Savannah Guthrie fought back emotion Tuesday as she made another heartbreaking plea for help finding her missing mother, Nancy Guthrie, more than seven months after the 84-year-old vanished from her Arizona home.
The “Today” host opened up about her family’s ongoing nightmare during the Sept. 15 broadcast after actress Allison Janney unexpectedly mentioned Nancy while celebrating her big win at the 2026 Emmy Awards.
Janney, who won her eighth Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for “The Diplomat,” was speaking to reporters when she was asked about the compassion she has shown Savannah since Nancy was abducted from her Tucson-area home on Feb. 1.
“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.
The actress added that she believes millions of Americans are still thinking about the Guthrie family.
“I don’t think I’m alone,” she said. “I think all of America was thinking about her.”
The touching comments were played on “Today,” where guest co-host Willie Geist called Janney’s words a “beautiful expression of sympathy.”
Savannah, 54, said she was deeply moved that Janney would use what should have been a moment celebrating her own career to remember Nancy.
“I was so touched to see her do that,” Savannah said. “It was her moment of her triumph and for her to sit and just take a moment and think about our family.”
Savannah then used the unexpected moment to once again plead for help.
“I never let a moment pass, if I get one, to talk about my mom and how much we miss her and love her,” she said.
Savannah said she, her sister, her brother and their extended family remain devastated by Nancy’s disappearance.
“We’re in such pain. We need help,” she said.
Then came her most emotional admission.
“We just want our mom home, give her a proper goodbye. That’s all.”
Al Roker also spoke about the case, telling Savannah that Janney’s concern reflects how many Americans feel about the family’s ordeal.
“Allison Janney speaks for almost everybody out there in America,” Roker said.
Nancy disappeared from her home in Arizona on Feb. 1, setting off a massive investigation that has now stretched beyond seven months.
Savannah stepped away from “Today” for several months following her mother’s disappearance so she could remain with her family in Arizona as authorities searched for answers.
She eventually returned to the morning show in April, admitting at the time that coming back to such an upbeat environment was difficult while her family was living through unimaginable grief.
“It’s hard to imagine doing it because it’s such a place of joy and lightness and I can’t come back and try to be something that I’m not,” Savannah said at the time.
But she said she also could not stay away because her “Today” colleagues had become like family.
Despite the passage of time, Savannah and her relatives have continued publicly pushing for information that could finally reveal what happened to Nancy.
The FBI is asking anyone with information about Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance to call 1-800-CALL-FBI. Tips can also be provided to the Pima County Sheriff’s Office at 520-351-4900.
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