Jenna Bush Hager has capably stepped into the role of the primary host of Today with Jenna & Friends since longtime co-anchor Hoda Kotb’s departure last month.
Jenna, 43, has hosted the show with a revolving panel of co-anchors, including the likes of Amy Poehler, Taraji P. Henson, Chloe Fineman, Ciara, and most memorably, Scarlett Johansson for an entire week.
Scarlett, 40, hosted alongside the former First Daughter for the entire second week of the newly revamped show, and fans loved the instant chemistry between the pair.
However, the chemistry is one thing Jenna actually feared, although in this case, when it came to her husband Henry Hager and how he would feel about her new co-host.
During a conversation with People from a Read with Jenna event earlier this month, she explained that she expected her husband to be fully infatuated with the Black Widow star, but it turns out that the exact opposite happened instead.
“I thought it was my husband that was going to fall in love with her, but it turns out it was me,” she quipped to the publication, alluding to her own instant bond with the star.
The two even made the move to get matching piercings on the air after admitting their shared love for body piercings, although that didn’t make the process any less painful.
The pair spoke with the publication during her first day as a host on the show, and the Marvel star was nothing but effusive in her praise for Jenna and the Today team.
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“It’s a complete dream,” Scarlett noted. “I was saying to Jenna earlier, it’s like that thing that I imagined as a 10-year-old: Some day I’m going to be on a daytime show and meet all of these amazing people.”
© Getty Images“I mean, it’s a testament to what you guys have all built here that I’ve literally walked down the street and have gotten more traction from guest hosting the Today show than any other project that I’ve done!”
The mom-of-two has been a frequent guest on Today, especially to sub in for her friend Al Roker as a guest weather forecaster, and it looks like that’s the job she’s inching to take on next.
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“I told Al I’m coming after his job,” she joked. “You guys, [no] if I ever did weather for the week, it would be bad. ‘It looks cold,’ meanwhile, it’s the hottest weather they’ve ever had.”
© Getty Images“It’s such a good vibe here,” she continued. “I’ve done, obviously, morning shows and whatever for years and years, publicizing projects I worked on and whatever, [but] it’s always so fun to come on this show.”
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“And the opportunity to be on this show for an hour and get to know more people at the show? It’s just awesome. It’s like, ‘Oh, yeah, we’re doing a fun thing. This is an upbeat thing.'”
© Getty ImagesJenna herself was full of compliments as well, adding: “She’s so naturally curious. I know that from hanging with her. And she’s a good listener. And that’s part of how you do this job. So I knew she’d be good. Listen, she’s made us all cooler because we cultivated these shows with her in mind.”
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