NBC executives not involved in her hiring are furious over Megyn Kelly’s ‘obscene’ $23 million salary for her tanking morning show and think it’s a slap in the face to other established stars at the network, DailyMailTV has exclusively revealed.
Although it was rumored the former Fox News anchor was only being paid $17 million for her new role at NBC, Kelly will actually line her pockets with a total of $69 million over the course of three years for swapping politics for talk show antics.
Her hefty salary has drawn the scorn of senior NBC and Comcast executives who believe the 46-year-old shouldn’t be raking in more than the network’s veteran stars.
Although NBC has thrown its weight behind the new show, Kelly’s ratings tanked on Wednesday, critics have slammed the star for not connecting with her audience and she has found herself in a string of uncomfortable celebrity guest encounters.
One high-ranking staffer exclusively told DailyMailTV: ‘This is insane! How on earth can they justify paying her $69 million for three years? It’s obscene and a giant slap in the face to all of NBC’s established stars.’
Megyn Kelly is making $23m a year for hosting her new NBC morning talk show, sources exclusively revealed to DailyMailTV. The former Fox News host is on a contract for three years – meaning she’ll rake in a total of $69m
One high-ranking staffer exclusively told DailyMail.com: ‘This is insane! How on earth can they justify paying her $69m for three years? It’s obscene and a giant slap in the face to all of NBC’s established stars’
Matt Lauer (left), who has been at NBC for 23 years, has an estimated salary of $25m, Jimmy Fallon (right), who is host of a popular late night show, earns around $15m
The source continued: ‘The network that created Barbara Walters, Tom Brokaw and Matt Lauer will now forever be remembered for the $69 million hire of Megyn Kelly.’
‘When you add the cost of developing the show, hiring staff and promoting Megyn all the time, this adds up to a $100 million mistake.’
Kelly announced last January that she would be leaving Fox News after spending more than 10 years at the network and joining NBC News.
In June she began hosting Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly, a Sunday night news magazine program, and in late September she launched Megyn Kelly Today.
Although it was rumored that the mother-of-three was making around $17m for her new show, DailyMail.com has exclusively learned her actual salary is much higher and her contract is for three years.
A spokesperson for NBC declined to comment, saying the network doesn’t comment on salaries.
Another source added: ‘What’s most annoying is that Megyn’s team and NBC proactively leaked that her salary sat in the range of $12 – $17 million when they knew this wasn’t the case.
‘Think about it – Fox News offered her $25 million a year for four years. There’s no way anyone would walk away from that type of money.’
Although NBC has thrown its weight behind the new show, Kelly’s ratings dipped in the second week, critics slammed the star for not connecting with her audience and she found herself in a string of uncomfortable celebrity guest encounters
Kelly announced on January 3 that she would be leaving Fox News after spending more than 10 years at the network and said she would be joining NBC News. Her morning show, Megyn Kelly Today premiered on September 25
That source added: ‘By taking $23 million a year – she can argue that she took a pay cut and that is what her team has been leaking, even though they knew the money she was earning was like a Powerball win every year for three years.’
Some staffers believe the multi-million dollar deal is a low blow to NBC personalities who have been at the network for years, such as Matt Lauer and Jimmy Fallon.
A senior executive said: ‘Megyn’s salary should be nowhere near Matt’s. He’s been at NBC for 23 years now and has captained the ship through good times and bad times. He’s worked very hard to deserve that salary.’
‘Yet it’s an even bigger insult for Jimmy, Savannah, Hoda, Al, Lester and Kathie Lee who have all been great team players and have held their own and grown their audience for many years. Each of them should have their agents call NBC and demand huge increases to their salaries.
‘What’s even more insulting is that each member of the NBC anchor team was made to heap praise on Megyn, while she is taking home more money than most of them.’
It is estimated that Matt Lauer and Jimmy Fallon, two of the network’s biggest stars, make $25 million and $15 million a year, respectively, according to Forbes and Time.
Her show has seen a dip in ratings since its premiere but the drop in viewers is far less than the one Kelly saw after the premiere of her news magazine for NBC earlier this year, which lost half of its audience after the first episode and never recovered
Critics tore into Kelly who – after carving a career for herself as a respected political journalist, appeared to flounder as she tried to paint herself as warm and fluffy morning TV show host
Another source added: ‘Matt, Jimmy (Fallon), Savannah, Hoda, Kathie Lee, Al and Lester have each spent years working hard for NBC and this just isn’t fair.
‘Jimmy is the late night king for NBC and even he isn’t being paid close to this number, and people actually like him!’
Kelly isn’t short on critics outside of the NBC network either.
Her show has seen a dip in ratings since its premiere but the drop in viewers is less than the one she saw after the premiere of her Sunday night show, which lost half of its audience after the first episode and never recovered.
Latest rating reports from Wednesday reveal that Kelly’s show had an incredibly shocking viewership, a 1.5 overall rating and a .08 rating among women 25 to 54.
And critics tore into Kelly who – after carving a career for herself as a respected and hard-hitting political journalist, appeared to flounder as she tried to paint herself as warm mid-morning TV show host.
Time’s Daniel D’Addario said Kelly failed to connect with her audience, saying: ‘If there was one message that Megyn Kelly sought to impart in the first installment of her new NBC talk show, Megyn Kelly Today, it was this: The old Megyn can’t come to the phone right now.’
The Washington Post’s Hank Stuever compared the debut to ‘watching a network try to assemble its own Bride of Frankenstein, using parts of Ellen DeGeneres, Kelly Ripa and whatever else it can find.’
Kelly suffered extreme backlash online after she asked icon Jane Fonda, 79, about her plastic surgery, causing the actress to curtly respond: ‘We really want to talk about that now?’
And after the Las Vegas massacre, Kelly received backlash over cutting off NBC News veteran Tom Brokaw, cutting off his response about gun control
Social media users also joined in on the attack after Kelly’s awkward and ill-advised plastic surgery question to Jane Fonda.
‘You, you’ve been an example to everyone, on how to age beautifully and with strength. And unapologetically,’ Kelly stuttered as she started her question.
‘You admit you had work done. I think it’s to your credit. You look amazing. Have you … why did you say .. I read you felt you’re not proud to admit you had work done, why not?’
Looking shocked, Fonda stared back at Kelly with a look of disbelief and said: ‘We really want to talk about that now?’
And after the Las Vegas massacre, Kelly also received backlash over cutting off NBC News veteran Tom Brokaw.
She decided to go o break while Brokaw was giving a thoughtful response to an audience member’s question about media coverage of mass shootings.
Brokaw was mid-sentence when Kelly cut him off and said she had to go to commercial, choosing to drown out Brokaw by talking over him.