Comedian Conan O’Brien will return to host the Academy Awards ​in 2027 for a third straight year, ‌broadcaster ABC said on Tuesday, after the former late-night TV host drew positive reviews and helped lift ​Oscars viewership from pandemic‑era lows.

Viewership for the ​Oscars telecast reached a five-year high in ⁠2025 with 19.7 million viewers when O’Brien hosted ​for the first time.

The audience dropped to 17.9 ​million this year, according to ratings data from Nielsen.

ABC announced O’Brien’s return during a Walt Disney presentation to advertisers ​in New York.

Disney owns ABC and ​Hulu, which will stream the next Oscars ceremony in March.

The ‌63-year-old ⁠O’Brien, an Emmy-winning comedian, is best known for hosting the late-night talk shows “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien” and “Conan.” ​

He currently hosts ​the ⁠HBO Max travel show “Conan O’Brien Must Go” and the podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs ​a Friend.”

Viewership for awards shows has ​been declining ⁠for years as TV audiences have shifted to streaming and social media.

The ceremony hit a ⁠low ​point in 2021 with ​roughly 9.5 million viewers.

The Oscars show will move to YouTube in ​2029.