Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino have a documented connection built around O’Brien’s long-standing admiration for Pacino, several friendly encounters, and a major 2024 podcast interview. O’Brien has publicly called Pacino his favorite actor and has joked about being unusually starstruck around him.
There is no publicly established family connection or famous acting partnership between the two. What makes the pairing interesting is that O’Brien, despite interviewing major celebrities for decades, has repeatedly described Pacino as someone whose presence genuinely affected him.
What Connects Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino?
The clearest connection is admiration that developed into a friendly Hollywood acquaintance and eventually an in-depth interview.
O’Brien had encountered Pacino socially before Pacino became a guest on Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend. In October 2024, Pacino joined O’Brien for Episode 311 of the podcast, where they discussed Pacino’s memoir Sonny Boy, his childhood, The Godfather, Scarface, Marlon Brando and the unpredictable effects of becoming famous.
| Connection | Verified detail |
|---|---|
| O’Brien’s view of Pacino | O’Brien publicly described Pacino as his favorite actor. |
| Earlier encounters | O’Brien recalled meeting Pacino socially before the podcast interview. |
| 2022 story | Team Coco published a clip about O’Brien abruptly ending a conversation with Pacino because he became nervous about overstaying his welcome. |
| Major interview | Pacino appeared on Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend on October 14, 2024. |
| Main interview subjects | Sonny Boy, Michael Corleone, Tony Montana and Pacino’s memories of Marlon Brando. |
Conan O’Brien Was a Serious Al Pacino Fan Long Before the Interview
O’Brien’s enthusiasm for Pacino was not simply the usual praise given to a podcast guest.
At the beginning of their 2024 conversation, O’Brien explained that he had interviewed an enormous range of public figures yet considered speaking with Pacino especially significant. He directly told the actor that Pacino was his favorite actor and that he was unusually excited about the conversation.
His fascination is easy to understand in the context of Pacino’s career. Pacino’s defining performances include Michael Corleone in The Godfather films, Frank Serpico in Serpico, Sonny Wortzik in Dog Day Afternoon, Tony Montana in Scarface and Frank Slade in Scent of a Woman. The Academy records Pacino’s 1993 Best Actor win for Scent of a Woman, while its 2020 nomination materials identify his performance in The Irishman as his ninth Oscar nomination.
O’Brien told Pacino that The Godfather films were so familiar to him and his brothers that they regularly quoted them to one another. His admiration therefore came from years of watching Pacino’s work rather than from their later professional interaction.
The Awkward Restaurant Encounter Before the Podcast
One of the funniest parts of the Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino story happened before their full interview.
Team Coco published a November 2022 clip titled “Conan Abruptly Left A Recent Conversation With Al Pacino.” The clip came from O’Brien’s conversation with Colin Hanks and established that the pair had already crossed paths socially.
O’Brien later retold the episode directly to Pacino during the 2024 interview.
According to O’Brien’s account, he was in New York on business and went out for dinner. He spotted Pacino sitting at a restaurant banquette. Pacino noticed him and motioned for him to come over.
Pacino began talking to him, including about a planned screening of The Godfather. Instead of enjoying the moment for as long as possible, O’Brien became worried that he might be imposing.
He politely ended the conversation and quickly walked away.
The next day, O’Brien said, he happened to meet someone who had joined Pacino’s table shortly afterward. That person told him Pacino had been surprised by O’Brien’s sudden departure and wondered why he had fled. O’Brien explained to Pacino that his internal reaction had essentially been: this is Al Pacino, don’t ruin the encounter by staying too long.
The story matters because it shows that the later warmth between them was not manufactured solely for a promotional interview. They had already met, and Pacino apparently knew O’Brien well enough to invite him over.
Al Pacino’s 2024 Conan O’Brien Podcast Interview
Pacino’s full appearance on Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend was released on October 14, 2024. Apple Podcasts lists it as Episode 311 with a running time of about 72 minutes.
The appearance coincided with the release of Pacino’s memoir Sonny Boy. Penguin Random House lists the original hardcover publication date as October 15, 2024, one day after the podcast episode appeared.
Unlike a brief promotional interview focused on a new book, the conversation moved across several periods of Pacino’s life and career.
Pacino’s South Bronx Childhood
O’Brien was particularly interested in Pacino’s childhood rather than jumping immediately to famous movie stories.
Pacino discussed growing up in the South Bronx and losing childhood friends as their lives took different and sometimes tragic directions. O’Brien noted how striking that background was when compared with the extraordinary career that followed.
That material also forms an important part of Sonny Boy. Penguin Random House describes Pacino’s upbringing in New York’s South Bronx, his acting studies and his eventual development through New York theater before becoming a major film actor.
They Spent Significant Time on The Godfather
Unsurprisingly, The Godfather became one of the central subjects.
O’Brien discussed the uncertainty surrounding Pacino’s early days playing Michael Corleone and the resistance Pacino faced before his performance became one of the defining roles of his career. The conversation also covered Francis Ford Coppola’s faith in Pacino and Pacino’s own uncertainty while making the movie.
For O’Brien, these stories had a personal dimension because he had spent years watching and quoting the movies.
He even told Pacino that on the day of the interview he had informed one of his brothers that he was about to interview Al Pacino. According to O’Brien, his brother jokingly responded by questioning why Conan, of all people, had earned that opportunity.
The joke captured the unusual dynamic of the episode: O’Brien was technically the veteran interviewer, but he frequently behaved like an astonished movie fan who happened to have been given access to one of his heroes.
The Marlon Brando Stories
Their discussion of Marlon Brando produced some of the episode’s most memorable material.
Pacino recalled having lunch with Brando during the filming of The Godfather. According to Pacino’s account, Brando ate chicken cacciatore with his hands while talking to him and eventually wiped the sauce from his hands using a hospital bedsheet because no napkin was available.
Pacino also recalled one of the later pieces of advice Brando gave him. According to the story, Brando told him to “stay out of court,” which Pacino interpreted as advice concerning divorce court.
These anecdotes worked especially well with O’Brien because his interview style often turns small personal details into extended comedy while still allowing the guest to finish the underlying story.
They Also Discussed Scarface and Tony Montana
Scarface provided another important part of the conversation.
Pacino discussed the movie’s initial critical response and its much longer cultural life. He attributed part of its later popularity to home video, college audiences and its embrace within hip-hop culture.
He also talked about the creative combination behind the film, including screenwriter Oliver Stone and director Brian De Palma.
O’Brien was interested in a small character detail described in Pacino’s memoir: the decision to give Tony Montana a scar cutting through his eyebrow. Pacino confirmed the idea while O’Brien connected the visual detail to the character’s chaotic personality.
The discussion demonstrated why the interview worked beyond celebrity nostalgia. O’Brien had read the memoir closely and arrived with questions about acting choices rather than simply requesting familiar movie quotes.
Robert De Niro Came Up Too
Another topic was the decades-long public comparison between Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.
O’Brien noted that the two actors rose to prominence during roughly the same era and were frequently presented by the media as rivals. Pacino’s account was much less dramatic. He described a relationship in which the two actors respected and encouraged each other’s work rather than participating in the simplistic rivalry narrative often constructed around them.
That portion of the interview helped place Pacino’s career in a broader generation of New York actors and filmmakers rather than treating each famous performance in isolation.
Are Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino Close Friends?
Calling them close personal friends would go beyond the available public evidence.
Their interactions show genuine warmth. O’Brien has said Pacino had been kind when they met previously, while Pacino appeared relaxed and affectionate during the podcast conversation. The official episode description humorously says Pacino felt “hopeful about being Conan O’Brien’s friend,” but that phrasing is part of the recurring format used for guests on Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.
The most accurate description is that they are friendly professional acquaintances, with O’Brien being an unusually enthusiastic admirer of Pacino.
Their relationship is very different from Pacino’s decades-long personal and professional relationship with figures such as Robert De Niro. Nothing in the sources cited here supports describing O’Brien and Pacino as lifelong or particularly close friends.
Why Their Interview Stood Out for Conan O’Brien
O’Brien’s reaction is more significant when viewed against his own career.
He began hosting Late Night with Conan O’Brien in 1993 after working as a writer on Saturday Night Live and The Simpsons. His television career later included The Tonight Show, CONAN, international travel programs and hundreds of celebrity interviews. His podcast launched in 2018.
By 2026, the Television Academy credits O’Brien with six Emmys and his 2025 Hall of Fame induction, along with his continuing work on Conan O’Brien Must Go and other projects.
That makes his visible nervousness around Pacino unusual. O’Brien was not a new interviewer overwhelmed by meeting his first Hollywood star. He was one of America’s most experienced celebrity interviewers, yet he still described the Pacino episode as an exceptionally important moment for him.
After Pacino left the studio, O’Brien again emphasized how extraordinary the experience had been and repeated that Pacino was his favorite actor.
Why People Search for Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino Together
Interest in the pairing comes primarily from three moments.
First was O’Brien’s story about encountering Pacino socially and becoming so nervous that he ended the conversation too quickly. Second was Pacino’s full 2024 podcast appearance. Third was O’Brien’s unusually open admission that even after decades around famous people, Pacino could still make him feel like an overwhelmed fan.
The connection is therefore less mysterious than some search results might imply. It is a memorable meeting between a veteran comedian and interviewer and an actor whose work O’Brien had admired for decades.
FAQ
Are Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino friends?
They appear to have a friendly relationship and had met before their 2024 podcast interview. Publicly available evidence, however, supports describing them as friendly acquaintances rather than establishing a long-term close friendship.
Did Al Pacino appear on Conan O’Brien’s podcast?
Yes. Pacino appeared on Episode 311 of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, released on October 14, 2024. The episode runs roughly 72 minutes.
Is Al Pacino Conan O’Brien’s favorite actor?
O’Brien has explicitly said that Pacino is his favorite actor. He repeated the sentiment during and immediately after Pacino’s podcast appearance.
Why did Conan O’Brien walk away from Al Pacino?
O’Brien said he became worried about overstaying his welcome during a chance restaurant conversation with Pacino. He therefore ended the interaction quickly, only to learn afterward that Pacino had apparently wondered why he suddenly left.
What did Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino talk about?
Their 2024 conversation covered Pacino’s memoir Sonny Boy, his South Bronx childhood, Michael Corleone and The Godfather, Tony Montana and Scarface, Robert De Niro, fame, theater and Pacino’s memories of Marlon Brando.
Are Conan O’Brien and Al Pacino related?
No credible biographical or official source identifies them as relatives. Their documented connection comes from entertainment, personal encounters and Pacino’s appearance on O’Brien’s podcast.
