Megyn Kelly won’t return to her NBC show and is negotiating her exit from the network, according to NBC and a number of reports.
She also reportedly desires to return to Fox News, where she worked before she went to NBC.
Kelly’s exit isn’t completely official, but NBC’s “Today” show confirmed the news on Friday morning, and a report from NBC said that Kelly and the network were discussing her exit.
“This morning, NBC News host Megyn Kelly is in talks with the network about her imminent departure, according to a source familiar with the situation,” revealed a tweet from the “Today” show’s Twitter account.
This morning, NBC News host Megyn Kelly is in talks with the network about her imminent departure, according to a source familiar with the situation. pic.twitter.com/4Ter7kP0LT
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) October 26, 2018
And in a news piece, NBC reported, citing a source presumably at NBC, that “Conversations have already started about Megyn’s exit from the network.”
Kelly’s team was scheduled to meet on Oct. 26 with executives, another source told NBC. It’s “extremely unlikely” she’ll remain at the network, the source added.
Kelly signed a three-year, $69 million contract in January 2017 with NBC after leaving Fox News.
Some sources said she was fired soon after making comments questioning whether wearing blackface or white face was racist during a segment on Oct. 23.
Along with the hefty contract, Kelly’s show suffered mediocre ratings, earning 2.4 million average viewers, down 13 percent from its predecessor, a third hour of the “Today” show hosted by Tamron Hall and Al Roker, noted The Wrap.
According to the Daily Mail, the executives have already agreed to pay her the full $69 million.
NBC has only confirmed that Kelly’s show would air reruns on Thursday and Friday, “given the circumstances.”
Kelly apologized at the top of her show on Wednesday, earning a standing ovation from the audience.
“I defended the idea saying as long as it was respectful and part of a Halloween costume it seemed okay. Well, I was wrong and I am sorry,” she said.
Tension
Kelly has long been a target for executives and colleagues at NBC for her reporting on the #MeToo movement, including coverage of how the network infamously declined to cover Harvey Weinstein’s alleged sexual assault and rape.
“Kelly took Hollywood’s most powerful abusers to task, platforming some of the very first Harvey Weinstein victims that came forward, like Lauren Sivan, Mimi Haleyi, and Dominique Huett,” noted the Washington Examiner.
“Amid the stunning realization that NBC News had attempted to silence the groundbreaking stories of former employee Ronan Farrow, who later published his #MeToo reporting in the New Yorker, Kelly publicly and persistently called for an independent investigation of NBC’s methods and motives.”
Additionally, Kelly told NBC executives that she wouldn’t welcome back Matt Lauer, the ousted NBC host who allegedly sexually assaulted his subordinates.
Kelly has reportedly expressed interest in returning to Fox News, but the network indicated to CNN it might not welcome her back.
“We are extremely happy with our entire lineup,” Fox said in a statement.
