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- Conan O’Brien shares the one Oscar-nominated movie he can’t joke about this year (the-independent.com)
Conan O’Brien’s Oscar Hosting Challenge: The Joke-Proof “Train Dreams”
Los Angeles, CA – As the 2026 Academy Awards draw near, returning host Conan O’Brien finds himself in a comedic conundrum: among the ten Best Picture nominees, one film has proven utterly immune to his legendary wit. That film? Clint Bentley’s “Train Dreams.”
O’Brien, 62, who is set to host the Oscars for the second consecutive year this Sunday, recently appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” to discuss his preparations.
The former late-night icon revealed he’s been fine-tuning his material at various comedy clubs across Los Angeles. While most of his jokes have landed well with audiences, “there are certain areas we cannot crack.
One of them is the movie Train Dreams,” O’Brien admitted.
Starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones, “Train Dreams” is described as a poignant depiction of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a reclusive railroad worker and logger navigating the transformative early 20th-century Pacific Northwest. O’Brien, despite his comedic struggles, acknowledged the film’s quality, stating it’s “a beautiful movie, but it’s just no joke sticks to it.”
The comedian humorously lamented his writing team’s fruitless efforts, claiming they’ve penned “5,000 jokes about the movie. Not one of them is any good!
And these are very good writers,” he insisted, playfully adding, “So I blame Train Dreams. I think it’s the movie.”
To illustrate his point, O’Brien shared one of the “bad” jokes that won’t make it to the Oscar stage. “This is the best Train Dreams joke out of 5,000,” he prefaced, before reading from a card: “Train Dreams was nominated for Best Picture.
Finally, a movie that proves being a Pacific Northwest lumberjack in the early 1900s wasn’t as fun as it sounds.” Despite some studio audience laughter, O’Brien dismissed it as “pity applause,” confirming the joke’s – and the film’s – comedic resistance.
Beyond its Best Picture nomination, “Train Dreams” is also recognized in the Best Cinematography, Best Original Song, and Best Adapted Screenplay categories. It faces stiff competition for the top award from a diverse lineup including Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners,” Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another,” Josh Safdie’s “Marty Supreme,” and Chloé Zhao’s “Hamnet.” Other contenders include Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” Brad Pitt’s “F1” blockbuster, Yorgos Lanthimos’s “Bugonia,” Brazilian political thriller “The Secret Agent,” and Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value.”
The 2026 Oscars will be broadcast live this Sunday on ABC, kicking off at 7 pm ET/4 pm PT. Whether O’Brien will manage to squeeze even a single “Train Dreams” gag into his monologue remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: this movie is proving to be his toughest comedic challenge yet.
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- Conan O’Brien shares the one Oscar-nominated movie he can’t joke about this year (the-independent.com)