Hoda Kotb and Joanna Gaines WireImage; Getty Images
Hoda Kotb‘s next big project after her Today exit involves partnering up with none other than Joanna Gaines.
Kotb, 60, took to Instagram on Wednesday, February 5, to tease that she and Gaines, 46, are working together, writing, “Remember I was talking about repotting — gotta take first steps. We have something fun cooking! Come along on the great adventure. Stay tuned. I love @joannagaines.”
In the photos, Kotb and Gaines were seen filming together. Kotb received lots of support in the comments section, including from her former cohost Jenna Hager Bush, who replied, “Missing you and loving this ❤️.”
Kotb’s career at NBC spanned nearly three decades. She cohosted Today with Savannah Guthrie following Matt Lauer’s exit and hosted the third hour with Kathie Lee Gifford before Hager, 43, came on board.
In September 2024, Kotb shocked longtime fans when she announced her plans to leave the Today show.
“I realized that it was time for me to turn the page at 60, and to try something new. This is the right time for me to move on,” she said at the time, citing her daughters, Haley, 7, and Hope, 5, as motivation for the decision.
Kotb clarified she wasn’t leaving the network completely.
“My time at NBC has been the longest professional love affair of my life. But only because you’ve been beside me on this 26-year adventure. Looking back, the math is nuts. 26 years at NBC News — 10 years at Dateline, seven on the seven o’clock hour, 16 on the 10 o’clock hour,” she continued. “I’m picturing your faces and your families and all the ways you’ve lifted me up and inspired me. That’s my heart singing. So many of my professional relationships have become some of my most cherished friendships.”
She concluded: “Savannah: my rock. Jenna: my ride-or-die. Al: my longest friend at 30 Rock. Craig, Carson, Sheinelle and Dylan: my family. Libby, Mazz and Talia: my fearless leaders. I will miss each and every one of you at Today desperately.”
Guthrie, 53, exclusively told Us Weekly in October 2024 that she wasn’t surprised by Kotb’s decision to leave.
“Hoda and I have had this discussion for years and years,” Guthrie shared. “We’re dear friends and we have a lot of similarities. We’re basically in the same phase of life.”
Hoda Kotb has shared many life milestones — both triumphant and difficult — with TV audiences for years. Kotb notably missed several episodes of the Today show in early 2023. Her cohosts Craig Melvin and Sheinelle Jones announced that March that her absence was due to a “family health matter,” which Kotb later revealed involved […]
Guthrie understood why Kotb chose to prioritize her family, adding, “We have these little kids that we both feel so lucky that we got to have later in life. It makes a lot of sense to me what she has decided.”
Kotb’s final episode aired last month after a week-long “Hoda-bration” in her honor. (Craig Melvin has since stepped in as Kotb’s replacement on the NBC show.)
“Savannah, oh, my God. You’re my person, you’re my person. You know who shows up for everybody? This girl. … She’s in the room, she’s always in the room, and I love you,” she gushed in January. “Craig, I’m so happy for you. You’ve earned this, you own this … you’re gonna be fantastic. You’re gonna bring it home. Craig, you’re gonna be so good. You and Savannah are gonna be magic.”
