Jenna Bush Hager Wants More Money After Hoda Kotb’s ‘Today’ Exit: ‘Matter of Principle’

Jenna Bush Hager is taking full advantage of Hoda Kotb‘s imminent departure from Today to finally get the equal pay and power that she deserves, sources exclusively tell Closer.

“Jenna’s coming from a place of strength now that Hoda’s going and the show needs her,” an insider explains.

Hoda, 60, made her big announcement about leaving Today during the show’s September 26 episode. The journalist will say goodbye to viewers in early 2025 but still remain part of the NBC family.

Jenna, 42, will stay with the show. However, her reported $4 million salary is nothing compared to the millions that Hoda and coanchor Savannah Guthrie take home.

“It’s not like she needs the money,” the source says of Jenna. “It’s a matter of principle. Savannah gets double what she makes, and it’s not fair if Jenna’s doing the same amount of work, which she is. Jenna’s right up there with Savannah and Al [Roker].”

Because Today audiences will be sad to see Hoda leave the show, “Producers are desperate to keep the status quo,” the insider reveals. “They don’t need another shake-up, so they’ll have to cough up to avoid pissing off Jenna.”

If Jenna does get what she wants in the end, the source says it will likely rub Savannah, 52, the wrong way.

“People close to the situation say Jenna’s going to have a hard time explaining all this to Savannah,” the source shares. “Savannah has been in this business a lot longer than Jenna, and she’s going to resent the intrusion upon her queen bee status.”

Adds the insider, “They may be friends who invite each other for dinner parties and kids’ birthdays, but Jenna wants her fair slice of the pie and more perks, too!”

Things appear to be getting tense at Today. A separate source told Closer earlier this month that Hoda has not been gelling well with Savannah and Jenna in recent weeks, so she’s thrilled to be moving on.

Hoda has “plenty of opportunities lined up,” the source said, adding that NBC bosses “are desperate to keep her in the fold and ease her into a more serious anchor role for prime-time specials.”

New opportunities at NBC such as late-night specials will be “great money” for the longtime TV personality, the source explained. “And the best part of all is that she won’t be getting up at the crack of dawn, tiptoeing around Savannah, Jenna or other testy characters that were too much for her to stand towards the end.”

Hoda will also be excited to spend more time with her daughters, Haley Joy and Hope Catherine.

When announcing her departure from Today, Hoda made it clear that she wanted more time to enjoy being a mom of two.

“Obviously I had my kiddos late in life, and I was thinking that they deserve a bigger piece of my time pie that I have,” she explained to viewers. “I feel like we only have a finite amount of time. And so, with all that being said, this is the hardest thing in the world.”