Gene Shalit, the longtime film critic for NBC's "TODAY" show, died on Friday, June 12, 2026 [3].
Shalit was a fixture of American morning television for decades. His presence on the program provided a bridge between traditional cinema criticism and the mass-market reach of network news, shaping how millions of viewers in the U.S. perceived new movie releases.
He was 100 years old at the time of his death [1]. His family said the news, though they did not provide a specific cause of death [4].
Throughout his career, Shalit served as a film critic for the "TODAY" show for more than 40 years [2]. His tenure spanned several eras of filmmaking, from the Golden Age of Hollywood to the rise of digital cinema. He became known for his distinct style of reviewing and his ability to distill complex cinematic themes for a general audience.
Colleagues and viewers remember him as a steady voice in a rapidly evolving media landscape. By maintaining a consistent role on the morning program, he helped establish the film critic as an essential component of the daily news cycle, a role that combined entertainment with journalistic analysis.
His death marks the end of an era for NBC. The network's long-term association with Shalit created a sense of continuity for the audience, as he remained a constant through various changes in the show's hosting lineups and format shifts over the decades.
“Gene Shalit, the longtime film critic for NBC's "TODAY" show, died on Friday, June 12, 2026.”
The death of Gene Shalit represents the loss of one of the last major links to the traditional era of network television criticism. Because he held his position for over four decades, his career serves as a historical record of the transition from physical film to streaming, reflecting the broader shift in how the U.S. public consumes both cinema and media commentary.
