According to Jenna Bush Hager, it may be a while until the fourth hour of Today picks a permanent replacement for former cohost Hoda Kotb.
“We’re kind of stoked just living in the Jenna & Friends era,” Bush Hager, 43, exclusively told Us Weekly at Kotb’s Joy 101 launch event in New York City on Wednesday, May 28. “We booked — I can’t tell you who — but we have amazing people next week, amazing, and amazing people the week after. And then, we have our summer booked, so we aren’t quite there yet.”
Bush Hager has continued to cohost the NBC morning show’s fourth hour, Today With Jenna & Friends, with a rotating lineup of celebrity guest hosts since Kotb, 60, exited the series on January 10. E! News cohost Justin Sylvester has become a fan favorite replacement, having hosted the show for several dates in February and April.
Sylvester returned to the show for a third time since Kotb’s departure on Monday, May 26. He will wrap up his four-day-long hosting gig on Friday, May 30. (Kotb returned to cohost with Bush Hager on Wednesday’s Jenna & Friends.)
Nathan Congleton/NBC Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager formed a strong bond both on and off the small screen. Kotb and Bush Hager joined NBC’s Today in 2007 and 2009, respectively, and went on to cohost the show’s fourth hour together following Kathie Lee Gifford’s 2019 exit. For over five years, the duo made fans […]
Though Bush Hager remained tight-lipped on whether Sylvester, 38, may officially sit alongside her, she gushed about her current cohost and pal while chatting with Us. “I love Justin,” she shared. “We’re going to Beyoncé together. Cowboy Carter, let’s go!”
The duo was joined at Wednesday night’s concert by Bush Hager’s cousin Wendy Stapleton — who previously cohosted Jenna & Friends back in March — pal Jamie Alexander Tisch and Jenna & Friends executive producer Talia Parkinson-Jones.
Hoda Kotb, Jenna Bush Hager. Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Joy 101
Before the group rocked out to Queen B, Bush Hager got emotional on Wednesday reuniting onscreen with Kotb for the first time since her Today exit. Kotb made her triumphant return to 30 Rockefeller Plaza to launch her new wellness brand, Joy 101.
“I was expecting to cry and I was a little bit like, ‘Don’t cry, don’t cry.’ But what can I do? It’s the energy,” Bush Hager said of sharing the desk again with Kotb. “She inspires me. I’m so proud of her, and I feel like that was part of the tears. They were happy tears.”
Despite the sweet reunion, Bush Hager told Us she’s happy to see Kotb living her dream post-Today. “We’re actually really proud of what we built over the last five months. And I miss her and I’m cheering for her in a million different ways, all the ways I can,” she said. “It felt so good to have her back, and also, I’m so proud of what she’s building. When somebody says bye, they say bye for a reason. I should have known that with my college boyfriend.”
Jenna Bush Hager, Hoda Kotb. Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images
On Wednesday’s episode of Jenna & Friends, Kotb credited Bush Hager with inspiring her to launch her wellness journey after suggesting she take a breathwork class. “I did one session with this woman and I exploded in tears and I was transformed,” she explained. “And from that moment on, you and I have been on the exact same path. … And breathwork led to meditation and deep prayer. All the things that we love were all in one spot.”
Bush Hager went on to share kind words about her former TV partner, stating, “The fact that you are Professor Kotb of Joy 101 makes perfect sense. I think you’re doing exactly what you’re supposed to be doing, even though it feels like [hosting] is also what you’re supposed to be doing.”
