If you watched The Today Show on July 16, you probably didn’t realize that the cast and crew — particularly Craig Melvin — had just experienced a pretty frightening incident. NBC’s morning show went on as planned Thursday, but reports began to circulate quickly about an intruder getting past security. Melvin confirmed on the air Friday that a man had indeed managed to get past security into an unauthorized area of 30 Rockefeller Plaza, with NYPD responding.
Andrew Truelove, 41, was arrested Thursday, TMZ reports, after getting into TODAY’s Studio 1A and asking where he could find Al Roker. Craig Melvin was in the area at the time, and Truelove allegedly confronted him, reportedly lunging at the co-host and yelling a slur at him. Page Six reports the incident lasted 8 to 10 seconds before the intruder was detained, and NYPD arrested him shortly after. Melvin spoke about the situation about 30 minutes into Friday’s show on the 2026 TV schedule, saying:
I want to take a quick moment to address an incident that happened yesterday. You may have heard that unfortunately an intruder made his way into an unauthorized area here at Studio 1A. Thankfully, he was apprehended quickly. He was placed under arrest. We are cooperating fully with the NYPD as they investigate the matter.
Craig Melvin was surrounded by Carson Daly, Al Roker and Laura Jarrett, who was filling in as Savannah Guthrie got “an early start to the weekend,” according to Melvin. The anchor, who allegedly came face-to-face with the intruder, assured his colleagues he was “safe and sound,” adding:
We are just very happy that everyone is safe.
He had also posted about the incident on Instagram on Thursday, after many people reportedly reached out to check on him after such a scary interaction. Craig Melvin wrote:
Hey everyone. I’ve heard from so many of you over the last few hours. I’m doing just fine. Thanks for reaching out. I’m looking forward to seeing you tomorrow morning on [TODAY].
The incident raises safety questions, to be sure, especially since security was allegedly increased after Savannah Guthrie returned from her leave of absence earlier this year. TMZ reports that a security guard at 30 Rockefeller Plaza was terminated Thursday after the intruder slipped by him into Studio 1A.
Andrew Truelove was charged with hate crime burglary, hate crime menacing, hate crime criminal trespass and harassment in Thursday’s incident. The New York Post reports that he has eight previous arrests, mostly for criminal mischief. His record also allegedly includes a charge of second-degree assault after he reportedly attacked a staffer at his residence in January, grabbing the worker’s arm and slamming a door into it.
The Today Show incident is especially disturbing given what Savannah Guthrie has been through this year with the disappearance of her mother Nancy. The longtime NBC anchor had allegedly left the building shortly before the incident occurred. It’s unknown if her absence Friday was previously scheduled, but Guthrie missed several days earlier this month to spend some time with her family. Last month she also had production meetings for the upcoming game show Wordle, which caused her to be absent from Today for several days.
While this latest incident was presumably unrelated to what Savannah Guthrie’s been through, everyone on The Today Show has reportedly been a little more on edge, and this incident isn’t likely to help matters. We’re glad no one was physically harmed in Thursday’s security breach, and we hope Craig Melvin, Al Roker and the rest truly are “just fine.”
