In her first interview since her mother Nancy Guthrie’s devastating disappearance, Savannah Guthrie is opening up about the moment her world changed.
The “Today” co-anchor spoke candidly about the emotional toll her family has endured since her mother was taken, sharing deeply personal reflections during a conversation with Hoda Kotb.
Guthrie also addressed the fear that her public life may have played a role in what happened, offering a raw and honest look at the questions that continue to weigh on her.
Here are the key highlights from Part 1 of the interview.
1. Savannah Guthrie Shares Fear Her Fame May Be Linked to Mother’s Disappearance
NBCUniversal“I don’t know that it’s because she’s my mom and somebody thought, ‘Oh, that girl— that lady has money. We can … make a quick buck.’ I mean, that would make sense,” she said.
“But we don’t know. Which is too much to bear, to think that I brought this to her bedside. That it’s because of me.”
2. The Call That Sparked Panic
GettyGuthrie described the moment she first learned her mother was missing, a call that quickly turned into fear and confusion.
“My sister called me … I said, ‘Is everything OK?’ and she said, ‘No.’ She said, ‘Mom’s missing.’ And I said, ‘What? What are you talking about?’ She said, ‘She’s gone,’”
She said panic set in immediately as the family struggled to understand what had happened.
“My sister called me, and I said, ‘Is everything okay?’ and she said, ‘No, mom’s missing.'”
Her brother quickly suspected something more serious.
“Even on the phone when I called him, he knew,” she said. “He said, ‘I think she’s been kidnapped for ransom.’ And I said, ‘What? Well, why? What?”
“It sounds so, like, how dumb could I be? But I just — I didn’t wanna believe. I just said, ‘Do you think because of me?’ And he said, ‘I’m sorry, sweetie, but yeah, maybe.’ But I knew that,”
3. Signs That Something Was Wrong
GettyNancy, 84, was last seen on the night of January 31 before disappearing from her home near Tucson, Arizona.
Guthrie explained that the early details made it clear that this was not a typical missing-person case.
“From the very early moments, you know, Annie and Tommy were saying, ‘This isn’t — this isn’t that case that you are used to where someone wanders off. She can’t wander off,’”
She said her mother had limited mobility.
“On a good day, she could walk down to the mailbox and get the mail, but most days not,”
She also described troubling signs at the scene.
“So, there wasn’t a wander off. And the doors were propped open, and there was blood on the front doorstep, and the Ring camera had been yanked off,”
At first, the family considered other explanations.
“The back doors were propped open, you know, and that didn’t make sense. We thought maybe they came, there was a stretcher, and they took her out the back. But her phone was there, and her purse was there, and all her things,”
4. Savannah Guthrie Calls Family Speculation ‘Deeply Painful’
In the weeks since, Guthrie said her family has stayed close as they navigate the uncertainty.
“There was a night we had to leave in the dark in the desert, holding hands, me and my sister and brother and I, get into a car waiting for us cause the people outside were closing in,” she said. “Those days are a blur. Crying and praying.”
She also addressed speculation involving her family, calling it deeply painful.
“It piles pain upon pain. There are no words. There are no words. I don’t understand. No one took better care of my mom than my sister and brother-in-law,” she said. “And no one protected my mom more than my brother. And we love her and she is our shining light. She’s our matriarch. She’s all we have.”
Authorities have confirmed that family members are not considered suspects.
5. Savannah Guthrie Talks About ‘Ransom Notes’
The investigation remains ongoing, with no confirmed suspect or clear motive.
Guthrie said the family has received multiple messages, including possible ransom notes.
“There are a lot of different notes, I think, that came. And I think most of them, it’s my understanding, are not real. And I didn’t see them. But, you know, a person that would send a fake ransom note really has to look deeply at themselves, to a family in pain. But I believe the two notes that we received that we responded to, I tend to believe those are real,” she said.
The family has also offered a $1 million reward for information.
“We cannot be at peace without knowing. And someone can do the right thing. And it is never too late to do the right thing,” she said. “And our hearts are focused on that.”
A Family Still Searching for Answers
Nancy, 84, was taken from her home in Tucson, Arizona, in the early hours of February 1. She has not been seen since.
Surveillance footage captured a masked figure near her front door around the time she disappeared, but authorities have yet to identify a suspect.
Despite the family offering a $1 million reward for information, the case has seen limited progress in recent weeks. Investigators continue to review leads, though few details have been made public.
Officials with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department and the FBI confirmed that the investigation remains active.
As more of the interview is set to air on “Today,” Guthrie’s words offer a deeply personal look at a family searching for answers.
Through it all, her message remains focused on hope and the belief that someone, somewhere, can help bring her mother home.
This is a developing story.
