Today Show Halloween 2026: Savannah Guthrie, Jenna Bush Hager surprise fans with iconic NBC transformations

The Today show hosts brought Halloween celebrations to television screens on Friday, October 30, with an elaborate costume extravaganza celebrating NBC's 100th anniversary. Savannah Guthrie, Jenna Bush Hager, Craig Melvin, Al Roker and other familiar faces transformed into iconic television characters, celebrities and personalities from the network's history.

The annual Halloween special featured nostalgic tributes to popular shows such as Friends, Saturday Night Live (SNL) and 30 Rock, along with surprise appearances from television personalities and celebrity guests. This year's celebration was particularly special as it also marked 75 years of the Today show.

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Savannah Guthrie and Jenna Bush Hager recreate Friends characters

One of the biggest highlights of the Halloween special was the Friends-inspired transformation featuring Savannah Guthrie and Jenna Bush Hager. Guthrie dressed as Rachel Green, the character played by Jennifer Aniston in the popular sitcom, while Bush Hager took on the role of Phoebe Buffay, originally portrayed by Lisa Kudrow.

Bush Hager entertained viewers by singing Phoebe's famous song, "Smelly Cat", alongside her cat Maisie. Guthrie also joined the performance as Rachel, bringing nostalgia from the long-running sitcom to the Halloween celebration. The costumes paid tribute to one of television's most popular comedy series and quickly became a standout moment of the broadcast.

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Al Roker dresses as Gumby, Dylan Dreyer channels Jeannie

Al Roker brought humour to the celebrations by dressing up as Gumby, the character made famous by Eddie Murphy on Saturday Night Live. He delivered an angry monologue while pretending to demand recognition for his contributions to the network.

“What’s all this talk about Saturday Night Live? You talk SNL, you can’t talk SNL without me? I’m Gumby, dammit!” Roker declared. He continued: “I’ve been bending over backwards for this meshugana network for years — literally. And what do I get? Nothing. I get no recognition.”

Roker then grabbed an Emmy Award from someone and added: “Now ‘bout time everybody recognizes my treatment!”

Meanwhile, Dylan Dreyer recreated Jeannie from the classic sitcom I Dream of Jeannie. She wore the character's signature pink-and-red outfit and used her pretend magical powers to change the weather.

Craig Melvin dresses as Snoop Dogg, Martha Stewart makes surprise appearance

Craig Melvin brought a celebrity twist to the Halloween celebration by dressing as rapper Snoop Dogg, complete with an Olympic torch. During the segment, he called out for his famous friend, prompting a surprise appearance from Martha Stewart.

“Hey, where’s my girl?” Melvin asked. “Hello, Snoop!” Stewart greeted him. “What’s cookin’, Martha?” Melvin responded. “Well, I came to see my BFF, the D-O-DOUBLE G,” Stewart replied.

“You are the gin to my juice,” Melvin told her, to which Stewart quipped, “For shizzle.”

The appearance recreated the friendship between Snoop Dogg and Stewart, who have become popular television personalities together.

Willie Geist channels Johnny Carson, Sheinelle Jones dances with Rockettes

Willie Geist also joined the celebrations by transforming into Johnny Carson's famous character Carnac the Magnificent. The turban-wearing mystic was one of the memorable characters from Carson's nearly three-decade run as host of The Tonight Show.

Geist recreated one of the character's famous comedy routines, saying, “Sis boom bah,” before delivering the punchline: “Describe the sound made when a sheep explodes!”

Meanwhile, Sheinelle Jones paid tribute to NBC's holiday entertainment traditions by joining the Radio City Rockettes for a dance performance. She wore a sparkling costume and performed alongside the famous precision dance troupe.

Laura Jarrett also recreated Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. She pretended to perform one of the athlete's gravity-defying routines and later appeared with seven gold medals around her neck.

Carson Daly, meanwhile, transformed into country singer Ella Langley and performed her hit song “Choosing Texas” as part of the tribute to the singer's success.

Jack McBrayer surprises Savannah Guthrie as Kenneth from 30 Rock

The Halloween tour concluded with a tribute to NBC comedy 30 Rock. Actor Jack McBrayer surprised the hosts by returning as his popular character Kenneth Parcell, the cheerful NBC page.

After meeting Guthrie, McBrayer told her, “Oh, Miss Savannah, you gave quite the tour. And it was like reliving my favorite NBC moments.” Guthrie then asked, “You really do love this place, don't you?”

“Well, there's only two things I love in this world: Everybody,” McBrayer replied. “And television,” Guthrie added.

The actor also presented Guthrie with an official NBC page pin and told her she should be “proud as a peacock.”

“Well, I learned from the best,” Guthrie responded.

“And you've got a mighty bright future here, too,” McBrayer told her. The two then finished the sentence together, saying, “At NBC!”

Today show's Halloween tradition continues

The annual Halloween celebration remains one of the most anticipated broadcasts of the NBC morning programme. Executive producer Tom Mazzarelli previously spoke to PEOPLE about the effort that goes into preparing the elaborate costumes and performances.

“At the end of the day, the anchors are all really game to do it,” Mazzarelli said. “They enjoy it. They like the process. It's a lot of work for them too.”

He added, “We really lean into it and it's, by far, our biggest show of the year.”

Mazzarelli also explained that the anchors have a say in choosing their costumes, adding, “They have a big say in what they are. We'll never put them in a position where they're doing something that they don't want to do.”

The 2026 special once again combined nostalgia, comedy, celebrity appearances and elaborate performances, turning the morning broadcast into a celebration of NBC's television history.