Savannah Guthrie Returns to ‘Today’ Anchor Desk Following Abrupt Exit Mid-Broadcast

Guthrie made an unannounced exit from the program on May 6, to the concern of viewers as search for her missing mother surpasses three-month mark.

Savannah Guthrie attends the "Mostly What God Does" book presentation in New York City on Feb. 21, 2024. Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images

Savannah Guthrie returned to NBC’s “Today” show Thursday morning, after unexpectedly leaving in the middle of a live broadcast a day earlier, prompting concern and speculation from viewers.

Guthrie, 54, continued business as usual at the anchor desk alongside co-host Willie Geist, who was sitting in for Craig Melvin, and appeared to be in good spirits during opening segments of the program.

“Good morning and welcome to ‘Today’—so happy you’ve gotten up with us this morning. ‘What, like it’s hard, Willie?',” she quipped, referencing the film “Legally Blonde” as they discussed the prequel series “Elle.”

“I know, I love ‘Legally Blonde.’ I connect with this character and now we get to see her in high school,” Guthrie gushed.

During the show’s May 6 episode, Guthrie made an abrupt, unannounced exit from the program. Her co-anchor Craig Melvin addressed the situation on-air, telling viewers: “Savannah had to leave a little early. She will be right back here tomorrow though.”

NBC did not provide additional details regarding the departure, and Guthrie herself did not publicly explain what happened during the episode. The Epoch Times reached out to the “Today” show for further comment on the matter, but did not hear back by the time of publication.

The incident sparked discussion online as Guthrie has remained in the national spotlight following the disappearance of her mother, Nancy Guthrie, who has been missing for more than three months.

Nancy was last seen on the evening of Jan. 31 at her home in Tucson, Arizona, before she was reported missing the following day after she failed to show up to church services.

Authorities believe the 84-year-old was abducted, or otherwise taken against her will, citing signs of forced entry, damaged security cameras, and DNA evidence found on her porch.

During this time, the longtime “Today” co-anchor stepped away from the broadcast, with former colleague Hoda Kotb taking her place at the desk. Guthrie returned to her duties on April 6, and sat down with Kotb for an emotional interview on the matter.

“I will not fall apart,” she told Kotb. “I will not let whoever did this take my children’s mother from them. I will not let them take my joy.”

“I can’t not come back because it’s my family,” she continued. “I think it’s part of my purpose right now. I 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’s not, I'll say so.”

In recent days, FBI Director Kash Patel claimed federal investigators were “kept out” of the investigation into Nancy’s disappearance during the “most critical” 48 hours, adding that earlier involvement would have aided the case.

He told Fox News host Sean Hannity that a mistake was made when the Pima County sheriff, Chris Nanos, opted to send DNA samples found at the crime scene to a private lab in Florida, rather than the FBI’s forensic laboratory in Quantico, Virginia.

Nanos’s office refuted those claims in a statement on X, noting the FBI was immediately notified of the incident, adding they worked alongside local investigators from the very beginning.