SerpApi.Org
Sheinelle Jones and Willie Geist explained two of the absences during the Tuesday, July 21 broadcast
NEED TO KNOW
- Savannah Guthrie, Craig Melvin and Al Roker did not appear on the Today show on Tuesday, July 21
- Guthrie previously announced that she’ll be taking time off to film her upcoming Wordle game show
- Sheinelle Jones, Willie Geist and Dylan Dreyer stepped up to assist in their absences
Savannah Guthrie, Craig Melvin and Al Roker were absent from the Today show on Tuesday, July 21.
Sheinelle Jones and Willie Geist filled in for co-anchors Guthrie, 54, and Melvin, 47, during their previously announced time off.
“Savannah’s taking a little time to film the very first episodes of the big Wordle game show coming here to NBC next year. We cannot wait for that,” Geist, 51, said Tuesday morning. “Craig, enjoying a little family time on vacation.”
Jones, 48, added, “I love that. He’ll come back all nice and rejuvenated.”
Roker, 71, who was in attendance for the Monday broadcast, was absent from the Tuesday, July 21 show. Dylan Dreyer, 44, filled in for him during the Tuesday broadcast.
During the Thursday, July 16, broadcast, Guthrie announced she would be temporarily stepping away from the Today show for the “next few weeks” to film her new project. She said, “We’re going to shoot the whole season and we’re super excited.”
Guthrie was away during the Friday, July 17, broadcast but returned for Monday, July 20. Melvin, however, began a pre-planned vacation on July 20 and is expected to return sometime next week. The absences are unconnected to the July 16 intruder incident when a man broke into the Today studio in New York City.
Guthrie first announced her Wordle gig on the May 11 cbroadcast alongside the game show’s executive producer Jimmy Fallon.
“This is very exciting, I have a big announcement to make,” the late-night show host began. “We’ve been developing Wordle as a game show for the past two-and-a-half years with The New York Times, and it’s official — we are making Wordle Game Show with our host, Savannah Guthrie!”
“We’ve been holding this secret between us for a long time now,” Guthrie said. “And we’re going to make Wordle a game show.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Fallon then told Guthrie that he’s “so happy” she’s hosting the new series, saying, “We were looking, we’re like, ‘Who’s the perfect host of this?’ We need to have someone that looks like they play Wordle, someone that knows how to run a show and host it, and we did the pilot, and you are amazing, by the way.” Guthrie teased that the game show will be “super fast-paced and fun,” as well as a “great family game.”
She later revealed that she and Fallon had been working on the project for some time and found out it had been picked up in February, around the time her mother Nancy Guthrie had been reported missing.
Guthrie shared her gratitude for everyone involved, including Fallon, NBC, The New York Times, and Universal, for pausing production when her mother disappeared. “When everything happened with me and my family, they just stopped everything and said, ‘We’ll wait for you.’ And Hollywood is a really tough business, and I didn’t expect that,” she said. “I just want to say thank you, it means so much to me.”
“It kind of feels strange to do everything right now, but this is something that’s full of joy,” Guthrie added.
It has been over three months since Guthrie returned to the Today anchor desk after taking a leave of absence after her mother was abducted from her Tucson, Ariz., home Feb. 1. The FBI and local authorities have continued to investigate the abduction. There are no suspects or arrests yet.
Anyone with information about Nancy’s disappearance is asked to please contact 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or the Pima County Sheriff’s Department 520-351-4900.
Read the original article on People
