It’s being reported that Anderson Cooper has gotten a call from NBC producers about joining The Today Show in hopes that he can help with their dwindling ratings. Producers want Anderson to sign on to the show and replace current host Matt Lauer by the end of this year and are confident in his potential. Matt, on the other hand, is allegedly not so thrilled with their choice.
Producers would love to have Matt’s blessing but they aren’t getting it. Matt even allegedly called Anderson to warn him off. After nearly twenty years on the show, Matt doesn’t want to give anyone his blessing and understandably so — he’s currently making $30 million per year.
“I hear NBC reached out to Lauer to get his blessing about the changeover. But I heard they got pushback from the Today veteran, who contacted Cooper to express his disapproval,” Deadline‘s Nellie Andreeva reports. “I also hear that call caught Cooper by surprise, as he had assumed Lauer had been brought on board before NBC began making overtures.”
Despite the report, a source tells TMZ that Matt is on board with Anderson replacing him on the show. “[Matt] is actually on board with the idea of Anderson replacing him,” the source insists, adding that Matt planned to sit down with Anderson and talk it over but later put the meeting on hold because of a negative article which appeared in NY Magazine a few days ago.
A third report states that Matt isn’t being replaced at all. NBC News executive Alex Wallace said earlier today that Matt is “the best in the business” and that he looks forward to working with him for years to come.
Photos: Joseph Marzullo/WENN.com (L) and Joseph Marzullo/WENN.com (R)
