Savannah Guthrie Opens up About What’s Next in Her Career Following Hoda Kotb’s ‘Today’ Exit

Savannah Guthrie is opening up about the future of her own career more than a month after her longtime TODAY co-star Hoda Kotb’s final episode.

Guthrie, who is currently hosting the NBC morning show with Craig Melvin, opened up to Us Weekly about her future following the release of her children’s book Mostly What God Does is Love You, and it sounds like she has no plans of leaving her anchor role anytime soon.

“What I know now is that I have the best job with the best people, both on camera and behind the scenes,” the journalist, 53, told the outlet. “We’re doing important work and [it’s] fun. Who knows what the future holds? I’m open, but I’m pretty darn happy.”

Before Kotb stepped back from TODAY in January in order to spend time with her family, Guthrie revealed she learned her friend would be leaving the morning show while traveling to a wedding. “I said to my husband, ‘Hoda wants to call me, and she knows I’m at the airport. This can’t be good,’” she recalled. “I kind of had a feeling it could be that [she was leaving].”

“I’m heartbroken. But I’m also thrilled for her and proud of her,” Guthrie continued. “That is so gutsy to leave something you love at the height of your excellence and say, ‘I’m dreaming this bigger dream for myself.’ She was like, ‘I turned 60 and sure, I could do this wonderful thing with one hand tied behind my back for another 10 years,’ but she said, ‘I’m going to take a risk.’ Lucky [for] us that the perfect person was right there waiting in the wings. [Craig] has stepped into the role seamlessly.”

Even now that Kotb has left the TODAY show life, Guthrie joked she recently had texted her one early morning, “Are you still getting up at this hour?” and received the response, “Yes.” Guthrie added, “I bet she misses all of us, but she’s really happy.”

As Kotb said her farewell on Jan. 10, Guthrie shared a teary message to her colleague, calling her “so special it’s almost beyond description” and describing her as “the ultimate people person.” She continued, “Hoda, I love you deeply. Whether you’re sitting next to me or not. Whether we’re waking up at 4 o’clock in the morning together or not, I will always be by your side, and you will always be by mine.”