10 Times Morning Talk Shows Got NSFW (Not Safe for Wake-Ups)

Once broadcast TV’s morning shows get past each day’s top headlines, the rest of their broadcasts are usually warm-hearted, innocuous entertainment that families can have on in the background as they get ready for the day. Occasionally, however, things take a turn for the PG-13 or even R-rated.

Just this year on NBC’s Today, for example, the morning show’s talent seemed to ask Halle Berry about her experience with large phalluses, then label Parker Posey a not-so-family-friendly term. See those moments and others that may have had viewers doing a spit-take on their A.M. coffee.

2011: Nicki Minaj suffers wardrobe malfunction on Good Morning America

Nicki Minaj’s top rode down and exposed one of the rapper’s breasts during her August 2011 performance on Good Morning America, according to E! News. ABC hastily apologized, saying GMA’s East Coast feed “regrettably included certain fleeting images of the performer that were taken out of later feeds of the broadcast in other time zones.”

2017: Kathryn Hahn names her salaciously-titled comedy series on Today

When Kathryn Hahn graced Today in April 2017, cohost Hoda Kotb noted that the morning show’s team couldn’t utter the title of the TV series she was there to promote. So it was up to Hahn to do so. “I’m in a show called I Love Dick, ladies,” she said with a laugh. “And apparently, even in 2017, we’re still too prude to say the word Dick is a gentleman’s name on some live television. … Kevin Bacon is playing the titular Dick of the series.”

2018: Good Morning America forgets to bleep an F-bomb

In May 2018, GMA reported on Gwyneth Paltrow telling radio host Howard Stern that onetime boyfriend Brad Pitt came to her defense after Harvey Weinstein acted inappropriately with her. But GMA didn’t censor Stern’s usage of the F-word in a snippet of the interview that aired on ABC, as you can hear at the 1:24 mark of the NSFW clip below.

Correspondent Eva Pilgrim and co-anchor Robin Roberts both apologized for GMA not bleeping out the profanity. “It will be in the other time zones, but that’s no excuse that it wasn’t in this one,” a dismayed Roberts said.

2020: Will Reeve appears to be pantsless on GMA

During the remote-work era of the COVID-19 pandemic, ABC News correspondent Will Reeve — son of Christopher Reeve — showed a lot of leg as he reported from home on GMA. He was wearing a button-down shirt and a jacket with shorts that looked suspiciously like underwear. In a follow-up segment, Reeve reported on Zoom etiquette and shared hard-won wisdom, telling viewers to dress fully and be mindful of their webcam angles.

2022: GMA’s Sam Champion talks about getting sequins in personal places

After getting the boot from Dancing With the Stars Season 31 in October 2022, GMA meteorologist Sam Champion said on the morning show that he still had “sequins where I should not have sequins,” according to The U.S. Sun.

In another moment on the show, seen in the clip below, GMA co-anchor George Stephanopoulos joked that Champion might get “steam cleaning of the sequins.” Laughing, Champion responded, “That’s exactly what’s gonna happen.”

2024: Savannah Guthrie cites Octopussy on Today

Ryan Reynolds stopped by Studio 1A in May 2024 to discuss his new film If, and he and Today anchors Kotb and Savannah Guthrie noted that Blake Lively, Reynolds’ wife, voices the character of a cat who wears an octopus costume.

Guthrie mistakenly called the character “Octopussy,” confusing the fictional kitty’s name with that of Maud Adams’ character from the James Bond film of the same name.

“I think that is what it’s called!” Guthrie exclaimed. “I did not make that up. No, I didn’t. I would never!”

Once Kotb pointed out the character was actually named Octopuss, Guthrie clapped her hand over her mouth. “Oh, my God,” she said. “Oh, I have to leave. … Like, I don’t even know who I am right now. Can I leave? May I be excused?”

Taking the gaffe in stride, Reynolds quipped, “By the way, we’re all canceled this morning.”

2025: Gayle King asks Alex Cooper about sex positions on CBS Mornings

Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper got blindsided with a sexual question during a February 2025 interview on CBS Mornings as coanchor Gayle King asked about Cooper’s favorite sex position with husband Matt Kaplan.

“Oh, my God, Gayle!” an astonished Cooper responded. “Are we allowed to talk about that?”

“Producers said ‘No!’ in my ear!” coanchor Nate Burleson replied.

But King claimed the question was merely facetious. “The thing is, what amazes me about you is that you’re sitting in there in those hooded sweatshirts, which makes everybody comfortable,” she explained. “You ask these raunchy questions, sprinkled in with a lot of smart, too. And I’m wondering what the method is to your madness. How you’re able to get people to talk. And I mean it as a compliment.”

2025: CBS Mornings’ Tony Dokoupil talks about rawdogging during the papal conclave

Fellow CBS News anchors Norah O’Donnell and Tony Dokoupil covered the papal conclave live from Vatican City in May 2025, and one afternoon there — and morning here in the States — Dokoupil made a wisecrack about how the electors from the College of Cardinals had to have their devices confiscated during the process. “I believe the kids call it rawdogging it, a long time with no electronic device,” he said.

Dokoupil wasn’t wrong — “rawdog” can be defined as a slang term that means “to endure a difficult, dull, or mundane activity without any diversions or other support while doing it,” according to Merriam-Webster. But what the dictionary website also notes — and what Dokoupil might not have realized — is that an older definition of rawdog is “to have sex without a condom.”

2026: Halle Berry mishears a question about her “biggest ick” on Today

Halle Berry could hardly believe her ears during a May 2026 “Pink Chair Questionnaire” on Today when cohosts Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones asked her for her “biggest ick.” The Oscar winner clearly heard a different, steamier question.

“Ooo, Halle,” Jones exclaimed before swatting Berry with her notecards.

“It sounded like that, didn’t it?” the actor replied. “It did to me!”

She then confessed she was going to answer the question by saying “Van’s,” in reference to fiancé Van Hunt.

2026: Parker Posey thinks Today’s Craig Melvin called her a name

Similarly, Parker Posey had to have Today co-anchor Craig Melvin repeat himself after he said, “We have to talk horror.”

The White Lotus alum leaned in, and Melvin tried again. “No, hor-ror,” he said, emphasizing each syllable. “H-O-R-R-O-R.”

Posey, for her part, guffawed. “I thought you called me a whore,” she said with mock indignation.

Perhaps even worse, Melvin was trying to ask her about her role in the upcoming horror film Sleepover, only for her to reveal she was no longer slated to star in that picture.

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Today, Weekdays, 7a/6c, NBC

Good Morning America, Weekdays, 7a/6c, ABC

CBS Mornings, Weekdays, 7a/6c, CBS