Ayo Edebiri has been lucky with her Irish bit, but Conan O’Brien hasn’t had the same success.
The comedian praised The Bear star for her dedication to a running joke where she pretends to be Irish, saying that because of it, she’s “revered by the Irish people” while he’s “rightfully loathed” (even though he actually is Irish), as he mentioned on the latest episode of his podcast Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend.
The joke began in March 2023 at the South By Southwest Film Festival during a Letterboxd interview. In it, Edebiri switched in and out of an Irish accent while joking that she played Jenny the donkey in the Ireland-based Oscar nominee The Banshees of Inisherin. Edebiri kept the joke going in later red carpet interviews and appearances, which O’Brien specifically praised her for on his podcast.
I wanted to congratulate you, because you started this joke which you improvised, a joke about being Irish, and then you kept going. And there’s this crucial point where a joke either becomes like, ‘Okay that’s enough, I’ve done it enough, I should stop,’ or you double, triple, and quadruple down on it and refuse to let it go — which you did. Now it has resonated so much that the people of Ireland have accepted you as one of their own, which they will not do with me. I am this figure of great shame in Ireland. But you, you got a day in Boston, and you’re revered by the Irish people. I am rightfully loathed by the Irish and never a day in Boston.
he said
Earlier this year, Boston mayor Michelle Wu named April 10, 2025, as Ayo Edebiri Day to honor the star’s accomplishments and her impact on Boston youth, as she’s originally from the city and graduated from Boston Latin School.
I remember talking about this with a friend. I was like, ‘My favorite type of joke low-key might be a lie.’ Like, something where it’s almost not even funny, it’s mostly just funny to me.
Of her joke’s origins, Edebiri told O’Brien
She remembered that during the now-famous SXSW red carpet interview, she figured her publicist probably thought she was having a “mental breakdown.”
I remember in that moment I saw my PR. She was at the corner of my eye and she was kind of like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, no,’ because I was just, it was nonsense. It was just me being like, oh yeah I was up in Ireland and I was kind of chilling and she was like, ‘OK, mental breakdown on the horizon.’ I don’t know, it just kept going. But then other Irish people, too, have been like, ‘What’s up?’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, what’s up?’
Edebiri said
As for O’Brien, who really is very Irish and also from Boston, Edebiri told him not to give up hope — that he’ll eventually earn the respect of the Irish and fellow Bostonians.
I think your day could come is what I’ll say about that.
Edebiri said
Source: EW