After 27 years as a cohost on the popular NBC morning news show The Today Show, Hoda Kotb is walking away from the show for good. She has decided that it is time to move away from the show, and her very last show is coming up quickly. It will air on January 10, 2025.

While being a host on The Today Show is a highly coveted job that many news anchors would probably jump at the chance to have, Kotb has her reasons for walking away from the job.

When she made the announcement that she was leaving the show back on September 26, 2024, she explained, “I just turned 60, and it was such a monumental moment for me when I turned 60 years old because I started thinking about that decade, like, what does that decade mean? What does it hold? What’s it gonna have for me?” She added, “And I realized that it was time for me to turn the page at 60 and to try something new.”

But what is that “something new”?

US Weekly reports that Kotb’s decision is largely around putting her role as a mother above her career. Kotb said, “I had my kiddos late in life, and I was thinking they deserve a bigger piece of my time, the pie that I have.” She added, “I feel like we only have a finite amount of time. And so, with all that being said, this is the hardest thing in the world.”

With Kotb walking away from The Today Show, it’s only natural to wonder who will fill her spot on the show. The answer has only been partly decided.

In the early morning hours, her seat will be filled by Craig Melvin who will coanchor alongside Savannah Guthrie, but her replacement alongside Jenna Bush Hager has yet to be decided. In the meantime, Hager will continue to host the fourth hour of the show alongside a serious of special guest cohosts.

As for Kotb’s career, she has not announced any new projects or TV shows, but she has previously said that she would stay with NBC; however, she may decide to make a big career shift.

On October 25, 2024, Kotb mentioned her desire to focus on wellness. She said, “I have been so turned on by the wellness space because I realized what was happening to me. I tried different things and I noticed my body was calmer. I was getting sick less. I was feeling better. I was a better parent, a better friend, a better sister, a better daughter. And I thought, all these tiny things I was doing day after day were helping to change me inside.” She added, “What I want to do is I want to live in wellness. I want to work in that space. I want to start things. I’ve got things that are percolating inside that I’m gonna, hopefully, have fully formed soon.”

Watch the video below to hear Kotb discuss her decision to retire from The Today Show.