The morning show anchor recorded an interview with the late Olivia Newton-John's family prior to her absence from 'Today.'
Hoda Kotb made a brief appearance on Friday's episode of the Today show in a pre-taped interview with John Easterling and Chloe Lattanzi, the husband and daughter of the late Olivia Newton-John.
The 58-year-old newswoman has been noticeably absent from live segments of the NBC morning show for more than a week. Kotb's co-anchors shared earlier this week that she is "OK," but is dealing with "a family health matter," and will be back on the show soon.
During Friday's episode, Sheinelle Jones introduced Kotb's interview saying her co-anchor "recently" spoke to Newton-John's family. Newton-John died in August 2022 after a battle with breast cancer. Kotb, a breast cancer survivor herself, spoke to Lattanzi and Easterling about Newton-John's "beautiful legacy."
Friday's episode started with Jones and co-anchor Craig Melvin at the news desk, announcing that Kotb and her co-anchor, Savannah Guthrie, were both "out." It was previously announced that Guthrie is home recovering after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier in the week while on the air.
Later in Friday's episode, Melvin added that Kotb and Guthrie will "be back with us soon," in light of their absences.
On Tuesday morning, Kotb was spotted for the first time since her on-air absence. She was seen bundled up in New York City, taking her 6-year-old daughter, Haley, to school.
Kotb's last live appearance on the Today show took place on Feb. 17 and she also appeared in a pre-recorded segment of the fourth hour of the show with Jenna Bush Hager on Feb. 20, Presidents' Day.
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