Conan O'Brien Takes Aim at Adrien Brody After Landing 2026 Oscar Host Gig

Conan O’Brien will get another chance to poke fun at Tinseltown’s top film celebrities during the 2026 event Oscars .

The 61-year-old comedian, who recently made his first appearance as an Oscar host this month has been selected to take the stage again next year.

"The sole reason I'm emceeing the Oscars next year is because I'm eager to listen to Adrien Brody "Conclude his address," O'Brien hinted in a statement.

Brody, aged 51, claimed the Best Actor award for his leading performance in the film. The Brutalist At the 97th Academy Awards, where he disregarded the assigned 45-second time constraint to give an unprecedented five minutes and 40 seconds acceptance speech .

Besides O'Brien, producers Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullen have also been verified to helm the event for the third straight year.

“We are thrilled to bring back Conan, Raj, Katy, Jeff and Mike for the 98th Oscars!” Academy CEO Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang said in a joint statement.

This year, they put together an immensely engaging and spectacularly visual event that beautifully honored both our nominees and the broader international filmmaking community. Conan served as the ideal emcee, effortlessly leading us through the night with his blend of humor, kindness, and respect. We are thrilled to collaborate with them once more.

The former Late Night The host's presentation at the 2025 Oscars garnered praise from both critics and audiences alike, earning positive reviews. The Independent Adam White praised O'Brien for an "outstanding performance."

“Featuring digs at controversial Emilia Perez starring Karla Sofia Gascon and A Dune The sandworm was seen at the piano, and he announced, "Comedian's initial series of jokes compensated for years of slow and mediocre performances by Jimmy Kimmel."

In a recent appearance of his Conan O'Brien Requires a Companion In his podcast, O'Brien disclosed an unexpected revelation. rules around the treatment of the Oscar statuette .

Eager to put his spin on his opening monologue, O’Brien shared that he pitched several skits to the organizing committee that were rebuffed because they’d be considered too disrespectful to the trophies.

"At some point, I wondered if it would be nice for it to simply be on the couch," he remembered. "We could place it on an enormous couch, and as I'm vacuuming, I might ask, 'Can you raise your legs at least? Or can you stand up and lend a hand instead? Maybe load the dishwasher?'”

However, O’Brien and his team were told they couldn’t because the Oscar couldn’t be horizontal.

“One of the people from the Academy came forward and said, ‘Oscar can never be horizontal.’ And that blew my mind. Like, wow, this is like the thigh bone of St. Peter. This is a religious icon.”

The 2026 Academy Awards will once more be held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026.

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