Conan O’Brien warns Oscars could get ‘political', jokes about Kid Rock hosting alternate show
Conan O’Brien: “I should warn you, tonight could get political. And if that makes you uncomfortable, there’s an alternate #Oscars hosted by Kid Rock at the Dave & Busters down the street” pic.twitter.com/AkunRe5wd7
— Deadline (@DEADLINE) March 15, 2026
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The 98th Academy Awards, held on Sunday, March 15, opened with host Conan O'Brien delivering a monologue that mixed humor with pointed remarks about the conservative movement and its ties with singer Kid Rock.
O'Brien’s remarks referenced Kid Rock’s previous performance at Turning Point USA’s “All-American” Super Bowl halftime show, which had been promoted as an alternative to the official Super Bowl Halftime Show.
Conan O’Brien’s Oscars joke about Kid Rock
During his opening monologue, O’Brien warned the audience from the stage, “I should warn you, tonight could get political.”
He then joked about viewers who might not enjoy that possibility, adding, “And if that makes you uncomfortable, there’s an alternate Oscars hosted by Kid Rock at the Dave & Busters down the street.”
The alternative show was promoted after conservatives boycotted Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime performance over what they described as anti-immigration comments by the Puerto Rican rapper. The TPUSA production included appearances by several country music performers such as Brantley Gilbert, Gabby Barrett, and Lee Brice.
Despite the lineup of performers, it was Kid Rock whom the audience appeared most excited to see.
Kid Rock’s performance criticism and his response
More than 20 million viewers reportedly tuned into the alternative halftime show. However, the performance quickly drew criticism from viewers, When Kid Rock took the stage, his audio track appeared to be unsynchronized with his actions, prompting allegations of lip-syncing.
The musician’s appearance came after the official Super Bowl headliner Bad Bunny had already left the stage at Levi's Stadium.
Following the backlash, Kid Rock addressed the controversy in a new interview with Fox News. Speaking about the criticism, he said he plans to redo the performance live from his living room in order to “prove the haters wrong.”
When asked about the first performance, the singer explained that the audio problems were not evidence of lip-syncing, “Yes so it was out of sync [...] number one, if it would have been lip syncing like people are trying to, the left are trying to throw me under the bus again, mainstream media, social media tries to amplify it, it would have been super easy to sync it up if it was pre-recorded.”
Kid Rock also defended the production team behind the event. “It was very difficult for the Turning Point production crew, who, by the way, I can’t say enough good things about, but this was very difficult for them.
