When you buy from our articles through links, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.

Although technically it won’t be a brand new show when it arrives, among other things TV premiere 2025 on the small screen, NBC’s revised third hour TODAY will certainly look different in the new year after Hoda Kotb makes her already announced departure. Rumors immediately began to circulate who could eventually replace herand it wasn’t long ago NBC News confirmed the anchor filling her soon to be vacant seat at the desk. Now audiences have a slightly better idea of ​​what to expect in general.

A name change is coming

At this moment, the long-running morning program will officially change the name of the third hour from January 13, 2025. The new title? TODAY with Jenna & Friends.

Despite reports indicating this Jenna Hager Bush was interested in arranging her exit Before Kotb announced her own, she will indeed be sticking around for the long haul, at least for the foreseeable future. She obviously won’t be inviting her closest personal friends to the show, but rather a lineup of other respected journalists and personalities who will help put both an entertaining and informative spin on the hour.

Who will replace Koda Kotb?

As previously revealed, Hoda Kotb’s last day was behind the TODAY bureau will be on Friday, January 10, with the new version of the news hour starting the following Monday. At that time, Craig Melvin will officially make the transition to Savannah Guthrie as co-anchor on three of the show’s four-hour blocks, expanding his current position alongside Al Roker, Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer in hour 3.

Melvin, who has been a mainstay since 2018, will also join Jenna Bush Hager in the fourth hour, apparently earning a big raise in the process. He won’t be the only “new” face appearing every broadcast. Fans will see a revolving door of talented celebrities coming and going for the foreseeable future.

Hager likened welcoming the new co-hosts to re-entering the dating pool after sitting next to Kotb for the past decade. Pointing to NBC News that she has been a long-time serial monogamist who hasn’t dated in 20 years, Hager said this about the new plan:

Do you all know the new trend, schedule dating? That’s what I’m going to do. . . . (Expect) great guests and friends and family who are part of the DNA of this show. And they’re along for the ride.

At this point, none of the planned guest hosts have been announced, but hopefully some of those names will be revealed before the holidays arrive.

Does TODAY stay with the guest hosts?

Even with Hoda Kotb announcing well in advance that she was leaving her TODAY gig, finding someone to permanently lead a morning show like this is obviously a difficult choice, so it will take time to make sure executives have found the right choice. But NBC previously confirmed that the end goal will be securing a long-term replacement, saying in an Instagram post:

The fourth hour of TODAY will become TODAY with Jenna & Friends starting January 13, 2025. The show will feature a rotating cast of fill-in hosts until a permanent host is named.

TODAY airs weekdays on NBC from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. and can be streamed with a Peacock subscription.