Hoda Kotb Returns to ‘Today’ After an Emergency Involving a Close Friend: Inside Her Exit

The hosting door of NBC’s Today has been revolving more than usual lately, with one of the latest abrupt exits coming from Hoda Kotb. The storied anchor and fourth hour cohost darted from the cameras on Wednesday, March 27, and revealed what happened the following day. 

“I miss you when you’re gone, do you know that?” cohost Jenna Bush Hager told Hoda, 59, before the I’ve Loved You Since Forever author explained why she missed the show. 

“A good friend of ours, who we both love dearly Laura — who does our hair — her mom passed,” Hoda explained. “And Laura’s one of the good eggs, she’s kind of mothering to everybody.”

“She sure is. Very maternal. We love you, Laura,” Jenna, 42, echoed in agreement. George W. Bush’s daughter, who has been a staple on the fourth hour of Today alongside Hoda since Kathie Lee Gifford’s departure, was joined by Willie Geist for the Wednesday telecast, though they did not say at the time why Hoda was missing. 

“Not only can Willie host all the shows on television, and pull out my chair … but he also is a star,” Jenna said of Willie, who is set to star in an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm this year. His guest role was a quick conversation starter during the lively talk show hour. 

Fans no doubt were happy to see Hoda back on the screen, but her absence might become more of a mainstay given that she is moving with her two daughters, Haley and Hope. The NBC star announced her intentions to move on the March 27 episode of her “Making Space” podcast, revealing that her daughters’ education is a motivating factor. 

“I was thinking about moving. My kids and I are going to move somewhere to a new school, and I was reflecting on my life and how many times we moved when I was a kid,” Hoda told author Arthur Brooks during their conversation. “And I remember once my parents moved us to Nigeria, I was in fourth grade, I was horrified. Like, we get to this place, the language was different, everybody seemed different and it was hard. I moved again in sixth grade.” 

She continued, “It’s so funny because the stories I tell now as an adult, are the stories of how I endured or what I did to cope. Yet at the same time, as I’m preparing my kids, I feel like I’m trying to protect them from things that they should probably be into.”

It remains unclear as of publication if Hoda plans on selling either of her homes – she owns an apartment in New York City and a home on Long Island – or if she’s thinking of packing up both properties and starting fresh.