From left: Hoda Kotb, Taraji P. Henson, Keke Palmer and Eva Longoria.Photo:Darren Gerrish/WireImage; Nina Westervelt/CBS/Getty; Prince Williams/WireImage; Arnold Turner/Getty
Darren Gerrish/WireImage; Nina Westervelt/CBS/Getty; Prince Williams/WireImage; Arnold Turner/Getty
Jenna Bush Hagerwill have some new faces joining her as co-host of theTodayshow onceHoda Kotbmakes her exit later this week — and the list is star-studded!On Monday, Jan. 6, Bush Hager, 43,announcedon the air that as Kotb, 60, wraps up her final week as a co-host onToday,a rotating list of celebrity guests will be stepping in to help fill the empty slot, includingTaraji P. Henson,Eva LongoriaandKeke Palmer.“It’s going to be our month of wonder women,” Bush Hager said during Monday’s broadcast, revealing that the three actresses would be joining her during the week of Jan. 13.“You know what that says? Heavy hitter, home run, wow,” Hoda chimed in. “This is a big week.““We love these women, we’ve said we love these women,” Bush Hager added. “I feel like Hoda helped me manifest this. Nobody will ever fill this chair, but the three of them sure can try.“Hoda Kotb (left) and Jenna Bush Hager.Nathan Congleton/NBC/GettyHenson, Longoria and Palmer have all appeared onTodaymultiple times, each coming on as guests to share comedic bits, speak about their business ventures and more.The newly-rebrandedToday with Jenna & Friendswill begin on Jan. 13, and the morning talk show will feature a rotating roster of co-hosts until someone permanent is named. The pair also revealed that the show will have a new theme song, which Bush Hager unveiled on Monday.“I was picturing you and how proud I’m going to be of you, walking right here from that wall to this desk with that song,” Hoda told her co-host during the show. “It’s going to be awesome. It’s going to be amazing.“Kotb firstannounced her plans to depart her role atTodayon Sept. 26 after 17 years on the show and 25 years total working for NBC, tellingPEOPLEsoon after that she planned to focus on spending time with her family followingher youngest daughter’s medical emergency in 2023.“I’ve kind of been contemplating, wondering, thinking about what I wanted this next chunk of my life to look like as I turned 60. And I like adventure,I like new beginnings. I’m a sunrise person and not a sunset person, and I was wondering, what does it look like for me?” she told PEOPLE in early October.Hoda Kotb (left) and Jenna Bush Hager in November 2024.Nathan Congleton/NBC/Getty”… There’s the guilt you carry because you can’t be 100% at work and 100% at home,” she added. “Something has to give if you want excellence. If you’re going to be excellent at work, something has to give at home. And if you want to be excellent at home, I meanexcellent, and do all the things, something has to give at work. It can’t be equal.“Kotb won’t be gone from NBC entirely, though, as she notes the plan is still “being formulated,” she said in another conversation withPEOPLE.“It’ll involve doing some specials, doing the podcast and doing maybe the Olympics, stuff like that,” theMaking Spacepodcast host explained at the time. “It’ll be like those kinds of things. So it’ll be specials and all those things. And I think every month or so, I’ll come back on theTodayshow and do a little something in this space, which I think will be fun.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.TheTodayshow airs weekdays, beginning at 7 a.m. ET, on NBC.
Jenna Bush Hagerwill have some new faces joining her as co-host of theTodayshow onceHoda Kotbmakes her exit later this week — and the list is star-studded!
On Monday, Jan. 6, Bush Hager, 43,announcedon the air that as Kotb, 60, wraps up her final week as a co-host onToday,a rotating list of celebrity guests will be stepping in to help fill the empty slot, includingTaraji P. Henson,Eva LongoriaandKeke Palmer.
“It’s going to be our month of wonder women,” Bush Hager said during Monday’s broadcast, revealing that the three actresses would be joining her during the week of Jan. 13.
“You know what that says? Heavy hitter, home run, wow,” Hoda chimed in. “This is a big week.”
“We love these women, we’ve said we love these women,” Bush Hager added. “I feel like Hoda helped me manifest this. Nobody will ever fill this chair, but the three of them sure can try.”
Hoda Kotb (left) and Jenna Bush Hager.Nathan Congleton/NBC/Getty
Nathan Congleton/NBC/Getty
Henson, Longoria and Palmer have all appeared onTodaymultiple times, each coming on as guests to share comedic bits, speak about their business ventures and more.
The newly-rebrandedToday with Jenna & Friendswill begin on Jan. 13, and the morning talk show will feature a rotating roster of co-hosts until someone permanent is named. The pair also revealed that the show will have a new theme song, which Bush Hager unveiled on Monday.
“I was picturing you and how proud I’m going to be of you, walking right here from that wall to this desk with that song,” Hoda told her co-host during the show. “It’s going to be awesome. It’s going to be amazing.”
Kotb firstannounced her plans to depart her role atTodayon Sept. 26 after 17 years on the show and 25 years total working for NBC, tellingPEOPLEsoon after that she planned to focus on spending time with her family followingher youngest daughter’s medical emergency in 2023.
“I’ve kind of been contemplating, wondering, thinking about what I wanted this next chunk of my life to look like as I turned 60. And I like adventure,I like new beginnings. I’m a sunrise person and not a sunset person, and I was wondering, what does it look like for me?” she told PEOPLE in early October.
Hoda Kotb (left) and Jenna Bush Hager in November 2024.Nathan Congleton/NBC/Getty
“… There’s the guilt you carry because you can’t be 100% at work and 100% at home,” she added. “Something has to give if you want excellence. If you’re going to be excellent at work, something has to give at home. And if you want to be excellent at home, I meanexcellent, and do all the things, something has to give at work. It can’t be equal.”
Kotb won’t be gone from NBC entirely, though, as she notes the plan is still “being formulated,” she said in another conversation withPEOPLE.
“It’ll involve doing some specials, doing the podcast and doing maybe the Olympics, stuff like that,” theMaking Spacepodcast host explained at the time. “It’ll be like those kinds of things. So it’ll be specials and all those things. And I think every month or so, I’ll come back on theTodayshow and do a little something in this space, which I think will be fun.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.
TheTodayshow airs weekdays, beginning at 7 a.m. ET, on NBC.
source: people.com
