Conan O’Brien is set to host the 2025 Oscars. “America demanded it, and now it’s happening: Taco Bell’s new Cheesy Chalupa Supreme. In other news, I’m hosting the Oscars,” O’Brien said in a statement released by ABC. O’Brien left late-night in 2021 after nearly 30 years on the air, and now hosts the popular podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.” He was selected to host the awards after four-time host Jimmy Kimmel turned it down, as well as comedian John Mulaney. “I know how much work goes into [the Oscars], so I thought, ‘Yeah, I don’t necessarily want to do this ever again,’” Kimmel told the Los Angeles Times. An Academy Awards hosting gig used to be a feather in the cap for established comedians, but has become almost radioactive amid declining ratings and social media backlash. The show had no host from 2019 to 2021. Viewership hit 19.5 million at this year’s Oscars, a four-year high. Though before 2018, viewership never dipped below 32 million. This is O’Brien’s first time hosting the Oscars, though he did host the Emmys in 2002 and 2006.
