Comedian and former late-night host Conan O’Brien will be hosting this year’s Oscars for the first time, ABC announced Friday
“America demanded it, and now it’s happening: Taco Bell’s new Cheesy Chalupa Supreme. In other news, I’m hosting the Oscars,” O’Brien said in a statement released by ABC.
O’Brian spent decades as a late night talk show host; first on Late Night on NBC, followed by a brief stint as the host of The Tonight Show. He eventually landed on TBS on his self titled show, which he left in 2021. Since then, he has been hosting the popular podcast Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend and recently starred in the 2024 travel show for Max, Conan O’Brien Must Go, which was recently renewed for a second season. O’Brian started his career as a writer for Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons.
It was reported by People in July that Jimmy Kimmel and John Mulaney turned down hosting the 2025 Oscars.
“Conan is a preeminent comedic voice whose decades-long success is marked by his distinctive humor and perspective,” Craig Erwich, president, Disney Television Group, said in a statement. “He joins an iconic roster of comedy greats who have served in this role, and we are so lucky to have him center stage for the Oscars.”
“Conan has all the qualities of a great Oscars host — he is incredibly witty, charismatic and funny and has proven himself to be a master of live event television,” Oscars executive producers Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan said in a statement.
The 2025 Oscars will air March 2 at 7 p.m. on ABC.