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Conan O'Brien swipes at TPUSA, Kid Rock during monologue with 'alternate Oscars' joke
By Hanna Panreck
Published March 16, 2026
Comedian Conan O'Brien took a swipe at Kid Rock and the Turning Point USA (TPUSA) Super Bowl halftime show during his monologue at the Oscars Sunday night.
"I should warn you, tonight could get political, OK? And if that makes you uncomfortable, there’s an alternate Oscars being hosted by Kid Rock. Yeah, it’s at the Dave & Buster's down the street. A lot of tickets for that," he said during his Oscars monologue.
O'Brien referenced TPUSA's alternative halftime show, which was headlined by Kid Rock and meant to compete with the Super Bowl halftime show headlined by Bad Bunny.
Artists Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett also performed at TPUSA's Super Bowl halftime event.
Host Conan O'Brien speaks onstage during the 98th Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on March 15, 2026, in Hollywood, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
During Turning Point USA’s halftime show, a moment was also taken to pay tribute to founder Charlie Kirk. The livestream of the show on YouTube garnered more than 4.8 million viewers before the show was finished.
TPUSA spokesman Andrew Kolvet reacted to O'Brien's joke, posting on X: "Literally had no idea the Oscars was even happening until someone sent me this just now. Living rent free in these people’s minds."
Representatives for Kid Rock and Turning Point USA did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment.
Show host Conan O'Brien speaks during the start of the Oscars show at the 97th Academy Awards in Hollywood, Los Angeles, March 2, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
O'Brien hosted the 98th Academy Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday. Toward the end of his monologue, O'Brien spoke about the "frightening times" the world is facing.
"If I can be serious for just a moment, everyone watching right now around the world is all too aware that these are very chaotic, frightening times. It's at moments like these that I believe that the Oscars are particularly resonant," he said. "Check it out: 31 countries across six continents are represented this evening. And every film we salute is the product of thousands of people speaking different languages, working hard to make something of beauty."
O'Brien recently weighed in on the cancellation of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," as well as the brief removal of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" following comments Kimmel made after the assassination of Charlie Kirk.
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He said he realized that late-night shows were in trouble after his viral 2024 appearance on the popular online show "Hot Ones."
"That was the moment the scales fell from my eyes," O'Brien told The Hollywood Reporter. "If a guy can do World Series numbers with overhead that looked, to me, to be about $600, and you have every big star lining up to do his show or ‘Chicken Shop Date’… that’s when I profoundly understood that late night shows are in trouble."
O'Brien took aim at anti-Trump comedians during an interview with the Oxford Union in January.
"Some comics go the route of I'm going to just say 'F Trump' all the time or that's their comedy," he said. "And I think, well now... you're being co-opted because you're so angry. You've been lulled. It's like a siren leading you into the rocks. You've been lulled into just saying 'F Trump. F Trump. F Trump. Screw this guy.'"
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"And I think you've now put down your best weapon, which is being funny, and you've exchanged it for anger," O'Brien added.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/comedian-conan-obrien-swipes-tpusa-kid-rock-during-monologue-says-theres-alternative-oscars