The comedian took comfort in joking around with pals Will Arnett and Jason Bateman after losing his mother and father a year ago.

Why Conan O’Brien blamed a celebrity friend for his parents’ deaths: ‘This is how I grieve’

The comedian took comfort in joking around with pals Will Arnett and Jason Bateman after losing his mother and father a year ago.

By Wesley Stenzel

Wesley Stenzel is a news writer at **. He began writing for EW in 2022.

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December 9, 2025 8:08 p.m. ET

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Conan O'Brien at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Credit:

Cindy Ord/Getty

- Conan O'Brien's parents died in the same week in December 2024.

- Will Arnett said that after texting his condolences, O'Brien responded, "To be honest, I blame [Jason] Bateman."

- O'Brien said it was "comforting" to joke around amid the tragedy: "I swear to God, this is how I grieve."

Conan O'Brien lost both of his parents in December 2024, but that didn't stop him from cracking a few jokes.

Will Arnett recently appeared on the comedian's podcast *Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend*, where he revealed an off-kilter conversation he had with O'Brien after his parents died within three days of each other.

"I hear that your dad passed away and I text you that day or the next day and I said, 'Hey, listen. I'm sorry to hear about your dad's passing, sending love from our family to yours,'" Arnett remembered. "And you wrote, 'Thank you, Will. To be honest, I blame [Jason] Bateman.'"

O'Brien's father, Dr. Thomas O'Brien, died at 95 after a period of failing health — but the comedian thought it'd be funnier to blame his passing on Arnett's *Arrested Development* costar.

Ruth O'Brien; Dr. Thomas O'Brien.

"I wrote, 'It's not a terrible theory,'" Arnett recalled. "And Conan texted me back, 'He killed my dad.'"

O'Brien defended his dark joke. "In fairness, my dad would have loved this," he said on the podcast.

Arnett said he and his *Smartless* cohost were "dying" after O'Brien's first round of texts, which led Bateman to message O'Brien himself. "The next day, Bateman texts you and he says, 'Arnett tells me you're on to me,'" he said. "Conan texts Bateman. He says, 'Bateman, do yourself a favor. Turn yourself in.'"

O'Brien's mother, Ruth Reardon O'Brien, died less than a week later at 92, prompting the former *Conan* host and Arnett to trade a second wave of grim jokes.

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"[I texted,] 'Um, Bateman is asking for your sister's street address. Okay to give?'" Arnett said. "And you were busy that weekend and like a day and a half later you texted back, 'Just seeing this now. Fantastic. 625 Boyleston Street, Apartment 12C. Tell Bateman to make it look like a robbery.'"

O'Brien explained why he kept cracking wise amid family tragedy. "You know what's weird? I swear to God, this is how I grieve," he said. "It was so comforting for me to screw around with you guys at that moment. It just was. And if that makes me a madman, then so be it."

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Arnett understood O'Brien's mindset. "This is what he wants," he remembered thinking. "This is what he wants right now. He wants to laugh and do bits. This is what he wants. And I know the vibe. And obviously our heart was with you, and we love you, and all that stuff."

Listen to Arnett's full appearance on *Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend* above.

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Source: “EW Comedians”