The 2026 Oscars are gearing up to be more star-studded than usual. Conan O'Brien is set to host the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 15, hosted at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. "As the host, I'm sort of the human avatar or whatever. I'm the entryway for the person watching at home - the person the audience member can relate to," O'Brien, 62, said in a press conference days before the awards ceremony. "My job is to always try and hit this very, very thin line, I think, between entertaining people and also acknowledging some of the realities.