Hoda Kotb
Nathan Congleton/NBCHoda KotbThe decision to leave the Today The show came as a shock to fans, but he has been thinking about continuing for some time.
Kotb, 60, went public with his decision to leave the morning show on Monday, October 7. The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallonexplaining that he first considered leaving around the time of his August birthday.
“When I turned 60, something weird happened, man,” he told the manager Jimmy Fallon. “It was my 60th birthday and we had a great party Today show, and I looked at the sea of all the people coming with good signs and many good wishes and I knew in my heart, like, ‘This is it, man. This is what a mountain top must feel like.’ Like, I’ve never had this feeling before.”
Kotb also explained that he is in a “rebound” phase of his life. “You know when you pull yourself up by the roots, you just hang up and say, ‘Oh my god, what have I done?’ What’s going on?’” she said. But you know you will fall on fertile ground.
Nathan Congleton/NBC Hoda Kotb’s nearly 20 years on the Today show have been filled with many memorable moments. The TV host announced in September 2024 that he will leave the historic morning show after 26 years at NBC, 16 years as host of Today and seven years as Savannah Guthrie’s assistant. “I just turned around […]
Kotb announced on Sept. 26 that he will leave the morning show in early 2025 after five years as co-anchor and nearly three decades at NBC.
“I realized that it was time for me to turn the page at the age of 60, to try something new. This is the right time for me to move on,” he explained in the air as he introduced the show Savannah Guthrie while citing her daughters, Haley, 7, and Hope, 5, as motivations for the decision.
Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager
Nathan Congleton/NBCOn Monday, Kotb joked that he wouldn’t know what he would do at night after so many years of going to bed early only to wake up at 3:15 in the morning. Today.
“This is going to be totally weird,” he joked. “At this point I’ve been awake for, like, 17 years. For the first time, there is no alarm, it is clicked.”
Last month, an NBC insider told exclusively Us Weekly that morning TV is “such a chore in your life” – especially if you have children at home.
Hoda Kotb has shared many life experiences – both triumphant and difficult – with TV viewers over the years. Kotb notably missed several episodes of the Today show in early 2023. Co-stars Craig Melvin and Sheinelle Jones announced in March that his absence was due to a “family health issue,” which Kotb later revealed was involved. […]
“I think the average person understands that morning TV isn’t glamorous,” the insider added. “She is a mother later in life. He wants to focus on his children.”
Kotb’s last day on Today has not yet been announced, but he said last month that he plans to be operational in early 2025. He also noted that he won’t be leaving NBC entirely.
“Happily and thankfully, I plan to remain a part of the NBC family, the longest relationship I’ve been fortunate enough to hold close to my heart,” he said in a statement. “I will be there. How could I? Family is family and you will always be a part of me.”
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