The Today Show is losing a legend as Hoda Kotb announced that she’ll be leaving the show in early 2025. This news sparked many emotional reactions online because the longtime host is beloved by many. However, an insider has now opened up about how the staff working on the NBC program were shocked by the announcement too.
After spending a lot of time reflecting, Kotb explained that as she entered her 60s, she realized it was “time for [her] to turn the page.” The anchor spent 26 years total at NBC and six co-anchoring the first two hours of The Today Show specifically. So, this is a massive change. According to an insider who spoke with People, her exit wasn’t widely known either, as they said:
This was a complete surprise to most people at the show. However, Hoda has put a lot of thought into it. She also talked a lot about it with both Savannah [Guthrie] and Jenna [Bush Hager].
It is shocking that this apparently wasn’t widely known before she broke this personal news live on air on September 26, and you can see how emotional everyone was about it in the video below. However, she is giving her colleagues as well as viewers time to adjust to the change, because she also said that she’ll be hosting Today through the rest of the 2024 TV schedule and into early 2025.
Also, it makes sense that Savannah Guthrie and Jenna Bush Hager were the two she reportedly confided in first. They are who she works the closest with, and they were the two she sat next to and held hands with as she announced this bittersweet news.
The insider also claimed that Kotb made this decision with her kids, who are 7 and 5, in mind. They said:
Ultimately, she made the final decision in the interest of her girls. The show is focused on Hoda right now, not on filling the roles just yet.
While this insider said there aren’t any replacements in mind, there are already rumors about who will take Kotb’s seat. Weekend anchor Laura Jarrett is allegedly a top contender. However, it also would make sense if Today Show weekday mainstays like Craig Melvin, Sheinelle Jones or Carson Daly took over too.
We have Hoda through the first part of the 2025 TV schedule though, so there’s no need to worry about a replacement yet.
Ultimately, this departure will mark the end of a big chapter for The Today Show, so it tracks that the staff was surprised by Kotb’s announcement. The insider elaborated on that point, saying:
Hoda's news of course surprised some staffers, but she's so beloved and everybody at Today is just wishing her well.
Since taking over for Matt Lauer in 2018, Kotb has become a staple of the first two hours of Today, which only added to her impact, as she’d already been co-hosting the fourth hour for 11 years before that. She’s been the face of three of the four hours of the program for a very long time, and seeing her go will be hard. Therefore, I completely understand why the staff was surprised as well as why they’re incredibly happy for her and what’s next.
As we learn more about Hoda Kotb’s exit from The Today Show and who will take her place, we’ll keep you posted. In the meantime, you can catch her last few months as co-anchor by watching the morning news program every weekday on NBC or with a Peacock subscription between 7 and 11 a.m. ET.