TODAY SHOW NIGHTMARE MEGYN DUMPED FOR SAVANNAH
And She Wants to Bring Back Matt!
• Megyn’s out-of-control demands
• Inside Savannah’s secret plan to grab the top spot
There was a familiar face sitting in the blue chairs on the set of Megyn Kelly Today on July 30 — but it wasn’t Megyn Kelly’s. While the host was on vacation, fellow NBC star Savannah Guthrie took over the 9 a.m. reins. And fans couldn’t have been more thrilled. “@ NBCNEWS @ TODAYSHOW thi s would be a good permanent move,” suggested one Twitter user, while another told Savannah, “You need to permanently replace Megyn!”
Top execs are listening. With Megyn Kelly Today ratings continuing to falter — and drag down the network’s former ratings juggernaut, the 10 a. m. hour with Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee Gifford — NBC has plans to dump controversial star Megyn for Savannah, Life & Style has exclusively learned. “It’s a no-brainer for the network. Everyone loves Savannah — the audience, the staff,” points out an insider. “Megyn sees the writing on the wall. Having Savannah substitute
for Megyn was a test. And Megyn knows it.”
PERFORMANCE MATTERS
Viewers made it clear: Savannah, 46, aced the test. “Really enjoying the fillin!” raved one fan in a typical social media comment, while another added, “Love Savannah, I’d watch her every day.” Few viewers seemed to miss Megyn. “Where’d she go?” blasted one hater. “Far, far away, I hope.” Savannah “brings a lighter, friendlier, more empathetic vibe,” notes a source. “She wants to take on that extra hour and she deserves it. Megyn just doesn’t come across as genuine.”
Her failure to connect shows in the ratings. As of April, Megyn, 47, averaged 2.4 million viewers a day — 300K less than she brought in as host of The Kelly File on Fox News in 2017. NBC had lured Megyn away from her cable hit with a three-year, $69 million contract, only to see her 9 a.m. time slot reach an audience 18 percent smaller than that at- tracted by previous hosts Tamron Hall and Al Roker. “Megyn has been a huge disappointment,” the source says of the anchor, whose Sunday Night With Megyn Kelly program on NBC was pulled after just eight weeks in 2017 due to lack of interest. “Execs thought she was the be-all, end-all, but now even Live With Kelly and Ryan has doubled its lead against Megyn.”
Indeed, the dynamic duo of Kelly Ripa, 47, and Ryan Seacrest, 43, now average a whopping 747K more viewers per day, with many fans admitting they change the channel to ABC once Megyn appears on their screens. But Savannah has a secret plan to draw those viewers in again, and it includes bringing back disgraced former Today anchor Matt Lauer for a bombshell tell- all interview. Fired from the network in November for sexual misconduct, Matt, 60, has apologized for some of his actions but has yet to speak publicly about what really went down. It’s an exclusive Megyn’s been trying to land since news first broke of the scandal. “Matt butted heads with Megyn from the get-go and would never agree to an onair conversation with her,” reveals the source. “He’s on board to do an apology interview with Savannah, though. She and Matt are still very close.”
NOT GOING QUIETLY
Things are very tense at 30 Rock. And it’s showing: When Megyn announced on Twitter that her “pals from @ TODAYSHOW” would be helping out while she was gone on vacation, she refused to mention Savannah by name. “The relationship between Megyn and Savannah isn’t just frosty, it’s ice- cold,” says the source. “Megyn has always treated Savannah like she was part of the B team. Now their off-camera interaction is limited to a cursory nod of the head or a curt ‘ hello’ or ‘goodbye.’”
Soon Savannah may be saying farewell to Megyn for good, says the insider. And many behind the scenes are supportive of the shake-up. “Savannah is a staff favorite,” notes the source. “She’s a classic people person, and the Today cast, crew and producers love working with her.” Megyn, on the other hand, was a total nightmare who “established a mean-girl reign of terror” once her show debuted in September, the source says. With her out-of-control demands, “She turned the workplace into a private hell for other staffers. It used to be a fun, creative place to work.”
Megyn won’t make a transition easy for Savannah, warns the source: “Megyn will only go one way — kicking and screaming. And she’ll no doubt have her lawyers get her one of the biggest payoffs in TV news his- tory.” The Settle for More author may also make history with her own Today tell-all. “She’ll definitely write a book,” says the insider, “about her experience at NBC.”
A NEW ERA
Teaming up Savannah and Hoda after the Matt scandal proved to be a winning move for NBC. In the wake of the veteran lead anchor’s sudden departure, the show could’ve tanked. Instead, the pair helped Today beat competitor Good Morning America in overall viewership for the first time in over a year — and they went on to best GMA for seven weeks. Now the network is banking on Savannah shining all on her own. “She’s champing at the bit to take over for Megyn,” says the source. “She’s ready to step into Megyn’s shoes and run off with the job.”