Justin Sylvester Explains Why He Pushed Jenna Bush Hager on ‘Today’: “I Was Flirting With the Chef”

Things got a little dicey on Wednesday’s (Aug. 10) taping of Today with Hoda & Jenna when guest co-host Justin Sylvester seemingly pushed a “touchy” Jenna Bush Hager out of the way during a cooking segment. Despite what it looked like, Sylvester set the record straight, letting fans know he was simply flirting with the “cute” chef.

In an Instagram video, Sylvester, who was seemingly getting a facial, reacted to the viral video, in which Twitter users blasted Hager for “groping” the guest host, saying she “can’t keep her hands off him.”

“People thought that she was invading my space and that’s actually not the truth,” Sylvester began. “What we were doing was — we were both flirting — well, I was flirting with the chef because he was cute. And I was pushing her out the way so I could have a one-on-one moment with the chef and people took it the wrong way.”

The “cute” chef in question is New York Times Bestselling author Andy Baraghani, who was teaching the duo a recipe. However, Sylvester’s smile can be seen faltering as Hager puts her arm around him and holds onto his shoulder, prompting him to first shimmy her off, then eventually push her away altogether.

Claiming that “people jump to conclusions,” Sylvester went on to say Hager is “one of the nicest, most welcoming people that I’ve ever met.” According to him, every time he’s on the show is because she and Kotb request him.

“They’re so good to me,” he said. “[Hager] is awesome and she was a big champion of mine, still is. And, you know, I like her. I hate that people are taking it out of context.”

Today with Hoda & Jenna airs daily at 10 a.m. ET on NBC.