The longtime host departed the show’s weekend edition earlier this month after news broke that ABC declined to renew her contract.

Janai Norman reunites with former *Good Morning America *cohosts after abrupt exit

The longtime host departed the show's weekend edition earlier this month after news broke that ABC declined to renew her contract.

By Shania Russell

Shania Russell

Shania Russell is a news writer at *, *with five years of experience. Her work has previously appeared in SlashFilm and Paste Magazine.

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April 30, 2026 2:20 p.m. ET

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Janai Norman reunites with her former 'Good Morning America' cohosts. Credit:

Janai Norman/Instagram

- Janai Norman recently reunited with several of her former *Good Morning America* colleagues for a night out.

- Among the attendees were her former cohosts Whit Johnson and Gio Benitez and *GMA Weekend* showrunner Ariel Miller.

- The outing comes weeks after Norman abruptly exited the show's weekend edition after news broke that ABC declined to renew her contract.

Just because Janai Norman left *Good Morning America* doesn't mean that she can't spend quality time with her old pals.

Weeks after the *GMA Weekend* host abruptly exited the show, she reunited with several of her former colleagues for a joyous dinner.

The sweet snaps showed the group smiling around a table at a restaurant and posing together after the occasion. Sharing the photos in a joint post with his fellow attendees, Johnson wrote, "A night of laughter and love with this crew! Always a blast!"

The reunion comes weeks after news broke that Norman would be leaving the weekend edition of *GMA* after ABC declined to renew her contract.

The former anchor had been with the network for 15 years, joining NewsOne as an intern in 2011. She later served as a correspondent for ABC News and then a co-anchor for *World News Now* and *America This Morning*. She joined *GMA Weekend* in 2019 as the Pop News host before being promoted to her anchor role in 2022.

Janai Norman on 'Good Morning America'.

Rather than giving an on-air goodbye, Norman announced her exit in an April 4 Instagram video. Two days before reports emerged, via the daily newsletter Status, that her contract with ABC had expired and would not be renewed.

A source subsequently told PEOPLE, "Janai has known since early March she wasn't going to be renewed and has been on the air for weeks, completely professional with no issues. But when the story leaked online, she was abruptly taken off the air. Her contract is not up until early May."

In her video Norman told viewers, "I'd hoped that we'd have more time. It's been hard on me that our time was cut short. I have loved my job. It has been a joy to connect with my coworkers and with viewers, to help keep you informed and entertained, and to create this community."

"It really breaks my heart that I don't get to say goodbye," she continued. "It would've been fun."

Janai Norman on 'Good Morning America'.

Norman added that she was looking forward to spending more time with her three kids after working weekends for their entire lives. "So now they get more of me," she said, "and that is worth everything."

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She then thanked her supporters. "I'm sorry. I feel you," she said. "Thank you to every single one of you who has reached out with such kind and validating words. I have needed it and I appreciate it."

Norman's departure was one of many shakeups at the network as ABC News continues to change its morning programming lineup. The network restructured the *GMA3* spinoff hour last year, folding it into the main show with a rotation of hosts including Benitez, Lara Spencer, and Sam Champion.

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