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Conan O'Brien Must Go, Max's travel series that features Conan O'Brien visiting friends he has met through his podcast, is making another push for Emmys.

Max will submit Conan O'Brien Must Go Season 2 in 12 categories at the 2025 Emmys, including for Best Hosted Nonfiction Special, Gold Derby has learned.

In Season 2, O'Brien ventures into Spain, New Zealand, and Austria, connecting with listeners from around the world and surprising some of his most memorable fans while immersing himself in the local culture, cuisine, and sights. Along with the main series submission, the host has also been submitted as a writer for the witty docuseries, alongside Mike Sweeney, Jessie Gaskell, and José Arroyo.

Last year, Conan O'Brien Must Go received two Emmy nominations: Best Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special and Best Writing for a Nonfiction Program, winning the latter. O'Brien has won five Emmys throughout his career as a writer, comedian, and late night host.

Conan O’Brien shocked the Oscars with a joke about the ongoing beef between rappers Kendrick Lamar and Drake, and it’s one that earned the joke writer some cash. Comedian and writer Skyler Higley was the brains behind the joke, and he revealed on X during the show: “Wrote the Kendrick Lamar joke and bet our executive producer $50 that it would kill. Just made $50.”

Higley, who writes for CBS’ “After Midnight” and previously worked with O’Brien on his TBS talk show “Conan,” was one of several writers who worked on the 2025 Oscars. The staff also included Amberia Allen, José Arroyo, Josh Comers, Dan Cronin, Jessie Gaskell, Berkley Johnson, Ian Karmel, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin, Carol Leifer, Jon Macks, Matt O’Brien, Agathe Panaretos and Mike Sweeney.

At the midway point of the Oscars ceremony, O’Brien walked out on stage and joked: “We’re halfway through the show, which means...

Halle Berry, Penélope Cruz, Elle Fanning, Whoopi Goldberg, Scarlett Johansson, John Lithgow, Amy Poehler, June Squibb and Bowen Yang will be presenting at the 2025 Oscars, the Academy announced on Tuesday. They join last year’s acting winners Robert Downey Jr., Cillian Murphy, Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Emma Stone in handing out statuettes on March 2, when the 97th Academy Awards take place at the Dolby Theatre Ovation Hollywood, hosted by Conan O’Brien.

As previously announced, the show will see the return of the “Fab 5” format, where previous winners stand on stage and heap praise on each of this year’s nominees. In the past, the format has been used for the acting categories, but not this year, given the implosion of “Emilia Pérez” lead actress Karla Sofía Gascón’s campaign due to her history of bigoted tweets. Instead, five previous winners will assemble to highlight below-the-line talent.

The 97th Academy Awards...

Gold Derby’s top news stories for Feb. 3, 2025

California band Dawes follows Grammys performance by releasing “I Love L.A.” cover as charity single

After losing their homes in the Los Angeles wildfires, Dawes opened the 2025 Grammys with support from Grammy-winning musicians St. Vincent, Sheryl Crow, Brad Paisley, Brittany Howard, and John Legend. Their rendition of Randy Newman‘s classic “I Love L.A.” was one of the most memorable moments during the music kudos. Now they’ve released the song, with proceeds going to the Recording Academy and MusiCares’ Los Angeles Fire Relief Effort. You can also contribute to wildfire relief efforts here.

Dune: Part Two, Demi Moore among winners at 2025 Saturn Awards

Presented by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror, the 52nd Annual Saturn Awards honored the best achievements in genre films and TV shows, and the big winner of the night was Dune: Part Two, which claimed Best Science Fiction Film,...

Oscars executive producers Raj Kapoor, who also serves as showrunner, and Katy Mullan revealed the members of the production team for the 97th ceremony, which will be hosted by Conan O’Brien Sunday, March 2.

Rob Paine returns as co-executive producer and Taryn Hurd as do producers Sarah Levine Hall. Supervising choreographer Mandy Moore and lighting designers Bob Dickinson and Noah Mitz also rejoin the team. Producers Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney will be first-time team members.

Writers for this year’s show include Amberia Allen, José Arroyo, Josh Comers, Dan Cronin, Jessie Gaskell, Skyler Higley, Berkley Johnson, Ian Karmel, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin, Carol Leifer, Jon Macks, Conan O’Brien, Matt O’Brien, Agathe Panaretos and Mike Sweeney.

As previously announced, the show’s production team also includes director Hamish Hamilton, production designers Misty Buckley and Alana Billingsley, and music director Michael Bearden.

The 2025 Academy Awards will take place March 2 at the Dolby Theater at Ovation Hollywood.

The Oscars have revealed key members of the production team for the 2025 awards ceremony, airing on March 2.

Executive producer and showrunner Raj Kapoor and executive producer Katy Mullan announced on Monday that Rob Paine will return as co-executive producer and Taryn Hurd and Sarah Levine Hall will return as producers. All three won Emmys back in September for their work on the 2024 Oscars.

Mandy Moore will be supervising choreographer, having performed the role last year. Not to be confused with the singer, Moore’s credits include “La La Land,” Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, “Dancing with the Stars,” “So You Think You Can Dance” and “Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.” She won Emmys for the latter three.

Veteran lighting designers Robert Dickinson (68-time Emmy nominee and 18-time winner) and Noah Mitz (30-time Emmy nominee and two-time winner) also rejoin the team.

Producers Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney, who have worked with O...

The Academy has named its production team for the 97th Academy Awards ceremony.

Rob Paine is set to return as co-executive producer, and Taryn Hurd and Sarah Levine Hall return as producers. Also rejoining the team are Mandy Moore as the show’s supervising choreographer, and Bob Dickinson and Noah Mitz as lighting designers. Producers Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney join the team for the first time.

Moore is no stranger to the Oscar space. Last year, she was behind the choreography of Ryan Gosling’s “I’m Just Ken” performance.

This year’s host, Conan O’Brien, is also on the team of writers. Rounding out the team are Amberia Allen, José Arroyo, Josh Comers, Dan Cronin, Jessie Gaskell, Skyler Higley, Berkley Johnson, Ian Karmel, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin, Carol Leifer, Jon Macks, Matt O’Brien, Agathe Panaretos and Mike Sweeney

The show’s production team also includes director Hamish Hamilton,...

With less than a month to go until the 97th Academy Awards, the show’s executive producer and showrunner Raj Kapoor and executive producer Katy Mullan have announced the members of their production team for the telecast, which will be hosted by Conan O’Brien. The 2025 Oscars will air live on ABC and stream live on Hulu on Sunday, March 2, at 7 p.m. Et/4 p.m. Pt.

Returning to the telecast are Rob Paine as co-executive producer, Taryn Hurd and Sarah Levine Hall as producers, Mandy Moore as supervising choreographer and Bob Dickinson and Noah Mitz as lighting designer.

Producers Jeff Ross and Mike Sweeney are joining the team for the first time.

Joining O’Brien as writers for the show: Amberia Allen, José Arroyo, Josh Comers, Dan Cronin, Jessie Gaskell, Skyler Higley, Berkley Johnson, Ian Karmel, Brian Kiley, Laurie Kilmartin,Carol Leifer, Jon Macks, Matt O’Brien, Agathe Panaretos and Mike Sweeney.

“Saturday Night Live” ended Night 1 of the 76th Creative Arts Emmys with the most awards (six), including Outstanding Directing for a Variety Series, which went to Liz Patrick, who directed the episode hosted by Ryan Gosling. That episode, which featured the now famous Beavis and Butt-Head sketch, also won hairstyling and makeup. NBC’s sketch-comedy institution — the winningest show in Emmy history with 93 victories — also triumphed in production design, lighting design and technical direction.

“Jim Henson Idea Man” was another big winner Saturday night, picking up four awards. The Disney + documentary directed by Ron Howard about the creator of the Muppets took home Outstanding Documentary or Non-Fiction Special, in addition to trophies for music composition, sound editing and picture editing.

NBC’s 2024 Oscars telecast tied “Jim Henson Idea Man,” as did Netflix’s rapturously reviewed “Blue Eye Samurai” (including previously announced juried awards), which came up tops for animated program,...

Conan O’Brien‘s fun Max series “Conan O’Brien Must Go” follows the comedian and talk show host as he travels the world meeting new friends and experiencing exotic cultures. The first season streamed in April and took place in the far-away lands of Norway, Argentina, Thailand and Ireland. O’Brien recently scooped up two Emmy nominations for his troubles: Best Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special and Best Nonfiction Writing. And now, Gold Derby’s awards Experts say he should start preparing an Emmy speech.

In the main program category, “Conan O’Brien Must Go” currently has leading 82/25 odds to prevail at the 2024 Emmys over co-nominees “Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates Jr.” at 39/10 odds, “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction” at 4/1 odds, “How To with John Wilson” at 9/2 odds and “The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy” at 9/2 odds.

Six of our eight Experts from major media outlets predict a victory...

Conan O’Brien hosted more than 2,700 episodes of Late Night for NBC.

The series ran from September 13, 1993 through February 20, 2009 before he briefly took over The Tonight Show and then Conan for TBS.

But the comedian didn’t necessarily want to use the title, which began with David Letterman, who hosted it between 1982 and 1993.

He wanted to call it Nighty Night with Conan O’Brien.

“We thought was just really cartoony and funny,” he said on the Inside Conan podcast, which is produced by his Team Coco.

O’Brien and longtime exec producer Jeff Ross were speaking about the early days of the show, before it launched on the show, which is hosted by Conan writers Mike Sweeney and Jessie Gaskell.

However, the former Simpsons writer said that he was worried about being compared to Letterman, but was talked out of calling it Nighty Night by former NBC late-night chief Rick Ludwin.

Conan O’Brien’s long-awaited move to HBO Max — well, make that now just “Max” — is finally happening. Max has officially ordered “Conan O’Brien Must Go,” a four-episode international travel series currently in production. Scroll down to watch a first look.

The series was set to be announced Wednesday at Warner Bros. Discovery’s upfront presentation. According to Max, the new show will follow O’Brien as he travels the globe visiting people he has met through his podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Fan” (in which he chats with listeners from around the globe). In a press release, O’Brien quipped, “My fans around the globe never asked me to visit them, so I did.”

“Conan O’Brien Must Go” fulfills the promise first made when O’Brien announced in 2020 that his self-titled TBS late-night show “Conan” would end in June 2021. Part of the plan was for O’Brien...

The WGA West on Monday revealed the 13 honorees of its 2022 TV Writer Access Project, a program designed to increase diversity and promote inclusiveness within the entertainment industry. Created in 2009, the project recognizes outstanding and diverse writing talent from within the guild’s ranks and provides access to their work to showrunners, producers, network and studio executives, agents and managers.

“This program is what the guild does best: writers helping writers to take stock, reinvent themselves, then move on to the next stage of their career,” said Glen Mazzara, co-chair of the guild’s Inclusion and Equity Group. “That peer to peer mentorship is invaluable.”

This year’s honorees for drama are:

• Erinne Dobson – The More Gone She’ll Be

• Skander Halim – Nathan X

• Anne-Marie Hess – Disturbed

• Allyssa Lee – Model Minority

• Kerri Brady Long – Blood Sport

• Laurie Parres – Life and Death and High School

• Barbara Soares – Username

• Tom Towler – Borderlands

The...

One of the most memorable riffs by comic Norm Macdonald was his classic rips at Melrose Place star Courtney Thorne-Smith’s choice of films on a 1997 edition of Late Night With Conan O’Brien.

Macdonald took off on Thorne-Smith’s then-upcoming film with Carrot Top, Chairman of the Board.

“If it’s got Carrot Top in it, do you know what a good name for it would be? Box Office Poison,” Macdonald said, drawing a huge laugh from the crowd. He later topped himself: “I bet the ‘Board’ is spelled ‘bored.’”

Thorne relived those moments on Friday as a guest on an episode of Inside Conan: An Important Hollywood Podcast, which is hosted by former Conan writers Mike Sweeney and Jessie Gaskell. The moment on the couch was revived when Macdonald unexpectedly passed away in September, circulating on social media as fans sought comfort in his talents for their loss.

“So when Norm started going,...

Exclusive: Don’t expect juggling or magicians on Conan O’Brien’s upcoming HBO Max “variety” series.

The comedian, who exited the late-night space with the end of TBS’ Conan in June, has lifted the lid on his streaming plans on the opening episode of Season 3 of the Inside Conan podcast.

The audio series, which is produced by his burgeoning Team Coco business, has been rebooted for a third run with Conan writers Mike Sweeney and Jessie Gaskell, who host the series, covering the beginning, middle and end of O’Brien’s 28-year run in late-night as well as what he and his team have been up to since the show went off the air.

The podcast, which kicks off October 22, will feature O’Brien as the first guest with appearances by the likes of his wife, Liza Powel O’Brien, who talks about how they met during a remote for Late Night; Courtney Thorne-Smith,...

Alec Bojalad Jul 20, 2019

Conan O'Brien is bringing back his pop-up comedy club, Team Coco House, to San Diego for Comic-Con 2019.

This article is presented by TBS and Team Coco

Conan O'Brien is making his triumphant return to San Diego Comic-Con. Just as the red-headed late night icon has in years past, Conan will be taping shows at Comic-Con International at San Diego's Spreckels Theatre from Wednesday July 17th through Saturday, July 20th.

But just like last year, however, Conan and his Team Coco have decided that there's no reason for just him to have all the fun. For the third year in a row, Team Coco and TBS have announced that Team Coco House, a pop-up comedy club will be returning to San Diego for Sdcc 2019. Team Coco House will feature a daily lineup of comics handpicked by O'Brien as well as podcasts, panels, trivia, giveaways, and some other surprise appearances.

The Writers Guild of America has just announced the nominations for their annual awards for Best Screenplays (by writers who are guild signatories). That’s right, before you get nervous thinking that your favorite may have been left off the list, you must remember that the WGA is the group that is not all-inclusive and leaves out several of the top contenders each year due to them not being part of the guild or not following their very specific rules. For this reason, you won’t see Inside Out, The Hateful Eight, and Ex Machina in the Original Screenplay category or Room, Brooklyn, or Anomalisa in the Adapted screenplay category.

Taking a look at what’s left over for the nominations, we find many that were expected to make a showing, including Spotlight and Bridge of Spies for Original Screenplay, though they apparently had to sink to really low depths...

The Writers Guild of America announced some of its nominees for its 2015 awards on Thursday, including television, new media, and radio, and among the TV nominees are series both new and old, and all beloved.

In the comedy series category, freshman Netflix show "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" scored a nomination for best series, as well as an overall best new series nod. "The Last Man on Earth" also landed in that latter category, and was singled out for its pilot episode writing, too.

On the drama side of the equation, lauded "Breaking Bad" spinoff "Better Call Saul" also got best series and best new series nominations, in addition to a an episode writing nod. Newly-minted Emmy winner "Game of Thrones" also scored a best drama citation, as well as an episodic writing nomination.

The full list of nominees released this week are below. Nominations in the theatrical and documentary categories will...

Happy Monday folks! I spent some time with my 3D glasses on this weekend, so either way you cut it - ironically or unironically - I'm part of Resident Evil's box office win this weekend. It was also a weekend for festivals of fall, farmers markets and a surprising amount of fur and faux-fur being sold on the streets of New York. It seems odd to me that someone would buy any sort of fur off the street, but I guess that's where you have to get it these days. I'm tempted to discuss my friend Rachel Paton who used to send me dead things through the mail, but that's be a digression we can't afford this week... Dark Tower's mammoth deal got left out of my Things this week, as did True Blood, because I've done my best to keep this post under 4,000 words (sorry about last week,...

The nominees for the 2010 Streamys were announced today. The Streamys celebrate online television programming and this year they have a fantastic line up of nominees. Last year was the Streamys debut year and the winners included high profile shows such as Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog and the exceptional Battlestar Galactica web series The Face of the Enemy.

This year there is even more competition with some really interesting content now being released on the web rather than through more traditional media routes. Two of my favourites from this year’s nominee list are the excellent Interview Project which is presented by davidlynch.com and the slightly flawed but thoroughly enjoyable Angel of Death, created by Ed Brubaker and starring Zoe Bell, which also received a DVD release last year.

The awards ceremony takes place on April 11th 2010 and the full list of nominees is listed below with handy links...

Dorm Life, the awkwardly absurd college life comedy web series released its first ever DVD today, Dorm Life: Semester One (Amazon.com Exclusive). The mockumentary series remains Hulu's most watched web original, aside from last year's Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. While its heartbreaking two-part season finale came out back in July, the Streamy-nominated web series from indie production house Attention Span Media continued to grow in popularity. The deftly original students of “5 South” span the spectrum of characters—the overly excited, fun-loving Steph (Jessie Gaskell), the self-conscious bully Ra, Marshall (Brian C. Singleton), the frustrated, pretentious artist (Pancho Morris), average-guy Mike (Chris W. Smith). The DVD is being put out by New Video, the same distributor that picked up The Guild Seasons 1 & 2 for DVD as well as Dr. Horrible. What to expect from the $19.95 DVD: The jam-packed 118-minute Dorm Life: Semester 1 DVD consists of 20 five-to-six-minute episodes that perfectly...

I'm usually not one to get sentimental, but I think I cried five times during the Dorm Life: Season 2 Finale which premiered today on Hulu. The Streamy Award nominated web series, which we have also confirmed is also ranked as the most popular web series on Hulu, is a comedic mockumentary following the lives of several college students thrown together on the same dorm floor. The two-part season finale, which takes place during the last days of school before summer, provides the perfect setting to resolve the rich character development which sets this series apart from the otherwise played-out Office-style format. Full of mischief, adventures, rivalries and romance, Dorm Life offers and insider's view of the rocky and often awkward road to adulthood. The ten students of "5 South" span the spectrum of characters—we have the overly excited, fun-loving Steph (Jessie Gaskell), the self-conscious bully Ra Marshall (Brian C. Singleton), the frustrated,...

Winter Break seems so short during college; after all, it's only a month. Winter Break for Attention Span Media's Dorm Life fans, however, has been going on for much, much longer. We last caught up with the Dorm Life crew (creators Jessie Gaskell, Jim Brandon, and Brian Singelton) in late October to discover exactly what went into the making of the most popular web series on Hulu.com and we haven't heard much from them since. So we're glad to announce that, finally, you can shed your internships, ditch your friends, promise to call your parents every day, and move back into Dorm Life Season 2. As it turns out, the show has inked a deal with MySpace, so you'll be able to catch all the Season 2 episodes on MySpace Video's (fka MySpaceTV) Dorm Life page two days before they show up on any other video websites. The first episode is scheduled to debut this Saturday,...