‘Today’ host Savannah Guthrie is feeling some “joy” amid the ongoing search for her mother, Nancy Guthrie, as she makes an unexpected career move.
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On Monday, May 11, Savannah was interviewing Jimmy Fallon when Jimmy broke the news. Savannah will be the face of a new game show that he’s been secretly developing for years.
“This is very exciting,” he shared. “I have a big announcement to make. 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!”
Wordle launched in 2021 and quickly became one of the country’s most popular web-based games. The app gives players a new word each day, and players have six attempts to guess the answer. The New York Times purchased the app in January 2022 for an estimated $3 million.
In the small-screen adaptation, Savannah Guthrie will host players in an arena setting. It will be a “super fast-paced and fun… family game” where contestants will win cash prizes for correct answers. Savannah said that she and Jimmy had been “holding this secret” for some time, and they’re excited to bring it to life.
“I’m so happy it’s you,” Jimmy admitted. “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.”
Savannah Guthrie Says Her New Wordle Project is ‘Full of Joy’
In a somber turn, Savannah Guthrie admitted that her career move was paused after the disappearance of her mother, Nancy Guthrie, 84, who was taken from her Tucson, Arizona, home on February 1st. The game show was set to begin shooting in March, but Jimmy Fallon and NBC voluntarily postponed production.
“I just want to say a quick thank you to NBC and to Jimmy and his production company and the New York Times and the studio and Universal because when everything happened with me and my family,” she shared. “They just stopped everything and said, ‘We’ll wait for you.’ And Hollywood is a really tough business. And I didn’t expect that, and I just want to say thank you, it means so much to me.”
Three months later, Nancy Guthrie has not been found, and there are no substantial leads in the case.
“It kind of feels strange to do everything right now,” Savannah admitted. “But this is something that’s full of joy.”
This story’s featured image is by Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images.
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