Conan O’Brien wasted no time getting to the good stuff at the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 15, delivering a monologue that took well-placed swipes at some of Hollywood’s most talked-about targets, with Timothée Chalamet’s ballet and opera controversy firmly in the spotlight.
O’Brien opened with a false security alert.
“Security is very tight tonight,” he told the Dolby Theater crowd.
“There is concern about attacks from the ballet and opera communities.” He then turned directly to Chalamet with a deadpan kicker: “They’re just mad that you left out jazz.”
It was one of the sharpest lines of the night, landing clean given how extensively Chalamet’s February remarks had been dissected across the industry in the weeks leading up to the ceremony.
O’Brien also took a dig at the increasingly tense relationship between Hollywood and politics, warning the room that things could get uncomfortable. His solution?
“There’s an alternate Oscars hosted by Kid Rock. It’s at Dave & Buster’s down the street.”
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos was also unscathed.
Playing the irony of a streaming executive sitting in a movie theater, O’Brien riffed on what Sarandos might be thinking while watching an audience enjoy a movie together.
“Why are they all enjoying themselves? They should be home alone where I can make money off of it,” O’Brien said, doing his best Sarandos impression.
The monologue followed a pre-taped cold open in which O’Brien appeared in full make-up as Amy Madigan’s character Aunt Gladys from Armscrashing scenes from the year’s Best Picture nominees as they are pursued by the murderous children of horror.
The sequence ended with a stuntman being chased live into the Dolby Theater itself, after which O’Brien emerged from the chaos in a tuxedo, composed as ever.
It was his second time hosting the Oscars, having taken on the role for the first time last year, and by the looks of it, he’s settling in well.
