Savannah Guthrie Announces First New Project After Mom Nancy Guthrie’s Disappearance

Savannah Guthrie announced an exciting new TV project one month after returning to Today.

Jimmy Fallon stopped by the NBC morning show on Monday, May 11, to share a “big announcement” with viewers. “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,” he revealed. “We are making Wordle [the] game show with our host, Savannah Guthrie!”

An excited Guthrie added, “We’ve been holding this secret between us for, like, a long time, and we’re gonna make Wordle a game show.”

Fallon said he’s “so happy” that Guthrie will lead the upcoming NBC game show. “We were looking, and we were like, ‘Who’s the perfect host for this? We need to have someone that looks like they play Wordle, someone that knows how to run a show and host it,’” he stated. “And we did the pilot, and you are amazing, by the way.”

The series will be based on the popular New York Times online game of the same name, which launched in 2022. “Everyone can play, and it’s not like a trivia game where you have to know all these things and facts. It’s like, you’re just trying to guess a word,” Fallon said. Guthrie noted, “It’s fun how they’ve put it together, too. It’s, like, super-fast-paced and fun, and it’s a great family game. I love a game and a show that you can watch with your kids, and it’s fun, and you feel like they’re learning something.”

 

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Guthrie asked Fallon for any hosting tips, but he had none. “We all thought, ‘Oh, you’re going to be great.’ And then, you did it, and, like, 200 crew and cast, everyone was like, ‘We can’t do this show without Savannah Guthrie.’ You are fantastic on it,” he gushed.

After being surprised by Carson Daly and Craig Melvin with Wordle merch baskets, Guthrie revealed that the series was supposed to hit the small screen sooner.

“We’ve been working on this for a really long time, and actually, we just found out in February that we got picked up, and we were supposed to shoot in March,” she shared. “And I just want to say a quick thank you to NBC and to Jimmy and his production company and The New York Times and Studio Universal because 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, as you know, and I didn’t expect that. And I just want to say thank you. It means so much to me.”

Savannah previously took two months off from Today after her mother, Nancy Guthrie, was reported missing in Tucson, Arizona, on February 1. Savannah returned to her role on the morning show last month as the investigation continues.

“We can’t do it without you. We need you, bud. You’re so good, and it’s so fun, and I can’t wait for everyone to see it. It’s fantastic,” Fallon gushed. Savannah added, “It kind of feels strange to do everything right now, but this is something that’s full of joy.”

News broke in October 2025 that Savannah had been tapped to host a game show inspired by Wordle, executive-produced by Fallon, for NBC. According to Savannah, filming for the series will begin this summer. Casting information is available on Today‘s website.

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Wordle, TBA, NBC