Oscars Host Conan O'brien Says 'we Will Find The Right Tone' For Ceremony Amid Iran War

The large mobility surrounding past year’s Academy Awards was whether nan show would speak astir nan L.A. wildfires, which had rattled nan metropolis specified months prior.

This year, nan elephant successful nan room is nan ongoing Iran war, which for illustration past year’s wildfires, puts a ceremony for illustration nan Oscars successful crisp relief. But for Conan O’Brien, balancing gravity and levity is portion of his occupation explanation arsenic host.

“My occupation is to ever effort and deed this very, very bladed statement betwixt entertaining group and besides acknowledging immoderate of nan realities,” O’Brien said successful a Wednesday news convention pinch nan Oscars imaginative team.

“It’s a creation that goes connected up until nan show begins,” nan erstwhile talk show big said, adding that he and his squad of writers are still revising worldly up of nan show to make judge their contented is arsenic applicable arsenic possible.

“Between us,” he said, referencing Oscars telecast executive producers Katy Mullan and Raj Kapoor, “we will find nan correct tone.”

O’Brien besides during nan news convention recalled Johnny Carson’s move hosting nan Oscars during nan Iran hostage crisis, erstwhile 52 Americans, including diplomats and different personnel, were held hostage astatine nan U.S. embassy successful Tehran from 1979 to 1981. The comedian remembered nan tv big parodying ABC’s “Nightline” pinch his joke, “It’s time 444 of nan Oscars.”

“It was specified a funny, topical joke that touched connected thing everyone was reasoning about, and astatine nan aforesaid time, sewage a large laughter and was unifying,” O’Brien said. “That was meaningful to me.”

Kapoor said during nan news convention that nan accumulation squad is putting systems successful spot to alleviate attendees’ information concerns amid nan tense world business and reported threats to California.

“Every year, we show what’s going connected successful nan world,” nan showrunner said, adding that nan ceremonial has nan support of nan FBI and LAPD. “This show has to tally for illustration clockwork.”

He added, “Everybody that is coming to this show, that is witnessing this show, that is moreover a instrumentality of nan show erstwhile they’re opinionated extracurricular nan barricades — we want everybody to consciousness safe and protected and welcome.”

As for nan show’s imaginative direction, nan squad cited “human touch” arsenic a unifying taxable — a not-so-subtle flimsy to AI.

“We’re celebrating quality touch, quality relationship and what I for illustration to telephone existent intelligence, arsenic opposed to artificial,” said euphony head Michael Bearden. “We want to get backmost to nan communal ... and truthful nan euphony will bespeak that.”

That tone of ceremony will beryllium particularly tangible successful nan “KPop Demon Hunters” performance, Kapoor said. That capacity will beryllium complemented by a “Sinners” infinitesimal featuring Miles Caton and Raphael Saadiq arsenic good arsenic guests Misty Copeland, Eric Gales, Buddy Guy, Brittany Howard, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Jayme Lawson, Li Jun Li, Bobby Rush, Shaboozey and Alice Smith.

“We person this beautiful communicative celebrating Korean civilization pinch authentic Korean drummers and singers and moreover choreography,” nan shaper said. “So again, we’ve expanded our reach, and we’re telling these world stories, celebrating world films that person had a world effect and doing things successful a really different way.”

Mullan and Kapoor closed nan news convention by teasing a brace of reunions featuring formed members from “Bridesmaids” and nan Marvel Cinematic Universe. “Bridesmaids” alum Rose Byrne is nominated for a lead character Oscar for her domiciled successful “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” which marked O’Brien’s melodramatic acting debut. (If Byrne wins, he said, “half that Oscar’s mine.”)

“We’re gonna person superstars, superheroes, and location is besides going to beryllium an extraterrestrial connected nan stage, truthful you tin fig that 1 out,” Mullan said.

The 2026 Oscars will aerial unrecorded Sunday connected ABC, pinch streaming disposable connected Hulu, YouTube TV, AT&T TV and FuboTV.