Conan O’Brien Is Returning to Host 2026 Oscars But Has 1 Request

Conan O’Brien is heading back to the Oscars stage in 2026 — but he has one major contingency.

“The only reason I’m hosting the Oscars next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech,” O’Brien, 61, said in a statement on Monday, March 17.

O’Brien’s joke referred to Brody, 51, being played off while accepting the award for Best Actor earlier this month. After winning for his role in The Brutalist, Brody went on for a lengthy amount of time when the music started playing him off the stage. The actor, however, asked the music to stop so he could finish up the speech.

The Academy and ABC announced on Monday that O’Brien would be taking on the hosting role for a second year in a row. President of Disney Television Group Craig Erwich shared his excitement for O’Brien’s return in a statement released following the official announcement.

“Conan’s unique comedic style perfectly captured the moment, and I’m excited to have his talents back onstage next year to helm another indelible performance,” he shared.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy President Janet Yang shared a joint statement on Monday, praising O’Brien’s hosting prowess — and mentioning the success of the awards show — as the reason for his return.

“This year, they produced a hugely entertaining and visually stunning show that celebrated our nominees and the global film community in the most beautiful and impactful way,” their statement read. “Conan was the perfect host — skillfully guiding us through the evening with humor, warmth and reverence.”

O’Brien made his Oscars hosting debut on March 2, and the live broadcast racked up a total of 19.7 million viewers. The Academy Awards was the most-watched entertainment awards show of 2025, thus far.

Following his Oscars success, O’Brien has spoken out about the hosting gig. He even revealed which jokes were cut from his opening monologue. Surprisingly, there are strict rules governing the actual “Oscar” statuette — so any jokes revolving around him were off limits.

“At one point, I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if it’s just on the couch?’” O’Brien recalled during the March 13 episode of his “Conan Needs a Friend” podcast. “Let’s lay it on a really big couch and I’ll be vacuuming and say, ‘Could you at least lift your feet? Or could you at least get up and help? Load the dishwasher?’”

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