Oscars 2026: 98th Academy Awards Begin Tonight in Los Angeles

Conan O’Brien hosts the Oscars with new Best Casting category and special tributes planned

The 98th Academy Awards ceremony is taking place today, Sunday, March 15, 2026, at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood in Los Angeles. For audiences in Italy, the event occurs overnight from Sunday into Monday. In the United States, the ceremony is broadcast live on ABC and streamed on Hulu for subscribers, as well as on YouTube TV, FuboTV, and DirecTV Stream. Globally, the Oscars will be distributed in over 200 territories, with ITV covering the United Kingdom, Canal+ in France, and Movistar+ in Spain.

Comedian Conan O’Brien, former host of Late Night and The Tonight Show, returns for the second consecutive year as host following praise for his performance last year. He prepared for the ceremony over three months, including surprise appearances at Los Angeles venues, collaborating closely with Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney, who also serve as producers.

O’Brien is also co-star of If I Could, I’d Kick You, the film that earned Rose Byrne a Best Actress nomination. He revealed a change in his pre-show meal from last year’s veal parmigiana, carbonara, and meatballs to a lighter Japanese lunch with raw fish and edamame. The host recently experienced personal loss, discussing in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter the deaths of director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele in December 2025.

As tradition dictates, last year’s acting winners will present the awards this year. Mikey Madison (Best Actress 2025) will present Best Actor; Adrien Brody (Best Actor 2025) will present Best Actress; Zoe Saldaña (Best Supporting Actress 2025) will present Best Supporting Actor; and Kieran Culkin (Best Supporting Actor 2025) will present Best Supporting Actress.

Confirmed presenters include Will Arnett, Javier Bardem, Rose Byrne, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Chris Evans, Robert Downey Jr., Anne Hathaway, Chase Infiniti, Nicole Kidman, Jimmy Kimmel, Delroy Lindo, Ewan McGregor, Paul Mescal, Demi Moore, Wagner Moura, Kumail Nanjiani, Gwyneth Paltrow, Pedro Pascal, Bill Pullman, Lewis Pullman, Maya Rudolph, Channing Tatum, and Sigourney Weaver. Three nominees—Byrne, Lindo, and Moura—will both present and be eligible for awards.

For the fifteenth anniversary of the 2011 cult comedy Bridesmaids, Rose Byrne, Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, and Melissa McCarthy will present together, with Ellie Kemper possibly joining. Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans, known for their roles as Iron Man and Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, will present jointly. Producer Katy Mullan teased, “There will be superstars, superheroes, and an extraterrestrial on stage,” without revealing the alien’s identity.

This year marks the debut of the 24th competitive category, Best Casting, the first new Oscar category since 2001. The inaugural nominees are Nina Gold (Hamnet), Jennifer Venditti (Marty Supreme), Cassandra Kulukundis (One Battle After Another), Gabriel Domingues (The Secret Agent), and Francine Maisler (The Sinners). The next new category, Stunt Design, is scheduled for the 100th Oscars in 2028.

Unlike previous years, not all nominated songs will be performed live. Producers focused performances on two musical segments to accommodate the new Best Casting category and maintain the show’s pace. Songs excluded from live performance include “Train Dreams” by Nick Cave and Bryce Dessner, “Dear Me” by Diane Warren, and “Sweet Dreams of Joy” by Nicholas Pike.

Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami, voices from the Netflix animated film Huntr/x, will perform the Best Original Song nominee, opening with a fusion of traditional Korean instruments and folk dances to honor the film’s cultural roots. Another performance, “I Lied to Tou” from The Sinners, will be a large-scale tribute to the film by Miles Caton (Sammie) and Raphael Saadiq, accompanied by dancers and musicians including Misty Copeland, Eric Gales, Buddy Guy, Brittany Howard, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Bobby Rush, Shaboozey, Alice Smith, Jayme Lawson, Li Jun Li, Josh Groban, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.

The In Memoriam segment is expected to be one of the evening’s most emotional moments. Barbra Streisand may perform in tribute to Robert Redford, who died in September 2025 at age 89. Streisand previously performed “The Way We Were” at the 2013 Oscars for composer Marvin Hamlisch. Redford, Best Director winner for Ordinary People and Sundance Film Festival founder, will also be remembered through archival footage and career highlights.

A tribute will also honor Rob Reiner, director of When Harry Met Sally, Stand By Me, and Misery, who was tragically killed alongside his wife Michele on December 14, 2025. Co-stars Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan will present the tribute. Notable figures in the In Memoriam segment include Diane Keaton, Val Kilmer, Brigitte Bardot, Robert Duvall, and Catherine O’Hara, with any omission likely to spark discussion, as this segment remains highly scrutinized.

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