Megyn Kelly: NBC Plans Ahead For Bad Ratings

Megyn Kelly could be fired from her new $17 million-a-year job, The National ENQUIRER has learned exclusively!

In top-secret meetings, her bosses at NBC have drawn up contingency plans to remove the 46-year-old diva — before she’s even launched her morning show, “Megyn Kelly Today!” Alarm bells rang at the Peacock Network after Megyn’s Sunday night newsmagazine tanked in the ratings — averaging no more viewers than reruns of “America’s Funniest Home Videos!”

Now, if the overpaid smack-talker’s new 9 a.m. show gets stuck in the ratings basement, NBC brass will replace her, and one insider snitched: “She could be fired and not even know it!” The execs are looking at several options including icing out Megyn from “Today’s” third hour while grooming her corporate nemesis, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow, for the plum job! “The takeaway from internal meetings is that the network is considering extending Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb’s hour-long ‘Today’ slot to two hours,” snitched a mole. “Essentially, they’ll ice out Megyn, so if she’s fired, it won’t be such a big deal.”

At the same time, Rachel, whose prime-time show has been trouncing its cable competition, will get face time on the “Today” mother ship. “Expect ‘Today’ to introduce Rachel slowly, putting her on once or twice a week, and then increasing her role until she’s a full-time member of the ‘Today’ family,” added another insider with a ringside seat to the drama. After her flameout in prime time, Megyn has begun to regret jumping ship from FOX — and has even confided to friends about wanting to return to her former network.

“The grass isn’t always greener on the other side,” a source said. “If Megyn runs out of steam at NBC she’ll have a bruised ego, for sure. But she’s strong enough to bounce back, and she isn’t too proud to go back to FOX.” The stunning development comes on the heels of The ENQUIRER’s exclusive report that Megyn is at war with former pal Kelly Ripa — as the two dynamite blondes prepare to go head-to-head in the same 9 a.m. time slot. Not surprisingly, there are few who believe Megyn can overcome her pathetic start to beat longtime favorite Kelly at the morning show game.

“There’s absolute panic at NBC that this was a bad mistake that needs to be fixed,” spilled a source who revealed her fate was sealed at a secret meeting. Behind the scenes, staffers are incensed by Megyn’s diva demands and the special treatment she’s undeservedly getting. “It’s as if she’s being rewarded for bad behavior!” said one mole. The mother of three even brought her own glam squad with her to NBC! “Megyn is particular about her hair and makeup. It took a long time for her to find people who she liked and trusted,” a friend squealed. “She didn’t want to take any risks when it came to how she looked at NBC.”

Insiders said network brass has “tried their hardest” to keep the national spotlight on their high-priced acquisition, but there’s a feeling they have “gone too far with the Megyn Kelly experiment!” “Megyn is feeling the pressure, and struggling to cope with so much criticism. She thinks it’s unwarranted, and believes that if she’s given more time to remind the bosses why they hired her, she’ll survive,” a source tattled.

Another spy dished: “Megyn is a tough person to work for. She knows what she wants and won’t accept anything less. She’s a hard worker and started from the bottom, so it’s no surprise that she doesn’t want anything to go wrong. “There were a few times where the FOX newsroom heard her calling out her producers for something that didn’t go the way she expected. She is a total perfectionist. If something goes wrong, she doesn’t hesitate to call out the mistake and she isn’t the nicest about it.”