Conan O'Brien ended the Oscars with a pre-taped sketch parodying a scene from One Battle After Another, jokingly naming MrBeast as his successor as host. The bit re-created the film's final scene involving Sean Penn's character. O'Brien, hosting his second consecutive year, received praise for his performance.
At the 2026 Academy Awards, host Conan O'Brien closed the ceremony with a humorous pre-taped sketch inspired by Paul Thomas Anderson's film One Battle After Another. The bit channeled Sean Penn's character, Steven J. Lockjaw, a villainous military officer from the movie, who skips the Oscars despite Penn's third career win for the role. In the parody, Jim Downey reprised his film role as Christmas Adventurers Club member Sandy Irvine, approaching O'Brien post-ceremony to praise the show and declare him Oscars host for life. The scene then mirrored the film's twist, where O'Brien's nameplate is swapped for that of YouTube star MrBeast (James Stephen Donaldson) as O'Brien's 'corpse' is removed and incinerated. This served as a tongue-in-cheek sign-off from hosting duties. MrBeast reposted the door sign on his social accounts with a zany face emoji. O'Brien shared the video on Instagram, captioning it: “An honor to be reunited with my mentor, Jim Downey.” The Oscars broadcast on ABC marked O'Brien's second straight year as host; the network holds no option for a return, though his work drew acclaim. One Battle After Another won Best Picture, Director, and four other awards, with Jordan and Buckley taking lead acting prizes.
