Savannah Guthrie | Source: Getty Images
Savannah Guthrie Opens up About Her Return to Work Amid Mom Nancy’s 4-Month Disappearance
Savannah Guthrie is opening up about returning to “Today” while the search for her missing mother continues. In an emotional new interview, the anchor revealed how the ongoing ordeal has affected her daily life.
Savannah Guthrie is back at work, but the search for her missing mother remains at the center of her daily life. In an emotional new interview, the longtime anchor opened up about navigating the uncertainty of an ongoing family crisis.
Savannah Guthrie attends a “Today” event in New York City as she continues balancing work with the ongoing search for her mother, Nancy Guthrie. | Source: Getty Images
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her Tucson, Arizona, home on January 31, 2026. Authorities believe she was abducted, and she remains missing more than four months later.
With the search still ongoing, Savannah opened up during a June 8 appearance with Jenna Bush Hager on the fourth hour of “Today” about balancing work with the uncertainty surrounding her mother’s disappearance.
A memorial featuring a photo of Nancy Guthrie stands outside her Tucson home as the search for the missing 84-year-old continues. | Source: Getty Images
“It’s really hard to come back,” Savannah said through tears. The anchor returned to the program on April 6 after stepping away amid the family crisis. While she said being back on air has brought her comfort, she acknowledged that the emotional burden never leaves her.
“I’m happy to be back,” she said. “It’s like the two hours of my day – it’s not that I’m not thinking about it, because I am – but it’s something to do. It brings me a lot of joy to be with everybody. But no, it’s not easy.”
She also expressed gratitude for the support she has received from her colleagues and the show’s staff during the difficult period.
Savannah Guthrie is seen at the “Today” show in New York City shortly after returning to the program amid the search for her mother, Nancy Guthrie. | Source: Getty Images
Savannah said appearing alongside Jenna made it difficult to avoid discussing what she has been experiencing. “I know maybe people wonder like, ‘What’s going on? How is she able to do that job? Is she not thinking about it, did she forget?'” Savannah said. “No, never. Never.”
She emphasized that her mother’s disappearance is always on her mind and renewed her appeal for information. “We still need everybody’s prayers. We still wish somebody would call and say what they know,” she said.
Throughout the ordeal, Savannah said she has found comfort in a sermon based on a Bible passage about enduring difficult seasons of life.
The longtime broadcaster has resumed her on-air duties amid her family’s continued search for answers. | Source: Getty Images
The message, she explained, centers on continuing forward even when circumstances feel overwhelming. “And that’s what I feel like I’m doing,” Savannah said. “I’m trying to walk and not grow faint.”
She then shared one of the most personal details of the interview. “I cry every morning on the way to work, and I cry every morning on the way home,” she said.
Despite the pain, Savannah said she hopes her two children can learn an important lesson from watching her navigate the crisis.
Savannah Guthrie said returning to work has provided a brief respite as the search for her mother remains ongoing. | Source: Getty Images
“We can hold our sadness, and we can hold our joy, and if you don’t believe it, just watch me,” she said. “I’m going to show you.”
Jenna became emotional during the conversation, praising her friend’s strength and determination as she continues showing up each morning. Outside the studio, Savannah has continued sharing messages related to the search for her mother.
She recently shared an Instagram Story featuring a religious illustration depicting Jesus standing beside a woman dressed in blue, surrounded by angels and bright clouds in a heavenly scene.
Over the image, she shared an emotional, prayer-like message asking for her mother to be brought home. As she spoke publicly about the pain of the past four months, authorities were providing new details about the search for Nancy.
Savannah Guthrie shared a religious image and a heartfelt plea for her mother’s return in a recent Instagram Story. | Source: Instagram/savannahguthrie
Investigators have shared a potentially encouraging update on the case. Speaking to People, Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said authorities believe they are making progress as they continue examining evidence linked to Nancy’s disappearance.
Nancy Guthrie’s FBI wanted poster is displayed on a cellphone as authorities continue searching for answers in her disappearance. | Source: Getty Images
Nanos recalled that investigators became concerned early in the case after receiving reports that something “didn’t look right” at Nancy’s home.
Her disappearance prompted a large, multi-agency search that has generated several pieces of evidence, including doorbell camera footage showing an armed suspect and a glove found near her home.
As the investigation continues, Nanos said forensic teams are working alongside detectives to determine whether additional information can be extracted from the evidence already collected.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said investigators believe they are making progress in the search for Nancy Guthrie. | Source: Getty Images
“Everyday our DNA labs are working with our investigators and they’re coming up with different ideas and different thoughts of how to help them make this DNA work for us,” Nanos told the outlet. “How can we do more with what we have? And so that’s why I say it is — I think we’re getting closer.”
As investigators continued searching for answers, Savannah made another appeal to the public in February. In an Instagram video, she announced that her family was offering a reward of up to $1 million for information that could help locate Nancy.
Savannah urged anyone with information to come forward and thanked the many people who had been praying for her mother’s safe return. While her family remained hopeful, she also acknowledged that other outcomes were possible.
Savannah Guthrie announced a reward offer and asked for the public’s help in the search for her mother, Nancy Guthrie. | Source: Instagram/savannahguthrie
“We are blowing on the embers of hope. We also know that she may be lost, she may already be gone.” Savannah added that her family needed answers regardless of the outcome.
“She may have already gone home to the Lord that she loves and is dancing in heaven with her mom and her dad and with her beloved brother Pierce and with our daddy,” she said in the post. “If this is what is to be, then we will accept it. But we need to know where she is.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is also reportedly offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to Nancy’s return or an arrest in the case.
A note included in Savannah’s caption also stated: “Family reward of up to $1 million will be paid only for recovery of Nancy Guthrie, consistent with FBI criteria for payment of its reward in this case: https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/kidnap/nancy-guthrie.”
As viewers continued following developments in the case, one unexpected moment during a live “Today” broadcast generated widespread speculation online.
As previously reported, a fan-shot video from outside the “Today” show plaza captured Savannah missing from part of a live segment, leaving some viewers wondering what happened. The show later offered a brief explanation during the broadcast.
A netizen’s comment on Savannah Guthrie reportedly leaving the “Today” show mid-broadcast | Source: Instagram/enews
The footage, filmed at Rockefeller Plaza, showed the broadcast continuing without Savannah while fans watched from nearby plaza monitors. The clip itself did not explain why the longtime anchor stepped away.
Viewers quickly reacted online, sharing theories about Savannah’s sudden absence during the broadcast.
Rockefeller Plaza serves as the home of NBC’s “Today,” where Savannah Guthrie returned to work amid the ongoing search for her mother. | Source: Getty Images
On Instagram, some commenters speculated that the timing of the show may have been emotionally difficult for Savannah. One person wrote, “Are they doing a lot of Mother’s Day segments this week? Maybe she was having a hard time.”
Others wondered whether there may have been developments related to her family situation during the broadcast. A second chimed in, “I’m assuming she got a call about new information.”
Savannah Guthrie appears at NBC’s “Today” in New York City in June 2025. | Source: Getty Images
Some also urged others not to rush to conclusions about the moment. “It’s mother’s day [sic] weekend, people. Give her some grace. She will never be ok this weekend for the rest of her life. Give her the space to process that,” a third said.
Similar reactions appeared on Facebook. One commenter wrote, “I was watching the very beginning of this right before I left for work and she looked like she was upset or had been crying. 😔”
Savannah Guthrie is seen outside the “Today” show shortly after resuming her on-air duties. | Source: Getty Images
Others believed the show’s seasonal discussions may have been emotionally difficult for the longtime anchor.
“Probably with them talking about Mothers Day [sic], it was too overwhelming for her. This poor girl and her family have been through so so much [sic]!! 🙏🥺💗,” a different person stated.
Savannah Guthrie has spent years working alongside “Today” co-hosts Willie Geist, Carson Daly, and Al Roker, who later supported her during her family’s crisis. | Source: Getty Images
Someone else reflected on the uncertainty surrounding the situation, writing, “The unknown must be agonizing.”
As viewers continued to speculate online, earlier reports offered some insight into how Savannah’s return to “Today” was handled behind the scenes.
Savannah Guthrie was a familiar presence outside NBC’s “Today” studio before her family’s life changed dramatically in early 2026. | Source: Getty Images
According to Page Six, Savannah’s co-anchors — Jenna, Craig Melvin, Al Roker, Sheinelle Jones, and Carson Daly — were allegedly instructed not to discuss her mother Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance or formally acknowledge Savannah’s return during the broadcast.
A source reportedly revealed that producers wanted the show to maintain its usual format. “It was supposed to be business as usual. [Producers] said to act totally normal,” the source said. “‘Move forward’ is the vibe. It’s been a hard year and a draining time.”
Craig Melvin, Sheinelle Jones, and Dylan Dreyer are among the “Today” co-hosts who worked alongside Savannah Guthrie during a difficult period for her family. | Source: Getty Images
While NBC did not publicly comment on those reported behind-the-scenes instructions, Savannah Guthrie’s recent on-air absence still caught viewers’ attention during the live broadcast.
Later in the show, Craig addressed his co-host’s absence, telling viewers at the time, “Savannah had to leave a little early. She’ll be right back tomorrow, though.”
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