Billy Bush joining Fox News as a contributor

Billy Bush, briefly co-host of "Today's" third hour before he was forced out over the "Access Hollywood" hot mic tapes, has joined Fox News as a contributor, the network announced Tuesday.

In a statement suggesting his role on Fox will not be limited to just pop culture, Bush, 54, said "I’m excited to join Fox News Media and its loyal audience to share my perspective on the people, ideas and moments shaping today’s culture ... as well as the ones trying to undo it!"

The network said his first outing as a paid contributor will be on Tuesday's edition of "Jesse Watters Primetime," where he's appeared seven times before, according to the Internet Movie Database.

Bush — cousin of former President George W. Bush, and who most recently has been hosting his own podcast, "Hot Mics With Billy Bush" — was among TV's best-known pop-culture reporters in the early aughts, as a correspondent and anchor on "Access Hollywood" and red carpet habitue. He left "Access" in 2016 when he was named co-host of the third hour of "Today."

His "Today" tenure ended not long after, when he became embroiled in a scandal that engulfed Donald Trump's candidacy — the 2005 "Access Hollywood" outtakes of Bush joking with Trump who had made lewd comments about women. In the wake of the tapes' release, he was suspended by the network, then left.

Bush later hosted "Extra," from 2019 to 2025.