'American Pickers' Accused of Faking Scene
Fans criticized the show, calling it 'staged.'
American Pickers star Rob Wolfe is under fire from viewers for appearing to fake a genuine moment in a clip posted on the History Channel's show official TikTok account. In the uploaded footage, Rob, 63, went through a couple's antiques room to find valuable vintage items.
During his quest, Rob found a huge light-up sign manufactured in Minnesota circa the 1940s-1960s for the beer brand Hamm's. "Fifteen years ago, I would've walked right by these, but the collecting field has changed," Rob said in the video.
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"There are newer collectors coming into it that remember these signs growing up." Some fans were skeptical that the TV star simply stumbled upon the antique on his own, even though it seemed as if he had found it naturally.
"The show sucks – now it's all staged," said one commenter. In a Reddit thread, several other users supported this view.
"That show still on? That show felt more fake than Pawn Stars," argued a user. "American Pickers is fake, but as far as I've seen it stays within the realm of possibility..." claimed another.
Meanwhile, fans have recently called for Rob Wolfe to depart the show. An insider claimed in September that Rob, 59, and his brother Mike Wolfe, 59, may already be planning to retire.
"I don't know how long the show will last. I don't know how long Mike and Rob want to do this. I think they would like to retire at some point. It's been 12 years," a friend of Mike's told The U.S. Sun.
"It's a strain on your life. They've done this a long time. When they're around it's, 'Ah we're on the road again. I ain't got time to do this, I ain't got time to do that.'"
"It's a love-hate like with any job. Some days you don't wish you had that job and you could do whatever you wanted. Some days you're all excited about your job," the source added.
Although the show's future seems to be in limbo, Season 25 kicked off with unimpressive ratings for its premiere episode, with only 723,000 viewers tuning in. Despite this, according to The U.S. Sun, the show's Jan. 24 episode, "The Five Generation Pick," brought in the season's highest ratings with 948,000 viewers, as the show continues to experience fluctuating ratings throughout the season.