The Ari Aster indie horror cult favorite, Midsommar (starring Florence Pugh), became a topic of conversation for comedian, Conan O’Brien, while he was speaking with Director Mary Bronstein on a collaborative segment called A24 x Letterboxd’s The List (Letterboxd is a global social network for film lovers) in November 2025.

The topic arose while the two were promoting If I Had Legs I’d Kick You during the segment that evolved into a round of rapid fire questions when they were asked which they think is the most stressful movie they’ve ever seen, then branched into a discussion about the folk-horror film and its visually impactful feast table that appeared seemingly bare.

The unexpected opinion was the type of comedic curveball usually associated with O’Brien, especially considering the fact that there are plenty of other notably disturbing scenes in the film, involving food or not. Mention of his own family meal experiences during childhood in comparison to the level of unease he felt when seeing the size of the portions shown in the movie added to the ironic hilarity. Never mind the love spell-infused pie garnished with body hair (that may also potentially be cannibalistic meat pies?) or suspiciously red-hued ale, the lack of food is what caused alarm for Conan, which isn’t too far off from the intentions of the director to unsettle viewers with childhood sentiments.

Food display and consumption were used in Midsommar to build the story with tension and foreshadowing layered in subtle, nearly missed details presented poignantly to hint that something is not right with the celebration and ceremonies at play that the friend group slowly unknowingly becomes a part of. The use of food and the purposeful cinematography are discussed in these tagged articles with interesting insight on the creators’ strategic storytelling for this project, such as a large cake shaped to look like a person lying in a sprawled position and the ominous yet jubilant soundtrack blended with everyday city noise.

Check out the publicity segment here.