“Today” is looking a little brighter as the NBC staple has found its latest guest star in Scarlett Johansson. The A-lister will co-host the morning show following Hoda Kotb’s departure beginning on Jan. 20.
Johansson will co-host for a full week unlike the show’s previously announced guests. “I am beyond thrilled. I cannot wait,” current host Jenna Bush Hager told People on Tuesday. “We’ve never seen Scarlett Johansson host a daytime show before!”
Johansson is far from the only big-name star who is being recruited to fill Kotb’s heels. “Today With Jenna & Friends” will launch Jan. 13, the Monday after Kotb’s last day on Jan. 10. In addition to Johansson, Taraji P. Henson, Eva Longoria and Keke Palmer are all expected to guest host the storied show. The three will alternate the hosting job throughout the first week of “Jenna & Friends.”
After 26 years with NBC, Kotb announced her departure in September of 2024. Though Kotb has said this move was made so she could spend more time with her family, reports have noted it happened in part because NBC asked Kotb to take a pay cut on her $20 million salary. “Happily and gratefully, I plan to remain a part of the NBC family, the longest work relationship I’ve been lucky enough to hold close to my heart. I’ll be around. How could I not? Family is family and you all will always be a part of mine,” Kotb said at the time.
The current plan is to hold the 4th-hour spot in “Today” for Bush Hager and a rotating roster of guest hosts. Kotb’s other hours will be taken over by NBC News anchor, Craig Melvin.
“Today” is far from the first talk show to capitalize on celebrity guest hosts following a famous departure. After Trevor Noah announced he was leaving “The Daily Show,” Comedy Central handed the show over to various celebrity guests all throughout 2023. The late night show eventually recruited its longtime former host Jon Stewart to return in 2024 and has since settled into a pattern of Stewart hosting on Mondays and alternating members of the “Daily Show” news desk hosting the rest of the week.
