The host was deft and some of the speeches and production ideas were strong, but there were too many head-scratching choices and tonal inconsistencies to call the night a success.

The 2025 Oscars made history in its usual fashion, as the coronation of this year’s winners has added another chapter to the history books. It also saw the show being hosted by first time emcee and late night comedy legend Conan O’Brien, which was a pretty brilliant hire.

Conan O’Brien was funny, witty, heartfelt, and sincere. He’ll go down as delivering one of the best Oscar opening monologues in history. Oh my god please let Conan O’Brien host every Oscars ceremony from now on

Roughly halfway through the broadcast ( which we live-blogged with reckless abandon ), during a break between Oscars being handed out, O’Brien delivered a perfectly timed quip referencing Kendrick Lamar’s now-infamous Super Bowl LIX halftime show performance.

TV funnyman Conan O'Brien took the stage as host of the 97th annual Academy Awards on Sunday night as the 2025 Oscar nominees competed for top honors . O'Brien inherited hosting duties from fellow comedian and late-night star Jimmy Kimmel, who presided over the Oscars four times before.

Viewers took to social media to share their reactions to O’Brien’s hosting, with one X user writing, “Give @ConanOBrien a goddamned blank check to host the #Oscars for as long as he sees fit. Tonight’s show was probably the best since Seth MacFarlane hosted.”

Host Conan O'Brien performs onstage during the 97th Annual Oscars ... [+] at Dolby Theatre on March 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California. Getty Imag

The Oscars joke writer behind host Conan O'Brien's line about Kendrick Lamar and Drake's beef knew it would elicit big laughs from the audience, winning $50 on a bet with the show's executive producer.

During his monologue, O'Brien singled out his longtime friend for being "dressed like a guy playing video poker at 2 a.m."

Conan O'Brien kept the jokes flowing during his opening monologue, poking fun at A-list celebrities while reminding viewers what the Oscars are about.

Shortly after it aired, comedian and writer Skyler Higley—a former writer on Conan’s self-titled late-night show and a member of the team of writers Conan assembled for his Oscars gig—tweeted his thanks to the Academy for keeping the joke in,

Adam Sandler made an unexpected fashion statement at the 2025 Oscars on Sunday night, and host Conan O'Brien had something to say about it.