Savannah Guthrie became emotional during Tuesday's episode of Today as she renewed a public appeal for information about her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie.
The NBC News anchor, 54, was discussing the 2026 Emmy Awards on 15 September when the programme played footage of actress Allison Janney speaking about the Guthrie family backstage at the ceremony the previous night.
Janney's comments visibly moved Guthrie, who thanked the actress for using her moment in the spotlight to draw renewed attention to her mother's disappearance.
"We just want our mom home, give her a proper goodbye," Guthrie said through tears. "That's all."
Nancy Guthrie, 84, was last seen at her home in the Tucson, Arizona, area on the night of 31 January. She was reported missing the following day after she failed to arrive at a friend's home, where she was expected to watch a church service online.
Her disappearance prompted Savannah to step away from the Today anchor desk. She returned to the programme on 6 April after more than two months away.
Allison Janney Uses Emmy Win to Remember Guthrie Family
Janney, 66, won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards on Monday, 14 September, for her role in Netflix series The Diplomat.
Speaking to reporters in the press room after her win, Janney turned the attention away from herself and spoke about Guthrie and her family.
"I honestly can say I think about her every day and think about the loss and what Savannah and her family are going through," Janney said. "It truly just took over. I don't think I'm alone too. I think all of America was thinking about her."
Guthrie responded to the remarks during Today the following morning.
"I was so touched to see her do that," she said. "It was her moment of her triumph and for her to sit and just take a moment and think about our family."
Guthrie said she continues to use opportunities to speak publicly about her mother and the pain her disappearance has caused the family.
"I never let a moment pass, if I get one, to talk about my mom and how much we miss her and love her," Guthrie said. "My whole family, my sister and my brother and I and all of our extended families, we're in such pain."
She thanked Janney for giving her "an opportunity to renew that call" for information that could help bring her mother home.
Today weather and feature anchor Al Roker also offered his support, telling Guthrie that Janney "speaks for almost everybody out there in America".
Nancy Guthrie Investigation Remains Active
Tuesday's appeal was not the first time Guthrie has spoken publicly about her mother since returning to television.
Earlier this year, she discussed the difficulty of resuming her broadcasting duties in an interview with her former Today co-host Hoda Kotb.
Guthrie said returning to a programme associated with "joy and lightness" had been difficult while her family continued to live with the uncertainty surrounding Nancy's disappearance.
"I can't come back and try to be something that I'm not," she said at the time. "But I can't not come back because it's my family."
Guthrie also mentioned her mother while discussing her family's Irish roots during a 10 September episode of Today.
"My mother's family, my mother was Irish, as was her grandmother," she said. "They were from Galway."
Her use of the past tense attracted attention in some media coverage, but the remark does not establish what happened to Nancy. Authorities have not publicly announced that she is dead, and the investigation into her disappearance remains active.
There have also been developments in the case since Savannah returned to the anchor desk in April.
In late July, the Pima County Sheriff's Department publicly released two purported ransom notes as investigators sought fresh information. Authorities have continued to appeal to the public for information that could help establish what happened to Nancy.
No publicly identified suspect has been announced in connection with her disappearance.
For Guthrie and her family, Tuesday's emotional Today segment provided another opportunity to keep the case in public view.
"We just want our mom home," Guthrie said, renewing her appeal for answers more than seven months after Nancy disappeared.
