Yahoo Lifestyle Hoda Kotb’s Final ‘Today’ Show Celebrated With Laughs and Tears: ‘Thank You From the Bottom of My Very Full Heart’
As her “Today” family dubbed her final day, “It’s a Hoda-bration!”
Hoda Kotb was fêted on Friday during her last day hosting “Today” after 17 years at the show. Kotb announced her departure in September 2024, citing wanting to spend more time with her two daughters. She’s expected to continue to contribute to the show, and NBC News overall, after her departure.
More from Variety
Scarlett Johansson Joins 'Today With Jenna & Friends' as Guest Co-Host After Hoda Kotb's Departure
NBC's 'Today' Breaks From Morning Routine With 'Start Today' Wellness App
Anchors Away: TV-News Veterans Exit Ahead of Ratings Challenges, Digital Change in 2025
At the top of the 7 a.m. ET hour, a supercut of the morning’s news stories — including a tease of Kotb’s on-air celebration — left her and her co-anchor Savannah Guthrie near tears early in the broadcast. The two anchors were hand-in-hand after the intro, with Kotb saying, “One last time, let’s do this.”
Additionally, the crowd outside “Today” was filled with people holding signs saying goodbye to Kotb, including, “Thank you Hoda! We’ll miss you!” and “Blessed by Hoda!” Other NBC News personalities like Keith Morrison and Maria Shriver also paid tribute to Kotb early in the broadcast.
In the 8 a.m. ET hour, the “Today” anchors aired a special goodbye package to Kotb that began with Guthrie giving a pre-taped interview from the makeup room where the two co-anchors spent every morning today together before the show started.
“If I do this interview does that mean she won’t leave?” Guthrie asked. “She is like a sister to me. She is so special it is almost beyond description.”
Craig Melvin, who is taking over Hoda’s anchor chair following her departure, said the giant window behind the “Today” desk should be named the “Hoda Window” because of how loyal Kotb was to the fans who gathered outside of the studio every morning and how she constantly engaged with them.
Al Roker told viewers that with everything Kotb does, “she leads with her heart,” adding: “She’s probably one of the most selfless people I know. I was gravely ill. I never had any idea how sick I was. I was in the hospital and Hoda was there if not every day then almost every day. It got to the point where I think people actually thought she was a doctor.”
“Hoda, I love you. I love you deeply,” Guthrie said at the end of the package while fighting back tears. “Like I always tell you: Whether you sit next to me or not, whether we get up at 4 a.m. or not, I will always be by your side and you will always be by mine.”
The hosts then threw to some celebrities wishing Kotb an emotional goodbye, including Jamie Lee Curtis and Oprah Winfrey.
“I know what making this decision feels like,” Winfrey told Kotb. “I want to assure you that yes, you have made the right move, even though it was hard to do. Your children are going to benefit so much from this decision. Whatever you decide to do again in your next chapter, it will be the best decision for you and for your family.”
Guthrie then walked Kotb out of the studio and into the plaza and surprised her with all of the producers and crew from “Today” lining the hallways and cheering for the departing anchor. Olympic icon Simone Biles and Maria Shriver also popped up in the studio to say goodbye to Kotb.
“She is our Olympic mom,” Biles said. “I have been coming to the ‘Today’ show for years and sharing vulnerable stories and Hoda has given us such a platform to be open and raw. She’s created a safe space for us to tell our stories.”
In 10 a.m. hour of “Today,” Kotb read a letter to her co-hosts and the people who have watched her all these years.
“I want to say thank you from the bottom of my very full heart for the ride of a lifetime,” Kotb said in a pre-recorded segment.
In the final stretch, country music artist Walker Hayes surprised Kotb with a live rendition of the unreleased song he wrote with Kotb, “Wednesdays.” Before Hayes walked out on stage, Kotb explained that the song is about not the highs and lows of life, but the regular days. “If you love your Wednesdays, you’ll love your life,” Kotb said.
“If tomorrow ain’t nothing new, I’m just glad I could do another Wednesday with you,” Hayes sang as Kotb wiped away tears and mouthed every word.
Before signing off, Kotb introduced the entire “Today” crew to the audience, shouting out executive producer Talia Parkinson-Jones as “the best hire NBC ever made.” She then brought her kids on stage and hugged them tight, ready for her next chapter.
Kotb joined NBC News in 1998 and hopped aboard “Today” as the first host of its fourth-hour segment in September 2007. The segment gained cultural ubiquity once she was joined by co-host Kathie Lee Gifford in April 2008. The duo’s breezy energy and love of wine was a winning formula for the show and lasted until Gifford’s departure in 2019. Gifford was replaced by Jenna Bush Hager, who has hosted alongside Kotb ever since.
Beyond her fourth-hour duties, Kotb was elevated to co-anchor of “Today” alongside Guthrie in Jan. 2018, in the wake of Matt Lauer’s termination for “inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.”
The celebratory mood was somewhat dampened by a heartbreaking and busy news day, including continued coverage of the L.A. fires, a massive winter storm hitting the south and Trump’s impending sentencing on felony charges.
Best of Variety
Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
