{"id":583515,"date":"2026-04-14T11:31:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T11:31:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/583515\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T11:31:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T11:31:08","slug":"why-craig-melvin-is-absent-from-show-as-hoda-kotb-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/583515\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Craig Melvin Is Absent From Show as Hoda Kotb Returns"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\tWhat To Know<\/p>\n

Savannah Guthrie revealed that Hoda Kotb will return to Today to fill in for another host next week.
\nKotb recently served as Savannah\u2019s Today replacement while she took time off amid the investigation into her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie.
\nKotb skipped out on the NBC morning show for the last two weeks, as Savannah returned on Monday, April 6.<\/p>\n

UPDATE (4\/13\/26 at 9:22 a.m. ET): Hoda Kotb<\/a> returned to Today<\/a>\u2018s Studio 1A as Craig Melvin<\/a> began his time off.<\/p>\n

Kotb co-hosted the NBC morning show with Savannah Guthrie<\/a> for the first time since January 2025 on Monday, April 13. \u201cHoda\u2019s here!\u201d Guthrie said at the top of the show. \u201cI still feel every time we walk out, people are like, \u2018Could she possibly [come back]?\u2019 Yes! Now, she\u2019s here. We\u2019re so glad to have you this week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kotb stated, \u201cI\u2019m so happy to be sitting back in this chair next to you this week, too.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Guthrie previously revealed on the show\u2019s Thursday, April 9, episode, Kotb will fill in for Melvin for the week as he enjoys spring break with his family. \u201cCraigers is getting a good vacation,\u201d Guthrie stated, while Kotb noted that Melvin\u2019s hiatus was \u201cmuch deserved.\u201d<\/p>\n

ORIGINAL STORY (4\/9\/26 at 9:22 a.m. ET): It\u2019s only been two weeks since Today fans last saw Hoda Kotb on the NBC morning show, and she\u2019s already set her return date.<\/p>\n

Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin<\/a> kicked off the show\u2019s Thursday, April 9, episode with some exciting news. \u201cSpeaking of tomorrow, Craig, you are heading off on a very well-deserved vacation. You\u2019ve been holding it down here for a long time,\u201d Guthrie told Melvin. \u201cSo, you\u2019re gonna have a spring break<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Guthrie went on to share, \u201cAnd Monday, we\u2019re gonna try a new host here. Her name is Hoda [Kotb]<\/a>, and she\u2019s gonna fill in for you next week. So, that will be fun.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I\u2019ve heard of her!\u201d Melvin joked before stating, \u201cThat will be fun. I won\u2019t see you. I won\u2019t turn on the TV, but it\u2019ll be fun.\u201d Guthrie replied, \u201cYeah, don\u2019t. You\u2019re not supposed to watch on your vacation.\u201d (Guthrie did not share who will fill in for Melvin on Friday, April 10.)<\/p>\n

Kotb previously served as Guthrie\u2019s co-anchor on the NBC morning show, taking over for Matt Lauer<\/a> in 2018 following his 2017 sexual misconduct scandal and firing. She left<\/a> her longtime role on the show in January 2025, but has continued to make appearances to promote her latest projects.<\/p>\n

In February, Kotb returned<\/a> to her former role after Savannah traveled to her hometown of Tucson, Arizona, to be with her family amid the disappearance of her mother, Nancy Guthrie<\/a>. Nancy was last seen at her home on January 31 and was reported missing the following day. Authorities have yet to name any leads as the investigation<\/a> continues. Savannah and her family have been cleared<\/a> as suspects, as well as offered a reward of up to $1 million<\/a> in exchange for information about Nancy\u2019s whereabouts.<\/p>\n

\"Jenna<\/p>\n

NBC<\/p>\n

Savannah paid a visit<\/a> to Today\u2018s Studio 1A in March before sitting down with Kotb for an exclusive Today interview<\/a>. During the second half<\/a> of the interview, aired on March 27, Savannah admitted it was \u201chard\u201d to imagine returning to the show while her mother remains missing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t come back and try to be something that I\u2019m not. But I can\u2019t not come back because it\u2019s my family. I think it\u2019s part of my purpose right now,\u201d she told Kotb. \u201cI want to smile, and when I do, it will be real. And my joy will be my protest. My joy will be my answer, and being there is joyful. And when it\u2019s not, I\u2019ll say so.\u201d<\/p>\n

Addressing the investigation, Savannah added, \u201cSomeone knows something, even if that something is someone\u2019s been acting strange for the last seven, eight weeks. Even if it\u2019s just that, somebody knows, and maybe somebody\u2019s afraid, and I understand that. But our hearts are in agony. We can\u2019t breathe. We can\u2019t live. We can\u2019t go on. We can\u2019t be at peace. We can\u2019t go forward. We have to know what happened to her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kotb skipped out<\/a> on last week\u2019s Today episodes, while Weekend Today<\/a>\u2018s Laura Jarrett<\/a> sat alongside Melvin at the anchor desk. Savannah made her highly anticipated Today return<\/a> on Monday, April 6. \u201cIt is good to be home,\u201d she said at the top of the episode.<\/p>\n

Savannah later got teary-eyed while greeting fans out on the 30 Rockefeller Plaza. \u201cThese signs are so beautiful. You guys have been so beautiful,\u201d she gushed. \u201cI received so many letters, so much kindness, to me and my whole family. We feel it. We feel your prayers, so thank you so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Today, Weekdays, 7am, NBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"What To Know Savannah Guthrie revealed that Hoda Kotb will return to Today to fill in for another…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":583516,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[236,88],"class_list":{"0":"post-583515","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-celebrities","8":"tag-celebrities","9":"tag-entertainment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583515"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583515\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/583516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583515"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583515"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}