Reason Behind Jenna Bush Hager’s ‘Today’ Absence Revealed

Jenna Bush Hager has spent most of this year finding a replacement for her former co-star, Hoda Kotb. The former Today With Hoda & Jenna is now revamped to Today With Jenna & Friends,with Hager in the driver’s seat.

However, beginning on Aug. 18, Today With Jenna & Friends has been airing pre-recorded segments instead of live versions with Hager and a special guest host. There’s a good reason for this, and one that should not surprise anyone.

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Why Isn’t Today with Jenna & Friends Live and Why Is Jenna Bush Hager Missing From the Today show?

It turns out that Hager is taking a much-deserved break from the show. She is sending summer off in style with a trip to Italy with her family.

According to TV Insider, Hager has been sharing photos from her Italy trip featuring her husband, Henry, and children, Mila, 12, Poppy, 10, and Hal, 6. One picture she shared was of her with Henry on the balcony of their hotel in Rome, which included a stunning view.

Other pictures featured her kids lounging on a couch in the lobby, the pool, and a shot of Henry helping their son Hal write something. “10 minutes from Roma center and heaven … pools and gardens to spend afternoons after touring!” was written on the Instagram Story of the hotel pool.

When Will Live Episodes of Today with Jenna & Friends Return?

Bush Hager is on vacation, and pre-recorded episodes of Todaywith Jenna & Friends shouldn’t surprise anyone. August tends to be when a lot of hosts and talk shows enjoy a little break.

As Parade reported, The View has been on hiatus for the past few weeks so the ladies can have some downtime, with the show airing reruns in the meantime.

That begs the question of when Today fans will see Hager back in action. According to the Today show website, pre-recorded episodes will air through Friday, Aug. 29.

Since Monday, Sept. 1, is the Labor Day holiday, Hager won’t be back in person until Tuesday, Sept. 2. The website hasn’t announced who will be Hager’s last group of guest hosts when she returns from her Italy vacation.

Fall is on the horizon, and hopefully that means Hager will get a new permanent co-host soon. Although, we can’t lie, we’ve come to enjoy her mixing it up with various guest hosts!

Today with Jenna & Friends airs weekdays on NBC.

This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 25, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.