HGTV’s “Renovation Aloha” aired uncensored images this week of apparent ancient skeletal remains found in a cave beneath a Hilo property, even after a state judge ordered the material kept off the air. Court documents say Kamohai Kalama, Tristyn Kalama and producers of the show now face four counts for allegedly breaking Iwi Kupuna protection rules.
The episode showed the Kalamas and the production team discovering the cave in December 2025, with Kamohai Kalama saying, “There’s bones back here. I got to get out of here. Are you fricken serious? I’m serious dude. Is that a skull?” Tristyn Kalama then said, “This is terrifying. I’m at my stopping point,” before leaving. The temporary restraining order obtained by the state attorney general was meant to stop those images from being broadcast under state law, but the uncensored footage still aired and was also posted online this week.
Hawaii News Now said the site was later blessed after authorities were notified. HGTV said the property was not developed and police said at the time that no crime was committed. Even so, the release of the images triggered a sharp backlash from Native Hawaiian cultural leaders and a fast-moving legal response from state officials.
Former Oahu Island Burial Council Chair Kumu Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu said the footage was “extremely disappointing,” adding, “We don’t kaula’i iwi. We do not lay our bones out in the sun to expose him in this manner.” She said, “It is irrelevant that bones were not moved. It is irrelevant that they were not disturbed, per se, because somebody didn’t touch them — but you went into their space and that space becomes kapu space once they have transitioned over to po. And when you do that, we honor that. We don’t disturb them.”
The attorney general said the office took immediate legal action to stop the unlawful broadcast and, after the segment aired anyway, would consider more steps. “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,” the office said. HGTV later said it removed the original episode and re-edited it without the bones, while also apologizing to viewers who found any part of it offensive. The Kalamas said on Instagram that they followed the protocols they knew, never intended to build there and respect Hawaiian culture and practices. The dispute now turns on a simple fact with legal weight: the images are already out, and the state is deciding how far to go to answer for that.