Fact check: Did Conan O'Brien start a viral Leonardo DiCaprio meme at 2026 Oscars?

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Conan O'Brien opened the 2026 Oscars on Sunday, March 15, with a funny monologue about former Prince Andrew's arrest, Timothée Chalamet's ballet comments, and more.

He also warned that the ceremony "could get political" and joked, "if that makes you uncomfortable, there's an alternate Oscars being hosted by Kid Rock."

After his monologue, a rumor circulated online claiming that Conan O'Brien and Leonardo DiCaprio presented an idea for a new Leo meme at the 2026 Oscars. But is there any truth to this? Let us find out below.

Claim: Conan O'Brien, Leonardo DiCaprio presented an idea for a new Leo meme at the Oscars

A rumor spread on X on Sunday via an account that stated, "Conan O'Brien and Leonardo DiCaprio present an idea for a new Leo meme at the Oscars."

The post contained an image of the 'Titanic' actor with text that read, "TFW you didn't agree to this." The post garnered more than 370,000 views, and more than 10,000 likes from X users.

During his monologue, O'Brien joked about the backlash against Chalamet for saying at a February 2026 town hall that "no one cares" about ballet or opera anymore.

"Security is extremely tight tonight. I'm told there's concerns about attacks from both the opera and ballet communities," the comedian said.

He also said, "I was in a movie with the lovely Rose Byrne. My co-star Rose Byrne is nominated for best actress in 'If I Had Legs I'd Kick You.' Yeah, it's hard to act in a scene with someone you've always had a massive crush on, but Rose, you did a fantastic job." 

O'Brien also joked about the rise of artificial intelligence in Hollywood, saying he will be "the last human host of the Academy Awards," and alluded to headlines surrounding the United States' war with Iran.

Fact check: True, backed by media reports

The claim made in the viral X post is true, as it is well-substantiated by multiple reports from the event. During the 98th Academy Awards, O'Brien explicitly referenced Leonardo DiCaprio's long history of becoming meme fodder during his monologue.

The comedian called DiCaprio the "king of memes" and said something along the lines of "Let's make a new meme with Leo right now." 

Following this, the camera panned to DiCaprio, who was sitting in the audience and gave a confused reaction. An on-screen caption immediately appeared overlaying the shot, "TFW you didn't agree to this."

The live segment went viral as a new "Leo meme," with DiCaprio playing along. Multiple sources described it as Conan "creating" or "presenting" the meme idea on the spot, as DiCaprio's real-time facial expression served as the template.