Today faces an on-air contradiction: a “main host” bench that keeps disappearing
On Monday, March 16 (ET), Today opened the week without several of its familiar anchors—yet the program kept moving with substitutes and explanations that, taken together, spotlight how fluid the show’s daily lineup has become.
Who was missing from Today, and who filled in?
NBC’s Today began the week without multiple regular figures from its hosting roster. Hoda Kotb continued filling in for Savannah Guthrie on the Monday episode while the search for Guthrie’s missing mother, Nancy Guthrie, continues in Arizona.
Al Roker was also absent from Studio 1A. Dylan Dreyer filled in for him while reporting live from the 2026 Players Championship in Florida.
On the fourth hour, Jenna Bush Hager was missing from the regular hosting lineup as well. Justin Sylvester filled in for her on Monday’s episode of Today With Jenna & Friends, where Sheinelle Jones explained that Bush Hager is on spring break.
What was said on-air about Jenna Bush Hager’s absence from Today
During Monday’s fourth hour, Jones gave the on-air reason for Bush Hager’s absence: spring break. The episode also leaned into the practical reality of guest-hosting, with Sylvester describing how tight the travel window was for him to make it to the set in New York City.
Sylvester said he arrived in New York City a little over two hours before the episode’s start after being in California the day before, March 15 (ET), covering the 2026 Oscars for E! News. He described brushing his teeth in the back of a car and said he was determined to be there for the show.
Sylvester also said his car was pulled over on the way to the Today set, adding that he “dropped” Jones’ name. He said he pulled up a post from the show’s Instagram page to emphasize his urgency. Jones related a similar story of being pulled over while rushing to morning television, describing showing a photo of herself to a police officer.
Sylvester ended his story with a joke that he told the officer he was Craig Melvin.
What the guest-host schedule reveals about the show’s shifting fourth hour
The episode’s discussion and the week’s planned guest-host lineup underscore how the fourth hour currently operates with rotating cohosts. The Instagram post referenced on-air indicated Sylvester is set to return to cohost the fourth hour on Friday, March 20 (ET). The same lineup for the week also included Ashley Graham (Tuesday, March 17), Nia Long (Wednesday, March 18), and Darren Criss (Thursday, March 19).
The show’s structure has been evolving. After Kotb’s exit from Today in January 2025, Bush Hager continued to cohost the fourth hour with celebrity guest hosts under the name Today With Jenna & Friends. The fourth hour later relaunched as Jenna & Sheinelle once Jones became Bush Hager’s permanent cohost in January.
This week, however, marked the first time either Bush Hager or Jones took significant time off since the new show began, leaving the program to rely on its guest-host bench again—at the same moment other parts of Today were also adapting to absences elsewhere on the lineup.
Today With Jenna & Sheinelle airs weekdays at 10 a. m. ET on NBC.
