Hoda Kotb Weighs In On Her ‘Today’ Show Replacement After NBC Names Craig Melvin: ‘You Were Made For This Job’
November 14, 2024 by Marissa Matozzo
Almost two months have passed since Hoda Kotb revealed that she’d be departing the Today show. Now, it has been confirmed that her colleague Craig Melvin will take over her co-anchor role! Beginning in January, Melvin, 45, will star alongside Savannah Guthrie.
Both Kotb, 60, and the fans of the daytime television show shared favorable comments about her replacement, as shown by the reactions on social media after the November 14th announcement. On-air today, Kotb said to Melvin: “You are made for this job.” She gushed: “You are literally made for this job. You are that kind of good. You have all the things that this job needs. You’re the right person for it.”
Melvin sweetly replied: “It means a lot to inherit this from you. You helped save the show and to be able to sit next to someone who I knew was smart for years and all of a sudden you start working with her and you’re like, ‘Wait a minute, she’s funny too!'”
The broadcaster is set to join Guthrie, 52, as co-anchor starting January 13th, right after Kotb’s final appearance on January 10th. Melvin presently co-hosts the third hour of Today with Al Roker, Sheinelle Jones, and Dylan Dreyer. In his new position, he will take on a consecutive three-hour hosting duty.
During the on-air replacement announcement, Melvin said he thinks of both Kotb and Guthrie as the “sisters that I never knew that I needed.” Roker, 70, joined online to extend his congratulations to Melvin. He started by reminiscing about a moment they experienced together while covering the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea.
“I knew this day would come,” Roker said. He added: “I am so proud and so happy for you right now. You are so worthy of this. I almost don’t have the words. I love you.” Melvin then paused to look back on his experiences and express gratitude to his fellow anchors.