The Oscars host was foolish and critical by turns—and delightfully accountable for the night.
As quickly as Conan O’Brien strode onto the Oscars stage Sunday evening, he regarded like he belonged there. He was self-deprecating, telling the gang to sit down down earlier than he continued, regardless that nobody was standing. He discovered Demi Moore within the viewers and greeted her with a smile; he had simply performed a pre-recorded clip of himself rising out of her again as a nod to her work within the Greatest Image-nominated physique horror movie The Substance. He took a number of steps throughout the set and quipped, “I’m strolling to indicate I’ve management of the stage.”
He actually did have management. O’Brien has by no means hosted the Academy Awards earlier than, however the comic appeared like a veteran of the gig as he kicked off the present. That’s partly as a result of he spent three many years working in late-night tv—writing bits, interviewing celebrities, and commanding every kind of audiences as a bunch. As the author Vikram Murthi noticed final 12 months, O’Brien “is one in every of our final traditional entertainers.”
However O’Brien’s success on the Oscars can also be a results of his capability to steadiness the foolish with the intense; now and again, he even embodied each on the identical time. His tonal agility as a performer made him well-suited to a ceremony that got here on the heels of two main occasions—the presidential election and the wildfires in Los Angeles that destroyed whole neighborhoods—whereas Hollywood itself has been enduring a tough time: Studio productions have largely vacated Los Angeles after the pandemic and the twin strikes, streaming platforms proceed to disrupt the normal theater enterprise, and a sequence of scandals have plagued a number of of the nominees seated contained in the Dolby Theater. O’Brien has been going via a tough few months, too; his dad and mom died inside days of each other in December, and he evacuated his residence amid the fires. His job, on high of charming each the A-listers within the room and people watching at residence, requires understanding when and learn how to make his viewers not solely giggle, but additionally hear.
He proved adept on the process from the soar. In some moments throughout his monologue, he performed the position of the standard Oscars emcee: He inspired the gang to applaud Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, the celebrities of Depraved, for his or her performances on the starting of the present. He poked mild enjoyable on the Greatest Image nominees, and teased a number of the assembled actors by displaying their pre-fame headshots. (The picture proven for Timothée Chalamet, as an example, was that of a sonogram.)
But he additionally performed the unruly jester: He championed Babygirl, a 2024 movie that was snubbed by the Academy, and skewered Amazon’s current buy of the James Bond franchise. He additionally deployed a number of harsh punchlines in regards to the actor Karla Sofía Gascón, whose resurfaced tweets—a sequence of bigoted missives, together with one in regards to the Oscars themselves—basically sank her Greatest Actress marketing campaign. After the gang gasped at his reference to Gascón, O’Brien appeared delighted, pointing on the viewers, rubbing his arms collectively, and even jogging in place. “I’m having enjoyable,” he stated, smiling impishly.
O’Brien’s giddiness was key to his opening act. It softened the strangeness of a few of his gags, whether or not it was verbally sparring along with his longtime pal Adam Sandler, requesting the Conclave star John Lithgow’s assist to disgrace speech-givers into wrapping up, or performing an ironic song-and-dance quantity about not losing time onstage the best way that earlier hosts and presenters have. These moments aren’t new to awards reveals; Sandler has turn out to be a pinch hitter for stay TV these days, and virtually each Oscars host calls out how lengthy the ceremony runs. However O’Brien made plain how a lot he sought to entertain, to carry everybody’s consideration at any value.
Maybe that’s why he efficiently delivered the phase that others in his place would have tried to rapidly gloss over: a critical, direct-to-camera enchantment in regards to the significance of filmmaking, particularly throughout less-than-ideal instances. “In moments akin to this, any awards present can appear self-indulgent and superfluous,” he started, “however what I need to do is have us all keep in mind why we collect right here tonight. … Even within the face of horrible wildfires and divisive politics, the work, which is what that is about, the work continues, and subsequent 12 months, and for years to return, via trauma and pleasure, this seemingly absurd ritual goes to be right here.”
He paused. “I can’t,” he stated as the gang started to giggle. “I’m leaving Hollywood to run a mattress and breakfast in Orlando, and I’d wish to see you there.” It was traditional Conan: goofy and ridiculous, however earnest in his pleasure, too. He’d stated in an interview final week that each one he wished out of the internet hosting gig was “to have enjoyable onstage.” He clearly did. So did these off of it.