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Former Today show star Lisa Wilkinson gave fans a rare insight into her relationship with ex co-host Karl Stefanovic as she took part in a viral social media trend on January 27.
The veteran broadcaster was taking part in an Instagram movement that sees people reflecting on the year that was 2016 as they prepare for what 2026 has in store.
In her own post, Lisa admitted she was “a little late to the party” in sharing her own take on 2016, but she posted a slew of images “in no particular order” – each of which held a memory for the star.
Among the pictures shared was a snap of Lisa in a hat and sunglasses in Santorini on the “best holiday ever”, as well as the moment she brought her beautiful dog Maggie home “for the first time”.
But among the images there were also two involving Karl – who co-hosted Today with Lisa for a decade until Lisa’s departure in October 2017.
One snap, captioned “4.45am glamour”, showed Lisa on the set of Today, reading a script with her hair in curlers, while Karl stood next to her in a hoodie doing the same thing.
Another was an equally candid moment that showed Lisa and Karl locked in an enormous bear hug while fellow Today show star Sylvia Jeffreys looked on, beaming in open-mouthed delight.
“The hug you have when you both find out that you have finally won the breakfast TV ratings after nine years of early starts together,” Lisa captioned the snap.
Lisa has rarely talked about Karl since she sensationally quit Today after Channel Nine was unable to meet the star’s “expectations’ during contact renewal negotiations.
“Nine today confirmed we have been unable to meet the expectation of Lisa Wilkinson and her manager on a contract renewal for a further period,” Nine shared in a statement on October 16 2017.
“We express our gratitude to Lisa for her Ten years with the Today Show and are disappointed we find ourselves in this position.”
Reports at the time claimed Lisa had sought the same pay package as her co-host Karl – a figure that was said to be $2 million.
Channel Nine chief executive Hugh Marks said at the time that Lisa had spread herself too thin with rival commitments and had asked for $2.3 million in remuneration.
“She has a number of commercial rights with other parties. Her arrangement with The Huffington Post restricts our ability to engage with her digitally… we are restricted from engaging with her also on social media,” Marks told 9News at the time.
“The reason we walked away from Lisa is because we are not able to secure those rights with her.”
“It’s not just a pay thing. We want people to partner with us, who are invested and want to go on the journey with us,” the then-CEO went on.
“I have been a great supporter of women in our business in terms of salary equity and position, when we are discussing on-air talent we assess their contribution beyond just their gender, audience appeal, rights and contribution to the overall business – and not their own brand.”
Marks also said he had gone to “an incredible amount of trouble” to build a “$1.8 million package” for the star.
“She wanted $2.3 million. It wasn’t a $200,000 shortfall to Karl’s $2 million magic number. It was $500,000,” he said at the time.
Lisa went on to join Channel 10’s then flagship show The Project, alongside hosts Carrie Bickmore, Waleed Aly and Peter Helliar, before quitting in November 2022.
She has been absent from TV screens since.
In 2019, in an interview with Hit105’s Stav, Abby and Matt, Lisa denied there was ever any tension between her and her co-star.
“Oh god there was no falling out,” she told the show..
“Karl and I still text each other and we still see each other from time to time, but he is hopeless at catching up.
“He’ll say lets have dinner on Saturday night and then you don’t hear from him again, so Karl I’m still waiting for dinner,” she quipped..
Karl stepped away from Today in 2018 before returning as co-host in 2020 – something, he told the Sydney Morning Herald, he was “as shocked about… as everyone else”.
“It’s not something I thought would ever come up again. I thought my time was up, but then, when I was sounded out about it, it got me thinking,” he told the outlet.
“It’s a big job with enormous pressures and I know only too well some of those pitfalls, but it is also without question the best live TV job in Australia.”
The star has remained on Today ever since, but he has also taken another direction with his career.
On January 25 2026, Karl launched his own YouTube-linked show called The Karl Stefanovic Show.
The first episode – featuring Pauline Hanson – was live-streamed and bore similarities to the Joe Rogan show, thanks to its long conversational format.
“I’m free and independent to talk to the people that I’m curious about,” Karl said in the show’s intro. “It’s unscripted, unfiltered, uncensored. I’m going to unleash the beast. Are you ready to walk on the wild side?”
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