There’s one Today With Jenna & Friends celebrity guest host that Carson Daly says has become a favorite on the Today set.
“I’ve loved a lot [of the cohosts]. I loved Dwyane Wade. I thought [he] was awesome. Every time Erin Andrews is on, I’m like, ‘She’s amazing,’” Daly shared in an interview with Us Weekly published on Tuesday, August 19. “Scarlett Johansson is everybody’s favorite, but she happens to be Hollywood’s most expensive actor.”
As for why Johansson won’t be able to join the show as Jenna Bush Hager‘s permanent cohost? “We can’t afford her, but she loves doing it,” Daly quipped. “I mean, Jenna’s had a lot of really good people. I don’t know. I kind of like the rotating cast. It keeps things fresh.”
Daly also noted that he asks “all the time” about who will officially join Bush Hager on the fourth hour of Today. “I think they want to keep this rotating thing going,” he explained.
Johansson was one of the first famous faces to cohost Jenna & Friends (formerly Today With Hoda & Jenna) following Hoda Kotb‘s departure from the show in January. After the show relaunched with guest hosts Taraji P. Henson, Eva Longoria, Keke Palmer, and Michelle Buteau, Johansson took on hosting duties for an entire week from January 21 through January 24.
Jenna Bush Hager and Scarlett Johansson on the January 23, 2025, episode of NBC’s ‘Today With Jenna & Friends.’
Nathan Congleton/NBC
“I cannot believe it. And more importantly, everyone in my life can’t quite believe it either,” the actress said during her Jenna & Friends hosting debut. “The people that knew me very well were like, ‘You are living your dream. I am so happy for you.’ The people that did not know me as well were like, ‘What’s going on? Are you OK?’”
Johansson went on to share that hosting Today was a childhood dream of hers, stating that she would look “in the mirror with a shampoo bottle, and I’m like, ‘Good morning, everyone, and I hope you had a wonderful weekend. What’s happening in your neck of the woods?’ All of that stuff.”
Johansson sang Bush Hager and the Jenna & Friends crew’s praises while signing off at the end of her final episode. “Thank you so much for having me, and to all of this whole amazing production team,” she said on January 24. “I love the Today production. You guys are incredible. It’s just been a dream.”
The Jurassic World: Rebirth star returned to Jenna & Friends as a guest on the show’s June 25 episode, during which Bush Hager noted that “of all the friends, everybody’s like, ‘Hire Scarlett Johansson.’” She excitedly replied, “I want the job! I need to get here.”
Following a game of “Get a Clue,” Bush Hager invited Johansson to come back to cohost another episode. Johansson agreed, but requested she once again get an entire week on the show. “Are you kidding me? You can get another week right now if you want,” Bush Hager quipped before having Johansson help her introduce the show’s next segment.
Today With Jenna & Friends, Weekdays, 10 a.m. ET, NBC
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