Conan O’Brien briefly discussed the Los Angeles wildfires and “divisive politics” while delivering his opening monologue at the 97th Academy Awards.

“The people of Los Angeles have clearly been through a devastating ordeal and this needs to be addressed,” O’Brien said. “In moments such as this, any awards show can seem self-indulgent and superfluous, but what I want to have us do is remember why we gathered here tonight.”

He then celebrated those behind the scenes in Hollywood, like the “craftspeople, technicians, costumers” – the “hard-working men and women behind the camera who have devoted their lives to making film”.

O’Brien continued: “Even in the face of terrible wildfires and divisive politics, the work, which this is about, the work continues. And next year, and for years to come, through trauma and joy, this seemingly absurd ritual is going to be here … the magic, the madness, the grandeur and joy of film worldwide is going to be with us forever.”

To kick off the show, the broadcast from the city’s Dolby Theater opened with a shot of the Hollywood sign, with the voice of Judy Garland saying There’s No Place Like Home. The Wizard of Oz reference gave way to a montage of movie scenes filmed in Los Angeles, from Mulholland Drive to Barbie, La La Land to Iron Man, Her to Everything Everywhere All At Once, ending with the message: We <3 LA.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, the stars of the Wizard of Oz prequel Wicked, continued the tribute with performances of Somewhere Over the Rainbow (Grande) and The Wiz’s Home (Erivo). The duo then joined forces for Wicked’s signature track, Defying Gravity, before Erivo took on the climax with a shot of the glittering LA skyline in the background.

After their performance, O’Brien emerged from Demi Moore’s back in his monologue opener, paying homage to the grotesque visuals displayed in the Oscar-nominated film The Substance.

“It’s Hollywood’s biggest night that starts at four in the afternoon,” said the comedian as he began. “But it’s the Oscars and I say let’s do this thing.”

In his more than 10-minute speech, O’Brien poked fun at Netflix (“Netflix leads all studios with an impressive 18, count them 18, price increases”), Oscar-nominated films The Brutalist (“I loved The Brutalist, I really did. I didn’t want it to end. And, luckily, it didn’t.”) and Conclave (“A movie about the Catholic church, but don’t worry”), and actress Karla Sofía Gascón (“Anora uses the F-word 479 times. That’s three times more than the record set by Karla Sofía Gascón’s publicist”).

O’Brien offered levity by taking aim, in small part, at Amazon. He said that founder Jeff Bezos had been seen on the red carpet, before panning over to a staged Amazon delivery driver throwing a package at the heels of an Oscar statue. He then noted that Bezos wasn’t seen inside the Dolby Theatre before panning back over to a man in black seemingly stealing the package that contained Bezos.

After showing off some old headshots of Zoe Saldaña, Guy Pearce and a sonogram of Timothee Chalamet, O’Brien did a bit with Adam Sandler, who appeared in what has become his uniform these days: a hooded sweatshirt and basketball shorts.

O’Brien concluded his monologue with a musical number where he repeatedly said he wouldn’t waste time all while dancing beside a sandworm from Dune 2 playing piano and a dancing Deadpool.

Sunday night’s show marked the first time the late-night legend hosted the telecast. Fellow late-night host Jimmy Kimmel previously hosted the Academy Awards in 2017, 2018, 2023 and 2024, revealing last year that he had turned down a request to host in 2025.

On the selection of O’Brien, the Academy chief executive officer, Bill Kramer, and the Academy president, Janet Yang, said in a statement that he was the “perfect person to help lead our global celebration of film with his brilliant humor, his love of movies, and his live TV expertise”.

“His remarkable ability to connect with audiences will bring viewers together to do what the Oscars do best – honor the spectacular films and film-makers of this year,” they said.

Later in the broadcast, O’Brien brought out a team of firefighters who braved the Los Angeles fires to the stage.

“On behalf of everyone in greater los Angeles, thank you for all that you do,” he said, before introducing three of the Los Angeles fire department (LAFD) members to do some jokes of their own.

Capt Eric Scott deadpanned: “Our hearts go out to all of those who have lost their homes and I’m talking about the producers of Joker 2.”

Capt Jody Slicker took aim at the host himself, telling the audience: “It’s great to be back with Conan - usually when he calls, he’s stuck in a tree.”

Read more about the 2025 Oscars:

• Anora takes home best picture Oscar

• Adrien Brody and Mikey Madison win best acting prizes

• Kieran Culkin and Zoe Saldaña win supporting awards

• Anora’s Sean Baker wins for directing, editing and screenplay