Hollywood’s biggest night has officially found its voice—and face—for the 97th annual Academy Awards. On Friday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) announced that late-night legend Conan O’Brien will be hosting the 2025 Oscars.
“America demanded it and now it’s happening: Taco Bell’s new Cheesy Chalupa Supreme,” was how O’Brien himself shared news of the gig. “In other news, I’m hosting the Oscars.”
Though the Oscars have a notable habit of tapping late-night hosts as their annual emcee—Jimmy Kimmel has commandeered the stage four times in recent years, including in both 2023 and 2024—it will mark O’Brien’s Oscars debut.
First-timer or not, AMPAS CEO Bill Kramer and president Janet Yang said in a statement that they are “thrilled and honored to have the incomparable” comedian take the stage for next year’s ceremony.
“He is the perfect person to help lead our global celebration of film with his brilliant humor, his love of movies, and his live TV expertise,” Kramer and Yang stated. “His remarkable ability to connect with audiences will bring viewers together to do what the Oscars do best—honor the spectacular films and filmmakers of this year.”
The parade of compliments continued with Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan, the show’s executive producers, who said that “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. We are so looking forward to working with him to deliver a fresh, exciting and celebratory show for Hollywood’s biggest night.”
In July, reports began circulating that Kimmel had once again been offered the chance to host the ceremony, but declined. He confirmed that shortly after. “I just decided I didn’t want to deal with that this year,” Kimmel said in an August episode of Gavin Newsom, Marshawn Lynch, and Doug Hendrickson’s Politickin’ podcast.
“It was just too much last year,” Kimmel said (though he isn’t ruling out coming back at some point, saying he just needed “a little break.”)
John Mulaney was also reportedly approached about the gig, which he too declined. He’ll be busy enough working on his live Netflix talk show, which arrives in February.
Though it has been three years since O’Brien ended his eponymous TBS late-night series, Conan, he has hardly faded into the sunset. This year in particular has been a big one for him. In addition to launching a new travel series for Max, Conan O’Brien Must Go, which earned him an Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program (Season 2 is currently in production), O’Brien went viral for his unhinged appearance on Hot Ones. (No word yet on whether O’Brien will require Dr. Jose Arroyo’s services during the Oscars ceremony.)
The 97th Oscars will be held on Sunday, March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. They will air live on ABC at 7 p.m. ET and be broadcast around the world.
