O'Brien had no shortage of memorable moments on Sunday night.
Stephen Colbert won the Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special, Live at Sunday night's awards show -- but that didn't stop Conan O'Brien from joining the celebration on stage. Colbert and his staff took the stage as presenter Aidy Bryant revealed them as winners of the category, but O'Brien was somehow already there, raising his arms with excitement.
O'Brien was greeted with a hug from Colbert, and proceeded to stand there with Colbert's staff while Colbert accepted the award for Stephen Colbert's Election Night 2020: Democracy's Last Stand Building Back America Great Again 2020.
"Thank you. Wow. I haven't met some of these people before," Colbert joked in his speech. "Thank you to the Academy, and thank you to Showtime for giving us an hour on election night to do our show because CBS had to report the news or something like that. I accept this Emmy on behalf of everybody who worked on the Late Show, with pride and I am so proud to be one of them."
"... These people behind me are absolutely -- most of the people behind me -- really deserve this Emmy right now," he quipped, before continuing with a few heartfelt thank yous.
While some fans were confused by O'Brien's appearance, many were fully supportive of the moment.
Though O'Brien didn't take home any awards on Sunday, he certainly made the most of his time at the show. He caught the attention of the cameras as he saluted the CEO of the Television Academy during the introduction of Debbie Allen, who received the Governors Award, and received a shout-out from John Oliver as he accepted Outstanding Variety Talk Series.
"Thank you so much. Like many in this room, I was kind of rooting for Conan [O’Brien], so this is bittersweet," Oliver said.
See more fan reactions to O'Brien's Emmys hilarity below.
The 2021 Primetime Emmy Awards, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, aired live Sunday, Sept. 19 on CBS and Paramount+. For complete Emmys coverage, stay tuned to ETonline.com.
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