Why Oscars host Conan O’Brien won’t directly mention Trump’s name tonight despite already making jab
Conan O'Brien just made a joke that viewers are convinced was aimed at US President Donald Trump.
Less than one hour into the ceremony, he made a jibe about renaming the Dolby Theatre, where the event is located, as the 'has a small penis theatre,' adding: "Let's see him try and put his name in front of that."
Despite not naming names, viewers pretty quickly picked up that the dig is about the Republican leader, specifically his decision to rename the Kennedy Center after himself.
And it looks like there's a reason why his name was left out of the joke.
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As per News.com, O'Brien said during a virtual press conference on Wednesday: “Hosting this show is a very thin line.
“We’re celebrating movies and the amazing people behind them, but it has to be funny without tipping into anger or politics."
And according to the publication, in another recent interview on The New Yorker Radio Hour, he added that Trump has become 'bad for comedy' because 'reality now outpaces satire'.
He explained: "When comedians get angry instead of clever, it doesn’t land."
One X user penned: "Conan’s first trump dig at the Oscars and it’s *fire emoji*."
Davis Ingle, WH Spokesman, said: "Nobody in their right mind cares what woke celebrities in Hollywood say or think."
The 98th Academy Awards, as usual, are being held at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles tonight (15 March).
Hollywood's biggest names in the world of movies and entertainment are gathered together to see who will take home one of the most prestigious awards in the film industry.
The show is airing on ABC, streaming on Hulu, and airing live in more than 200 territories worldwide.
American TV show host and comedian Conan O'Brien is hosting the awards for his second consecutive year, after getting a slew of good reviews the first time around.
Meanwhile, journalist Amelia Dimoldenberg, best known for hosting the celebrity interview series Chicken Shop Date, has returned for the third year in a row as social media ambassador and correspondent for the official red carpet.
As for the nominees, Sinners, starring Michael. B Jordan leads the way with an impressive 16 nominations, breaking the record for the most Oscar nods, which was previously held by the movies All About Eve (1950), Titanic (1997), and La La Land (2016).
Meanwhile, One Battle After Another has an incredible 13 nominations, and Marty Supreme, Frankenstein, and Sentimental Value have nine each, while Hamnet has eight.
2026 Oscars nominees and winners
Best Director
- Paul Thomas Anderson - One Battle After Another - WINNER
- Ryan Coogler - Sinners
- Josh Safdie - Marty Supreme
- Joachim Trier - Sentimental Value
- Chloé Zhao - Hamnet
Best Adapted Screenplay
- Bugonia
- Frankenstein
- Hamnet
- One Battle After Another - WINNER
- Train Dreams
Best Original Screenplay
- Blue Moon
- It Was Just an Accident
- Marty Supreme
- Sentimental Value
- Sinners - WINNER
Best Original Song
- 'Dear Me' - Diane Warren: Relentless
- 'Golden' - KPop Demon Hunters - WINNER
- 'I Lied to You' - Sinners
- 'Sweet Dreams of Joy' - Viva Verdi!
- 'Train Dreams' - Train Dreams
Best Original Score
- Bugonia
- Frankenstein
- Hamnet
- One Battle After Another
- Sinners - WINNER
Best International Feature
- It Was Just an Accident
- Sentimental Value - WINNER
- Sirât
- The Secret Agent
- The Voice of Hind Rajab
Best Animated Feature
- Arco
- Elio
- KPop Demon Hunters - WINNER
- Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
- Zootopia 2
Best Documentary Feature
- Come See Me in the Good Light
- Cutting Through the Rocks
- Mr. Nobody Against Putin - WINNER
- The Alabama Solution
- The Perfect Neighbor
Best Costume Design
- Avatar: Fire and Ash
- Frankenstein - WINNER
- Hamnet
- Marty Supreme
- Sinners
Best Make-up and Hairstyling
- Frankenstein - WINNER
- Kokuho
- Sinners
- The Smashing Machine
- The Ugly Stepsister
Best Production Design
- Frankenstein - WINNER
- Hamnet
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another
- Sinners
Best Sound
- Frankenstein
- F1 - WINNER
- One Battle After Another
- Sinners
- Sirât
Best Film Editing
- F1
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another - WINNER
- Sentimental Value
- Sinners
Best Cinematography
- Frankenstein
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another
- Sinners - WINNER
- Train Dreams
Best Visual Effects
- Avatar: Fire and Ash - WINNER
- F1
- Jurassic World Rebirth
- Sinners
- The Lost Bus
Best Live Action Short
- A Friend of Dorothy
- Butcher's Stain
- Jane Austen's Period Drama
- The Singers - WINNER
- Two People Exchanging Saliva - WINNER
Best Animated Short
- Butterfly
- Forevergreen
- Retirement Plan
- The Girl Who Cried Pearls - WINNER
- The Three Sisters
Best Documentary Short
- All the Empty Rooms - WINNER
- Armed Only with a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud
- Children No More: Were and Are Gone
- The Devil Is Busy
- Perfectly a Strangeness
Best Casting
- Hamnet
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another - WINNER
- Sinners
- The Secret Agent
Best Picture
- Bugonia
- Frankenstein
- F1
- Hamnet
- Marty Supreme
- One Battle After Another - WINNER
- The Secret Agent
- Sentimental Value
- Sinners
- Train Dreams
Best Actor
- Timothée Chalamet - Marty Supreme
- Leonardo DiCaprio - One Battle After Another
- Ethan Hawke - Blue Moon
- Michael B Jordan - Sinners - WINNER
- Wagner Moura - The Secret Agent
Best Actress
- Jessie Buckley - Hamnet - WINNER
- Rose Byrne - If I Had Legs I'd Kick You
- Kate Hudson - Song Sung Blue
- Renate Reinsve - Sentimental Value
- Emma Stone - Bugonia
Best Supporting Actress
- Elle Fanning - Sentimental Value
- Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas - Sentimental Value
- Amy Madigan - Weapons - WINNER
- Wunmi Mosaku - Sinners
- Teyana Taylor - One Battle After Another
Best Supporting Actor
- Benicio del Toro - One Battle After Another
- Jacob Elordi - Frankenstein
- Delroy Lindo - Sinners
- Sean Penn - One Battle After Another - WINNER
- Stellan Skarsgård - Sentimental Value
Topics: Celebrity, Entertainment, News, Oscars, TV And Film, US News, World News, Politics
Madison Burgess