Ashton Kutcher Remodels His Mom's Home as a Mother's Day Surprise

Rather than chocolates or flowers or some mass-produced card from CVS, Ashton Kutcher opted for a more personal gift this Mother's Day: renovating the basement of her home in Iowa. And, hell, if the remodel also garners a little publicity for one of Kutcher's investments, it's just a happy coincidence. There ain't nothing wrong with a little hustle.

"It's my way of saying thank you to my mom," Kutcher says of the remodel, which he organized using Houzz, a home remodel startup website for which he — you guessed it —is an investor. "My mom has been the greatest influence in my life."

Kutcher says that he and his stepfather Mark built the Homestead, Iowa, home when he was 13 years old, and his parents still live there today. The main goal of the renovation is to turn the basement into a much warmer space. "If I could make this space special and make it a space for my mom ... and just really make it beautiful for her, that would be fulfilling," he explains.

Ashton Kutcher and his mom Diane (Getty Images)
Ashton Kutcher and his mom Diane (Getty Images)

But in order to maintain the surprise, Kutcher had to lure his mother, Diane Finnegan Kutcher, out of her home for the 27 days it took to completely remodel the basement. He used every mother's catnip: a brand new grandbaby. Kutcher and his fiancée, Mila Kunis, asked his mother to stay in Los Angeles to help out with their newborn daughter, Wyatt. Upon her return to Iowa, Diane was surprised to find a brand new basement.

"I went to visit Ashton and the new baby and they decided they needed me to stay out there for a little while to help," she says in the video. "And I come, and this is what I find. It does mean a lot to me, it's beautiful."

"Being able to do this for my mom it's like a lifelong dream," Kutcher says of his gift. "You know, you grow up and you have a good parent, and I don't know that there's anything I could ever do that really says thank you, but trying sure feels good."