ENTERTAINMENTCarson Daly Reveals Why Scarlett Johansson Won't Co-Host With Jenna Bush Hager on the 'Today' Show
Carson Daly revealed Scarlett Johansson won't co-host the 'Today' show’s fourth hour with Jenna Bush Hager.
Aug. 20 2025, Published 8:44 a.m. ET
Carson Daly, 52, isn't holding back when it comes to speculation about the next co-host for Jenna Bush Hager on the fourth hour of the Today show — but he can rule out one Hollywood star.
"I ask all the time," Daly said during a recent appearance at Broadway's Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride in New York City on Monday, August 18. "I think they want to keep this rotating thing going."
Carson Daly explained the rotating guest format keeps Jenna Bush Hager’s segment fresh.
Bush Hager, 43, previously co-hosted the segment with Hoda Kotb, who ended her 17-year stint on the NBC morning show in January. While Craig Melvin stepped in as Savannah Guthrie's news co-anchor, Bush Hager relaunched the show's fourth hour, transitioning from Today With Hoda & Jenna to Today With Jenna & Friends to spotlight various guest co-hosts.
"I've loved a lot [of the co-hosts]," Daly added. "I loved Dwayne Wade. I thought he was awesome. Every time Erin Andrews is on, I'm like, 'She's amazing.' Scarlett Johansson is everybody's favorite, but she happens to be Hollywood's most expensive actor. We can't afford her, but she loves doing it."
Scarlett Johansson is too costly for the show, according to Carson Daly.
Earlier this year, Johansson, 40, suggested in a cover story for InStyle that the Today show needs someone "spicy," emphasizing that Bush Hager "needs to be with someone funny."
If Daly had his way, he would enjoy the variety of rotating co-hosts. "Jenna's had a lot of really good people," he stated. "I kind of like the rotating cast. It keeps things fresh."
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Jenna Bush Hager's segment welcomed Dwayne Wade, Taraji Henson, Keke Palmer and Amy Poehler.
In addition to Johansson, the highest-grossing actor of all time according to Variety, Bush Hager has welcomed guests like Wade, 43, Taraji P. Henson, Keke Palmer and Amy Poehler.
In a touching exit announcement to Bush Hager in September 2024, Kotb, 61, remarked, "Whoever sits in this seat is going to have the easiest job in the world 'cause they're sitting next to you. The only thing they have to do is not laugh so hard they pee their pants. That's it. They just have to hang on. You are this bright light, you always have been, and it's your turn."
When he's not busy with Today or hosting The Voice, Daly makes time to support his friends' ventures. He praised Jeff Ross' new one-man show that chronicles his life through humor.
"We're excited to be here to support [Jeff] on this new venture in his life," Daly expressed. Ross, 59, known as the "Roastmaster General," shares stories of loss, perseverance and the solace he finds in comedy.
Scarlett Johansson appeared as a 'Today With Jenna & Friends' co-host in January.
"I keep a lot of funny people around to take the wind out of the sadness and cheer me up, and that's the role comedians have in the world, and it's very important, especially these days," Ross said. "My good friend Norm Macdonald kept his health battles a secret, and we didn't get to give him a proper send-off, so I wanted to let my friends know what's happening with me and that I'm doing OK. Better than OK. I'm on Broadway!"
