Hoda Kotb just shared an exciting update on her love life following her 2022 split from fiancé Joel Schiffman. While speaking to Jenna Bush Hager on Today with Jenna & Sheinelle on August 21st, Hoda revealed that she has been texting a mystery man she first met on a plane.
The former Today host revealed that she and the mystery man had an unexpectedly emotional connection during their chance encounter – which left them both in tears – and have since reconnected after unexpectedly crossing paths for a second time. Could romance be on the cards? Keep reading for more details…
Hoda Kotb Talks About Her Encounter With Mystery Man
Kotb, who is still amicable with Schiffman as they co-parent their daughters Haley Joy and Hope Catherine, explained that she first met the mystery man while traveling on a plane, and admitted that their conversation quickly became far more emotional than she could have ever expected.
“It was the weirdest connection in the world. We were both crying,” Kotb confessed. “It was strange. You know, when you have one of those [conversations where] everything is firing on all cylinders?”
And it seems like the mystery man was just as taken aback by their instant connection, as Kotb recalled him repeatedly questioning whether the moment was actually real. “He kept saying, ‘Is this a dream? Is this real?'” she recalled.
Although the two initially went their separate ways after the flight, their story didn’t end there! Kotb revealed that when she later traveled to Cannes with her lifestyle and wellness company, Joy 101, she was stunned to discover that the very same man was sitting in the audience. What are the chances?!
Women Are Swapping Their Boring Water For This Ice Pop Electrolyte Mix!
"Our company went to Cannes so we could talk about our company, and he was in the audience, randomly," Kotb explained. She went on to say that the pair briefly said 'hello' during the unexpected reunion, although Kotb admitted that nothing seemed to come of it at the time. "He goes, 'Hi,' and I said, 'Hi.' But then, it all kind of just went away," she said.
However, that wasn't quite the end of their story, as Kotb then dropped the bombshell that the two have since started texting! "So, we have texted recently," Kotb dished. "Look. There are connections. I don't know what it is."
She kept the mystery man's identity under wraps, but she did offer a few tantalizing details about him when Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones pressed her for more information. "He's really cute," she confessed. Kotb later described him as "very handsome" and confirmed that he is single, which naturally caused a lot of excitement from her former Today colleagues. And most likely her fans too!
Bush Hager enthusiastically encouraged her to explore the connection, while Jones even compared the unexpected series of events to the 1999 rom-com Notting Hill, starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts. Kotb, on the other hand, was careful not to get too carried away just yet, and made it clear that she doesn't know whether their connection will actually turn romantic.
Hoda Kotb Recently Opened Up About Finding Love Again After Joel Schiffman Split
Hoda has been refreshingly candid about her hopes of finding love again since her split, and opened up about love and attraction during a conversation with psychotherapist and bestselling author Esther Perel on the July 29th episode of Making Space With Hoda Kotb.
During the candid conversation about love and intimacy, Perel asked Hoda about her dating life, questioning: "When do you find yourself most drawn to your partner? Not just sexually, drawn to in the good sense?"
After clarifying that she was talking about her previous relationship, and not a current one, Hoda answered: "When they were in their work; in their element. Whether it was watching them play golf because they dominated, or on the tennis court, or in front of a crowd, that was always a 'wow' because I was kind of admiring."
She went on: "When he's playing sports, like when he's lifting weights – I just thought that was like a 'wow.' And when he was holding our daughter." Aww!
Perel then pointed out that Hoda's response is actually quite common. "First and foremost, when my partner is in their element, when they're competent, when they're radiant, and especially when they're self-sufficient. They don't need me," Perel explained. "And if they don't need me, I don't have to take care of them. I don't have to be responsible. I don't have to be motherly. I can retrieve the woman from behind the mother, and I can want them."
"When they don't need me because they're in their thing, I can admire them, which involves an idealization," she continued. "I can look up to them, and all of that is the grist for the mill of desire and the want."
