amazing.

This is beautiful.

Oh, I love the tiles.

- [Laurence] Yeah? -This is great.

-[Laurence laughs] -This is so nice.

-[Greg] It's so warm. -Yes.

[Greg] It's so nice.

When I walk back there, it's a lot to take in, in a moment.

It-- it's so different.

I was looking at the far corner where the fire pit is.

Then I turned till, like, I saw the dining area. I'm like...

What is happening?

What do you do with a snapshot that is completely different

than what you know is supposed to be back there,

and now it's something new.

It goes well with this.

Anything goes well. This is amazing!

-You've been busy. -Yes, I have.

-What the... [sighs] -[Laurence laughs]

-Oh, hi! -Oh, my God.

[all laughing]

To be honest, it was just like,

"What's happening? Why is this happening?"

And then all of a sudden, these two giant, tall guys come popping up.

And it really freaked me out.

And I was like, "Oh! The Property Brothers!"

And it's like, "Okay! Now I get it."

-Where's Jill? -Where's Jill? Where's Jill?

-[laughs] -We'll get her.

-She'll-- She's been our inside person. -[Laurence] Yeah.

-This doesn't just happen. -No.

This is... the lottery.

-This is amazing. -It's stuff that you've been talking about

-for like... -Dreaming about.

-[Greg] Drainage! -[Jonathan] Yes.

-And we did-- -[Laurence] That's--

-How did you do-- -We had that big rainstorm.

[Greg] Yeah.

[Jonathan] And we tested it and everything drains properly.

-We ripped all the concrete up and repoured it. -Yeah!

So that it was not only sloping but draining.

[Greg] California seems to get all its rain in one week

and you solved it in a way that now,

I don't have to ever worry about my backyard again.

-Come on around the back. -[Greg] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Let's hop over to the yard.

[upbeat music playing]

[Greg gasps] I love the tiles!

[Jonathan] The tile feels like it could have always been there.

[Greg] Yeah, yeah.

-It all feels so put together, like it ties together. -Yeah.

The subtle touches of the tile, that is just so us.

It has that Mediterranean Spanish vibe

-that we... we love so much. -[Laurence] Mm-hmm. Yeah.

I feel loved.

You know. I feel loved by Laurence.

And I can tell that he made decisions that were all right on the money.

And check out the old wasted space.

[Greg] Yeah! Oh, that's amazing.

-This is so cool! -Isn't this amazing?

-[Laurence] These little planters. -[Greg] I love these planters!

-Gorgeous! And really just... -[Greg] I love this.

-...brilliant, like, simple. -So nice.

[Greg] Hated this whole area but now...

-[Laurence] But now... really sexy. -[Greg] This is amazing.

[Greg] This is actually... I can use my house.

Check out the view and the vantage point.

You weren't even utilizing this before

but now you can see who's in the pool,

who's over in the dining area.

This is amazing.

He gave me a quarter of my yard back.

The space that was there.

Now I can use it.

The umbrella is beautiful.

The fire pit, I can't wait to turn that on tonight.

The space is its own little zone

where it's just, you know, hang out.

We tried to make sure that the yard was beautiful

-but also low maintenance for you. -Oh! Yeah.

[Jonathan] All of this being composite, it doesn't need to be re-stained.

Doesn't-- You literally just hose it down when you want to hose it down.

-[Laurence] Yeah. -[Jonathan] And that's it.

-You're done. -That's fantastic.

And it's the same with that epoxy around the pool,

it's a water barrier, it's a nice seal,

and it's meant to last.

[Laurence] And getting that right

makes it a pleasure to be at your pool.

-Also moved the AC. -[Greg chuckles] Oh, my God.

-Now, it's over here -That's a big change.

So great.

You and I have been working together for 15, 16 years?

-Long time. -Right?

-Yeah. -And you're like my younger brother.

I'm kind of your older brother that's a pain in the ass.

-[Jonathan and Drew laugh] -Um, and I love you.

We love each other.

You always do whatever you can to make my life easier

and this is just my way of saying thank you.

I love you and trying to make your life a little easier.

-You made it a hell of a lot easier. -Yeah.

-It's a hell of a thank you. [laughs] -You're welcome.

[Greg] Wow.

Yeah, you've been talking about this since you moved into this house.

[Greg] Yeah. And it's so much better than I could have ever...

-ever have come up with on my own. -[Jonathan] Oh! Thank you.

-No, no, no, no. No. -[laughing]

This is it, the spot.

-[Laurence] La Cuisina. -[Greg exclaims]

-I mean, what do you think? -This table.

-You had such a great potential space out here. -Yeah!

But the way your deck ended before was a little shallow.

-Now, it's bigger, it's more usable. -[Laurence] Mm.

And you even have the full grill and outdoor kitchen.

[Laurence] Well, you want to see something really cool?

-[Greg gasps] -Check this out. Ready?

-[Laurence] Almost instant...aneously... -Come on now, y'all!

It covers the entire opening here so you can be out here

-because that sun... is brutal. -Is brutal.

-Yeah. -Baking, like this half of my face is like tanned

-heavily right now. -Yeah.

And, in reality, even if it was raining...

-you can sit out here. -You can sit out here.

-Really? -Yeah.

-In the rain. -You'll have shelter.

-You'll have total cover. -That's so nice.

This awning is huge

and it solves major problems that I have with that... that space.

The dining table is bigger than my indoor dining table.

-Dope! -Dig that.

[Greg] Ooh!

So I expect that you will be inviting me for several wonderful meals here.

-If you bring the meats. -I'll bring the meats!

[Jonathan] I love the waterfall.

-This material is fantastic. -This is a fantastic grill.

And you break it up with the porcelain on the front and back

-that's actually ribbed so it looks like the slab. -[Laurence] Mm-hmm.

[Jonathan] So you get new detail.

[Greg] More space for the fun stuff.

-Yes. -Oh!

-This, two fridges. -Okay!

-Oh, this is a fridge! -Yeah.

-Yeah! -[Jonathan] Two fridges so you can...

-[Greg] Oh, wow! -[Laurence] Yeah, so you can store the meats.

-Okay! -Mm-hmm.

It's an easy reach for another bottle of wine

or something in the refrigerator. Like you, it's...

-it's not disconnected to the rest of the space. -Right.

You know, I was thinking, you know, 15 years of working,

-20 years of knowing each other and it's like... -Hmm.

I know, at some point down the road, this job is gonna end

and I look forward to the day where

-I have you over and it's just us. -Yeah!

And we can go,

"Remember that time when...

[laughing]

...two brothers came to the back of my house

and scared the hell out of me?"

-Yeah. Yeah. -[laughing]

I've learned a lot working with Greg.

He's always got my back.

And so this is me trying to say,

"I got your back man."

I feel thankful.

-Love you, man. -I love you too.

-Thank you very much. -You're very welcome.

I don't... [sighs]

I really don't have the words for what Greg means to me

other than the word brother or family or loved one.

Welcome to your new backyard.

-Oh, wow! -[Laurence] Mm!

Okay. That is absolutely fantastic.

-How are you? It's nice to see you. -Oh, it's good to see you.

Oh, wow.

[Greg] As much as this was a surprise for me,

it doesn't mean anything unless you share it with somebody.

So thank you for helping make sure he knew nothing

and... and being our secret insider.

And seeing her

react the way I felt...

like, he did this for us.

I get verklempt. I started to cry.

It's dusty. It's windy out here, man.

[grunts]

I'm just happy she's happy.

Of course. After everything that we've been through with this house,

this is... this is just the greatest gift

I could ever imagine.

It's good, though. You cried like a man. It's good.

I don't know. It was kind of ugly.

[both laughing]

[Jonathan] I think there's some celebrations in order.

-[Laurence] Yes, sir. -[Greg] Yes!

-[Greg] Let's go. -Let's go have a little nip.

-Let's go have a snort. -And have a little snort.

To... Jill.

And Greg.

I love you guys.

To harmony in your new home.

-Oh! -Thank you so much.

-Yeah. -[Jonathan] Cheers.

Look at this.

Guys, thank you so much.

Thank you, guys. Thank you.

My man.

Thank you. Thank you so much.

You're the major. Thank you.

Thank you for everything.

-[Greg] I love you, brother. -I love you too.