Megyn Kelly wants to be the ‘next Oprah’

Megyn Kelly grew tired of combative hard news reporting and now wants “to help people the way Oprah did” on her new NBC show, sources tell Page Six.

After signing a deal with NBC worth between $12 million and $15 million, Kelly’s plans for her new show have been shrouded in secrecy.

NBC brass are interviewing executive producers in the hopes that Kelly will debut in September at either 9 or 10 a.m. in front of a live studio audience.

A source told us, “There was a lot of tough news to report on her show at Fox News. A lot of combative interviewing, going after people. Doing that every night was difficult. Megyn feels she has more to offer. She wants to help people the way Oprah did, and do something more positive. She’ll be focusing on issues and bringing in real people as well as celebrities. Plus, she has a sense of humor and she wants to use that.”

Kelly told Variety in 2015, “Barbara Walters has retired, Diane Sawyer left her anchor role. Oprah has moved to the OWN network and is doing a different thing now. So why not me?” The source added, “Megyn will have the Sunday night show on NBC to scratch that itch. That’s where you’ll see the big interviews and stories.”

Kelly is still under contract with Fox News until July 1, which means she can’t be in production meetings. NBC News president Noah Oppenheim is tasked with finding her an executive producer, and has been interviewing candidates repped by CAA, which is packaging Kelly’s show. We’re told NBC is trying to persuade Fox News to release her early.

Kelly wants someone from outside the Peacock Network to produce. “Megyn doesn’t want a [Matt] Lauer loyalist running her show. She wants a team who she can trust and that will have her back,” another source said, adding that others at “Today” are in the dark and wonder “when the moving truck will pull up.”

“People who have been there for 30 years fear they’ll be let go, and there’s, of course, talk about how much money she’s getting.”

A rep for Kelly added of the EP hunt, “There are many people vying for this job.” NBC didn’t comment.