Comedian and late-night TV show host Conan O'Brien will return to emcee the annual Oscars ceremony for a second time in 2026, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said.
O'Brien hosted the 2025 Oscars telecast that brought in 19.7 million US viewers, the largest audience for Hollywood's highest honours in five years, according to broadcaster ABC, a Disney unit.
"The only reason I'm hosting the Oscars next year is that I want to hear Adrien Brody finish his speech," O'Brien joked in a statement from the Academy, referring to Brody's long best actor Oscars acceptance speech for his role in "The Brutalist."
"I'm excited to have his talents back onstage next year to helm another indelible performance," Disney Television Group President Craig Erwich said, referring to the Emmy-winning comedian.
Emmy Award-winning live television event producers Raj Kapoor and Katy Mullan will return as executive producers for the third consecutive year.
O'Brien is best known for hosting the late-night talk shows "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," "The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien" and "Conan."
Hollywood star George Clooney and his wife, human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, have obtained French citizenship, along with their two children, official French government documents show.
A veteran jazz ensemble announced on Monday it was cancelling its New Year's Eve performances at the Kennedy Center, the latest group to withdraw from the Washington arts institution after it was renamed to include U.S. President Donald Trump.
French film icon Brigitte Bardot, who died on Sunday aged 91, will be buried in a cemetery by the sea in the French Riviera resort of Saint-Tropez, local authorities said on Monday.
Ras Al Khaimah ushered in the new year with a new Guinness World Record title for the largest aerial display of a phoenix, a mythical symbol of renewal and rebirth, created using 2,300 drones.
The UAE welcomed the start of 2026 with large-scale fireworks and light shows across the country, drawing crowds of residents and visitors to major landmarks and public spaces.
UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has shared a New Year message, extending his best wishes to people in the UAE and around the world.