Willie Geist admitted that he’s not used to his new status as the heartthrob of Today. While guest cohosting Today With Jenna & Friends on Tuesday, March 4, things got a bit awkward for the broadcaster and host Jenna Bush Hager.
“You really lit the internet on fire last week,” Jenna, 43, told Willie, 49. “You may not know this but Pedro Pascal is known as the internet’s boyfriend. He’s cool, he’s handsome, everybody knows him … Well, well our team has now pegged you morning TV’s boyfriend.”
Willie winced at the comment and said, “Ugh, makes me very uncomfortable.”
“I know it does,” Jenna said, before explaining that the morning TV’s boyfriend title came after Willie’s backstage interaction with guest cohost Heather McMahan went viral.
“We had a moment,” Willie explained of the backstage interaction, which was shared on Today With Jenna & Friends’ Instagram page last week.
“Heather, who is really one of the wildest, most outgoing humans that I know, she saw you and she just shriveled up inside,” the former first daughter remarked.
“She was quiet,” Willie agreed before Jenna said, “The comments of that interaction and how much Heather has a crush on you went wild.”
Jenna decided to read some of the comments about Willie to make him “blush even more.”
“Willie Geist has always been my news crush,” one person wrote.
“Honestly, who doesn’t have a crush on Willie,” another said.
Willie groaned as Jenna continued to read through the comments.
Jenna pointed out that Willie’s wife, Christina Sharkey Geist, also left a comment on the video, writing, “HA! Love you, @heatherkmcmahan ! I’m confident our marriages can survive this! It’s not the first time I’ve witnessed the WG phenomenon ! I get it, girl. Have fun. You’re doing great this week!”
“Wow. Alright I’m glad she got the last word out of that,” Willie joked, revealing that he had no idea his backstage interaction with Heather, 37, was going to be recorded.
In the video in question, Willie hugged Heather and she told him that he looked “so good in blue.”
“I don’t even have anything ready. Oh my God, I’m wearing slippers, stop,” Heather said.
“Are we an item?” Willie jokingly asked, to which Heather responded, “Yeah, we kind of are.”
He said that he got home after the video was posted and Christina said she saw the video of him and Heather in the makeup room.
“I said, ‘How did you see that?’ She said, ‘It’s on Instagram.’ I said, ‘Of course it is.’”
Jenna asked Willie how it felt to be called morning TV’s boyfriend.
“I don’t even quite know what it means to be morning TV’s boyfriend. I am on morning TV a lot. Very early in the morning, later in the morning in this case,” Willie said.
“You don’t even take a Sunday off,” Jenna pointed out.
“I’m on from like six to noon most days, so I do occupy the morning,” he continued. “I guess it’s an honor to be in the company of Pedro Pascal.”
