If youâre planning to ring in the new year by flipping over to NBC, you may be wondering whether the network will show the iconic Times Square ball drop. The short answer is no, as NBC once again isnât airing the live countdown. Instead, theyâre opting for their own New Yearâs Eve special featuring familiar faces, celebrity guests, and a look back at the year that was.
Does NBC Air a Live Ball Drop?
The answer: NO! NBC has gone back and forth between airing the live ball drop and not airing it over the years.
The network used to incorporate the ball drop into âThe Tonight Show,â with Jay Leno hosting at times. âThe Voiceâ host Carson Daly joined the network and brought with him his own New Yearâs Eve celebration from MTV.
âNew Yearâs Eve with Carson Dalyâ premiered for New Yearâs Eve 2004-05 as an hour-long special airing at 10 p.m. ET/PT. However, after good ratings, the show moved to an 11:35 p.m. ET/PT timeslot and started broadcasting from Times Square, officially replacing âThe Tonight Showâ as NBCâs New Yearâs special.
The show changed co-hosts and names over the years, before it bowed out as âNBCâs New Yearâs Eveâ with the 2020-21 edition.
From there, Miley Cyrus hosted âMileyâs New Yearâs Eve Partyâ for the 2021-22 edition, which aired from Miami. NBC brought Miley back for the 2022-23 edition, with co-host Dolly Parton.
NBC then shifted in 2023-24, instead deciding to air a âSunday Night Footballâ game between the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings.
They went back to New Yearâs Eve programming for 2024-25, with âA Toast to 2024â co-hosted by Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager and âThe Day Drinking with Seth Meyers New Year’s Specialâ airing that night.
For this yearâs NYE special, NBC first announced Snoop Dogg would host his own party in Miami. Instead, because of scheduling conflicts, that special was cancelled. In its place, NBC will bring back Hoda and Jenna, as they co-host âA Toast to 2025!â
âA Toast to 2025!â Lineup
While they wonât broadcast the ball drop from Times Square, NBC announced they will be ringing in the new year with Hoda and Jenna. âA Toast to 2025!â will be hosted by the real-life besties. The two-hour special airs on December 31 at 10:30 p.m. ET on NBC.
The duo will shine a spotlight on some of the most memorable moments of 2025. They will also be spending some time with some of their closest friends â all 46 of them.
Here are the guest celebrities who will be making an appearance on âA Toast to 2025!â:
- Blayne Alexander
- Andrea Canning
- Dylan Dreyer
- Willie Geist
- Savannah Guthrie
- Lester Holt
- Tom Llamas
- Josh Mankiewicz
- Craig Melvin
- Keith Morrison
- Al Roker
- Maria Taylor
- Lindsey Vonn
- Johnny Weir
- Matt Iseman & Akbar Gbajabiamila (âAmerican Ninja Warriorâ)
- Howie Mandel (âAmericaâs Got Talentâ)
- David Alan Grier (âSt. Denis Medicalâ)
- Belissa Escobedo (âHappyâs Placeâ)
- Melissa Roxburgh & Sara Garcia (âThe Hunting Partyâ)
- Josh McKenzie & Patrick Sabongui (âThe Hunting Partyâ)
- Kristin Chenoweth & Jenn Lyon (âStumbleâ)
- Chris Hardwick (âThe Wallâ)
- Jabari Banks (âBel-Airâ)
- Amaya Espinal & Ariana Madix (âLove Island USAâ)
- Tom Daley (âThe Celebrity Traitors UKâ)
- Chris Sullivan (âDevil in Disguiseâ)
- Chelsea Frei (âThe Paperâ)
- Tiffany Haddish (âTiffany Haddish Goes Offâ)
- Ethan Slater (âWicked: For Goodâ)
- Brian Baumgartner (âThe Officeâ)
- Jim Gaffigan
- Lil Rel Howery
- Nate Jackson
- Carson Kressley
- Loni Love
- Chris Mann
- Bobby Moynihan (âSaturday Night Liveâ)
- Tom Papa
- Rob Riggle
- Wanda Sykes
âA Toast to 2025!â airs on Wednesday, December 31, at 10:30 p.m. ET/PT on NBC.
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