Conan O’Brien: Caustic Comic Scaring Guests Away

Viewers may love talk-show host Conan O’Brien for his snarkiness, but The National ENQUIRER has learned from an insider that his acid tongue is turning off celebrities!

“He has a sharp wit, but sometimes it’s a little too sharp,” a snitch spilled. “Many find his line of questioning too intrusive and his jokes too prickly, Robert Downey, Jr. being one prime example. Robert has been approached to come on, but he won’t.

“He didn’t appreciate Conan once saying he was ‘all wrong’ to play Iron Man and poking fun at Robert’s $50 million salary for ‘The Avengers.’”

TBS recently closed a new deal with Conan, securing his gabfest for four more seasons, but it took months of negotiation — and even then, executives were secretly concerned about the show’s future if stars are getting gun-shy.  

In fact, on-set spies told The National ENQUIRER that while celebrities such as Shaquille O'Neal drop in, many Hollywood stars outright refuse, like Robert, to appear on “Conan!”

“Most celebrities prefer to play it safe with Jimmy Fallon or Jimmy Kimmel, and avoid Conan altogether,” another insider dished. “The only A-list actor who reliably shows up is Tom Hanks — and that’s seen as something he does out of sentimentality.”

Conan needs to tread lightly — as one of the sources confirmed, “There aren’t a lot of other networks looking for his services!”