As the smoke clears following NBC's firing of Matt Lauer amid multiple reports of sexual misconduct, the network is now faced with the decision of who will replace the longtime host of Today. While many have speculated that NBC may turn to Megyn Kelly to throw another high profile name into the spot formerly held by Lauer, another name is now surfacing as a potential replacement. Word is the network is eyeing Willie Geist to replace Lauer and become the new face of the first two hours of Today.
Willie Geist, who has been with NBC since 2005, is no stranger to the Today show. Geist has served as a substitute for Matt Lauer since 2010 and is currently the host of Sunday Today. Entertainment Tonight, whose source says Geist is the name floating around the office as a replacement, adds that several sources have disputed the rumor that NBC has any interest in moving Megyn Kelly out of her current role she has on the network.
This would not be the first time Willie Geist has taken the role of an ousted television personality. Geist was tapped to be a co-host on MSNBC in April of 2007 in an effort to replace Don Imus after he was fired for racially charged remarks towards the Rutgers women's basketball team. From there, Geist was made an anchor on a couple other programs on the network, including the program Morning Joe which he co-hosts. Geist offered his thoughts on the Matt Lauer firing in a recent airing of the program:
Willie Geist, who is the son of longtime CBS news correspondent Bill Geist, has had two books appear on the New York Times bestseller list. Outside of the world of professional journalism, Geist has a voice-acting credit in the film Kung Fu Panda 3. In the film, Geist plays Sum, who is the twin brother of Dim voiced by Al Roker.
Today airs on NBC weekdays at 7 a.m. ET. For more on upcoming program and shows scheduled to release before the end of 2017, visit our fall premiere guide. For a list of shows that will premiere or return in 2018, head on over to our midseason premiere guide. Those who can't find the show they loved from this year on the midseason premiere guide might want to check out our cancellation guide and make sure the series didn't get canceled when no one was watching.
