Conan O’Brien’s rarely seen wife completely upstaged him on the Oscars red carpet thanks to her very revealing ensemble… 24 years after she first caught his eye on set.
Liza Powel O’Brien ensured all eyes would be on her as she arrived at the event arm-in-arm with the Academy Awards host, wearing a dramatic outfit that contained a sheer top completely covered in studs and chains.
The 55-year-old paired the eye-popping shirt with a simple black skirt and finished off the look with a slick-back bun and diamond earrings.
Her husband, 62, opted for a much more toned-down look, donning a classic black tuxedo.
O’Brien has been loved up with his playwright wife for over two decades, but has largely kept details about their marriage out of the spotlight.
The Oscars host and his other half celebrated 24 years of marriage two months ago.
The couple, who wed in her hometown of Seattle on January 12, 2002, are parents to two adult children – daughter Neve, 22, and son Beckett, 20.
O’Brien’s happily-ever-after began in 2000 when Liza appeared in an advertising skit for his NBC talk show, Late Night.
Oscars 2026 host Conan O’Brien’s rarely-seen wife Liza Powel O’Brien completely upstaged him on the red carpet thanks to her a very-revealing ensemble
Liza, 55, ensured all eyes would be on her as she arrived at the event arm-in-arm with O’Brien, 62, wearing a dramatic outfit that contained a sheer top covered in studs and chains
At the time, she had been employed at the advertising agency Foote, Cone & Belding when the producers for Late Night contracted her firm for help with a sketch O’Brien was planning.
Liza was featured early in the scene, a parody of a commercial for Hilton Furniture, when O’Brien visited the office and chatted with members of the creative team about how the agency worked.
Later, she popped up again in a conference room as she introduced the ad that the agency had come up with to her future husband.
Speaking about their first encounter on The Michelle Obama Podcast in September 2020, he recalled: ‘I immediately start talking to her [Liza], and then I’m not even trying to be funny… I’m just trying to find out more about this woman.
‘Then I left the room after this 20-minute conversation with only her… We were breaking down the equipment, and she walks out.
‘We start talking some more, and then we end up talking in the lobby.’
During their initial conversation, the pair joked about having kids together. They went on to exchange information and began dating.
Two years later, they were married.
Join the debate
Do YOU think Conan O’Brien’s wife outshone him at the Oscars?
O’Brien and Liza pictured in September 2002 at the Governors Ball following the Emmys
The couple tied the knot on January 12, 2002 at St. James Cathedral in Seattle, Washington
They welcomed their first child, daughter Neve, in October 2003 (pictured in June 2004)
Of their fateful meeting, O’Brien said that they came into each other’s lives at the ‘perfect time.’
‘I was ready for the moment,’ he swooned. ‘I was open to it. I was ready to meet her and then the Almighty gave her the stage direction to walk through the scene.’
Although their first encounter was captured on film, Liza revealed that O’Brien refuses to ever watch it back.
‘He wants to remember it instead,’ she said on the Inside Conan podcast in 2022.
‘He says he prefers his memory to whatever the truth is. Which is sweet, but it’s like… are you afraid you’re gonna reconsider?’
O’Brien and Liza became parents for the first time in 2003.
Their eldest child, Neve, is set to graduate with a bachelor’s in history from Yale University in May.
She is interested in music production and management, performing arts, and historical research.
Meanwhile, the couple’s son Beckett began his degree in computer engineering at Harvard in 2024.
Liza welcomed their second child, son Beckett, in November 2005 (pictured October 2005)
O’Brien was joined by his proud family at the 25th Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2025
Although the couple’s first encounter was recorded, O’Brien refuses to watch it back (2016)
While O’Brien might be hosting the Oscars, Liza is distinguished in her own right.
She has an MFA in Fiction Writing from Columbia University’s School of the Arts and has penned at least 12 plays.
Her work has been seen at The Geffen Playhouse, Echo Theater Company, The Blank Theatre, Unscreened LA and Naked Angels LA, to name but a few.
Liza also wrote and narrated the nonfiction podcast Significant Others, which features stories ‘about folks just beyond the spotlight of history.’
The podcast, which launched in 2022 and ran for two years, featured a range of celebrity voices including Nick Offerman, Jameela Jamil, Rita Wilson and Timothy Olyphant.
‘My very talented wife, Liza, has a new history podcast that I absolutely love,’ O’Brien gushed on X (formerly Twitter) at the time of its release.
