NBC is discreetly gearing up for Savannah Guthrie’s comeback on Today, crafting plans for her first day back that include a meaningful moment on the plaza, sources reveal to Daily Mail.
Yet, amidst these preparations, a quiet buzz persists within the network: will Hoda Kotb be featured in the broadcast on that day?
During Savannah’s absence, Hoda stepped in, maintaining the show’s stability throughout the turmoil surrounding Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance.
Now that Savannah has returned to New York, where she was recently spotted reconnecting with NBC colleagues, speculation is mounting about whether Hoda Kotb will join her on the Today show set when she makes her return.
For the moment, NBC reportedly does not intend for Kotb, 61, to share the limelight, as the spotlight remains firmly on Savannah.
Insiders suggest there are plans to release yellow balloons in the plaza outside 1 Rockefeller Plaza, symbolizing support for Nancy and celebrating Savannah’s return.
Savannah Guthrie was seen visiting NBC’s Rockefeller Plaza headquarters last week as she prepares for a possible return to the Today show following weeks away searching for her missing mother
The veteran anchor spent weeks in Tucson, Arizona but returned to New York as the search continues for her 84-year-old mother, Nancy, who vanished from her home on February 1
‘They want the moment to feel hopeful,’ one network source says. ‘Something simple that viewers on the plaza and at home will instantly understand.’
Since the disappearance of 84-year-old Nancy from her Tucson home at the start of last month, tributes of yellow roses and balloons have been placed outside her home.
The octogenarian remains missing six weeks after she vanished, while the huge manhunt launched by the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI has been scaled back.
Despite the lack of progress in the case, NBC insiders say they intend to create ‘a hopeful moment’ with the yellow balloons while also being supportive of Guthrie who has released multiple tearful videos begging for her mom’s return.
Kotb has remained supportive of the mom-of-two throughout the ordeal and was photographed hugging and kissing Guthrie on her return to New York last week.
She has made no secret of the fact she wants to stay on at the breakfast TV juggernaut, despite quitting the show last year to spend more time with her two adopted daughters.
According to data from Nielsen Today ratings have spiked a full 23 percent – or by 624,000 viewers – over the year-earlier period, as regulars Hoda Kotb and Craig Melvin (seen on the Today set on February 12) stepped in amid Savannah’s absence
Kotb was seen hugging and kissing Guthrie during an emotional reunion in New York last week
‘This isn’t just about feelings – it’s about protecting the franchise,’ an NBC insider exclusively told the Daily Mail.
‘Morning TV is a multimillion-dollar machine, and they need stability. Right now, that stability is Hoda.
‘And Hoda is absolutely ready to step back in full-time if asked. She never really left the building mentally.’
Production staffers too are wondering what Guthrie’s return might mean for them with some saying they fear the 54-year-old’s high standards.
‘You think The Morning Show is bad?’ a source told the Daily Mail, referring to the Apple TV drama series.
‘That’s nothing. These people will steal your chair while you’re still sitting in it.
‘From the hair and makeup people to the producers, you can’t trust anyone, they all talk.’
For now, Guthrie’s focus is still largely on her family. She has been left ‘devastated’ by her mother’s disappearance as well as by the circus that has ensued with influencers even caught snapping selfies outside Nancy’s $1 million Tucson home.
Sources say producers are reportedly planning to release yellow balloons outside Rockefeller Plaza to mark Guthrie’s return and symbolize hope for her missing mother
Nancy Guthrie was last seen in her $1 million home in the neighborhood of Catalina Hills in Tucson, Arizona on January 31
‘She’s praying for answers and instead her mother’s home has become a circus, said another source.
‘Right now that house feels like the scene of a crime, not a family home.
‘The idea of tearing it down has come up simply because the memories there are becoming unbearable.’
Guthrie’s appearance at the Today Show HQ was her first in nearly three months. Before her mother’s disappearance she had been off the air for a month while recovering from surgery to remove vocal cord nodules.
‘There’s real uncertainty about Savannah’s timeline,’ another insider explained. ‘No one knows when – or if – things return to normal.’
