As Hoda Kotb bids farewell to Today, Jenna Bush Hager is starting a new era of the NBC morning show’s fourth hour.
Following Kotb’s final episode on Friday, January 10, Today With Hoda & Jenna will be revamped into Today With Jenna & Friends. The new show will see Bush Hager, 43, cohost alongside a rotating panel of celebrity guest hosts until Kotb’s official replacement is selected.
“Whoever sits in this seat is going to have the easiest job in the world ‘cause they’re sitting next to you,” Kotb, 60, said on a September 2024 episode of Hoda & Jenna after announcing her Today exit. “I mean, the only thing they have to do is not laugh so hard they pee their pants. That’s it. They just have to hang on. You are this bright light, you always have been, and it’s your turn.”
At the time, Bush Hager replied: “If I’m bright, it’s because I’m sitting in your glow.”
Kotb helped Bush Hager announce her first lineup of guest hosts during her final week of Today, describing her first three picks as “heavy-hitter, homerun [and] wow” on the Monday, January 6, episode of Hoda & Jenna.
After hearing the brand-new Jenna & Friends theme song, Kotb tearfully told her TV partner: “I was picturing you and how proud I’m gonna be of you walking right here from that wall to this desk with that song. It’s gonna be awesome. It’s gonna be amazing.”
Scroll down to see which celebs will be sitting next to Bush Hager on Today With Jenna & Friends:
Taraji P. Henson
Hosting dates: The week of January 13
Eva Longoria
Hosting dates: The week of January 13
Keke Palmer
Hosting dates: The week of January 13
