• Former late nite host Conan O’Brien hosted the 97th Academy Awards
  • Nick Offerman, John Lithgow and Adam Sandler helped with gags
  • Fans have been praising his hosting abilities on social media
Fans have praised Conan O'Brien's stint as Oscar host.
Fans have praised Conan O’Brien’s stint as Oscar host. Credit: Imago

How did Conan do at the Oscars? Pretty well, according to almost everyone on social media. 

The legendary comedian and former Late Nite host delivered his first stint as Oscars frontman, hosting the 97th Academy Awards at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre. Traditionally, it’s a role that’s infamously thankless – with few famous faces emerging from the process with glowing reviews.

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Thankfully, that doesn’t seem to be the case for Conan. The 61-year-old Late Nite legend’s mix of slick comic wordplay and smart visual gags had audiences smiling both in-house and at home. 

His time as Oscars host was roundly praised by fans on social media, with some suggesting that Conan should be “the only person allowed to host things.”

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Elsewhere, others noted that Conan’s secret may be the fact that he’s just “naturally funny.”

How did Conan do at the Oscars?

The dust has hardly had time to settle on the 97th Academy Awards. However, fans seem to be in agreement that Conan was one of the show’s highlights.

“I am very biased, as a die hard Conan O’Brien fan, but that’s the type of host you need for a major award show like this,” said one fan on X.

“Zero politics whatsoever in his monologue (as expected) just out there to try and make people laugh and have fun.”

“The 4 time #Oscars    Viewer Conan O’Brien absolutely nailed the show & his monologue, it’s so awesome to see him performing live again,” added another.

“Conan O’Brien is low key the best host Oscars has had for the last few years,” said a third.

Hard agree.

Conan O’Brien Oscar host highlights

To help keep spirits high during an awards show that’s infamously lengthy, he enlisted the help of some Hollywood stars for big gags.

Conclave actor John Lithgow was on hand to fire off not angry – but disappointed – looks at anyone who over indulged in their acceptance speech.

Meanwhile, Parks and Recreation star Nick Offerman narrated the evening with a voice-over that provided plenty of opportunities for laughs. Like a tense back-and-forth with Conan.

Meanwhile, Conan’s pal Adam Sandler poked fun at his famously unglamorous choice of awards show threads in a vocal bit during the opening monologue.

Overall, we wouldn’t be surprised if Conan is invited back to host next year’s event.

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Simon Bland
Simon is a freelance entertainment journalist and SEO writer based in the UK. He writes about movies, TV and pop-culture and his work has appeared in The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Beast, IndieWire, Yahoo Entertainment, Rolling Stone, Little White Lies and more.
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