Savannah Guthrie visits ‘Today’ studio amid mom Nancy’s disappearance

Savannah Guthrie returned to the NBC studios in New York on Thursday after more than a month of absence, but not in her usual capacity.

Instead of helping “Today” viewers start their day, the longtime morning news anchor visited her NBC family off-camera amid the kidnapping of her mother Nancy Guthrie, 84, in Arizona. An NBC spokesperson said in a statement that Guthrie, a fixture on the “Today” show, spent time in the NBC studios to thank his colleagues.

“Although she plans to return to the show, she remains focused at this time on supporting her family and working to help Nancy come home,” the statement added.

“Today” co-hosts Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones spoke about their reunion with Guthrie during the show’s fourth hour Thursday, with the former noting that “Savannah has come home.”

“She said she plans to come back on the show even though it seems like the hardest thing to do,” Bush Hager told viewers as she cried. “This is also her home and where she feels so loved. She is beyond loved here.”

Bush Hager spoke about how it felt “so good to be able to hug” and comfort Guthrie while Jones said she was proud of Guthrie and supported her amid the search for Nancy Guthrie. Jones also praised the younger Guthrie for her strength.

“I see it because we’re in this storm and we’re not out of the storm but there’s a light somewhere even in the middle of the storm,” Jones added, “and I think she comes here and can just be with us, so we can hug her — I think that’s a step.”

“For me, any time you can take a step, I celebrate it,” added Jones, who was absent from “Today” last year due to the death of her husband Uche Ojeh.

Nancy Guthrie was kidnapped from her home on February 1, propelling Savannah Guthrie and her family into the national spotlight. Amid her mother’s passing, Savannah Guthrie stepped down from NBC’s coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina in addition to her duties on the “Today” show.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department launched its investigation into the elder Guthrie’s disappearance last month and insisted Thursday that the investigation is still ongoing and has some solid leads. The department announced it has a dedicated team from its homicide unit working with the FBI on the case. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos told NBC News that he and his team believe Nancy Guthrie is still alive and they are pursuing thousands of leads.

Drops of the 84-year-old grandmother’s blood were found on the doorstep of her home. Her alleged captor grabbed the Nest camera from the front door on Feb. 1, but not before capturing the armed man, wearing a ski mask, backpack and carrying a gun, hiding on the porch and trying to cover the lens with his gloved hand. Since then, more than a dozen gloves have been collected from the surrounding community. But the only glove that authorities said matched the one worn by the person in the video turned out to be unrelated and came from an employee at a nearby restaurant.

There was no DNA match to anyone recorded in the federal CODIS database.

Ransom notes arrived after the Feb. 1 kidnapping, but none proved Guthrie was alive. The residents were arrested and quickly released as lines of investigation appeared to dry up.

Thousands more tips have flowed into the Pima County Sheriff’s Department since last week, when Savannah Guthrie announced a $1 million reward for information leading to her mother’s return.

Nanos said his department is reviewing video from homes in the area showing a car driving around at the time of the kidnapping, but no vehicles have been linked to the crime at this point.

On Thursday’s show, Bush Hager told viewers that their support for Guthrie and his family had not gone unnoticed by the longtime anchor. She also recalled that during difficult times, Guthrie never considered her faith as a last resort.

“God has always been my first port of call,” Bush Hager recalled Guthrie saying, adding that his colleague is “one of the most precious things in our lives.”

“We’re going to bring her back here,” Jones said.

Times staff writers Richard Winton and Matthew Ormseth contributed to this report.