Ariana Grande on The Tonight Show: Black Power Suit, ‘O Christmas Tree’ With De Niro and Stiller, and the Lie That Fooled Fallon (Video)

By Nico Grey · Published Nov 9, 2026, 12:43 PM (BKK)

She looked Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller and Jimmy Fallon in the eye and told them she fell into a fish tank with a shark in it as a four-year-old. They believed her. It was a lie. ^[1]

That was only one of Ariana Grande’s moments on Sunday night’s Tonight Show: a surprise Christmas carol in the monologue, a sharp all-black look, and a Focker-in-Law cast takeover that NBC scheduled right after Sunday Night Football. ^[2][3][4]

WHEN WAS ARIANA GRANDE ON JIMMY FALLON?

Sunday, 8 November 2026, on a special Tonight Show that aired after NBC’s Sunday Night Football game between the Buccaneers and the Bears. Billboard calls it the second of four post-football specials this season. The guests were Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller and Ariana Grande, with Lil Baby as musical guest. He performed “Dead Fresh.” ^[2][3][5]

Variety says Fallon designed the Sunday shows for the bigger NFL audience: “I think there is a little more energy to it. We know we have that many more eyeballs.” ^[4]

They weren’t strangers to the desk. LateNighter counted Grande’s visits before Sunday at 19, De Niro’s at 14 and Stiller’s at 10. ^[3]

The couch interview was the polite part. The show had already opened with De Niro singing.

WHAT DID ARIANA GRANDE SING ON FALLON?

“O Christmas Tree.” Fallon was marking the arrival of the 2026 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree, and the three Focker-in-Law stars crashed his monologue to sing the carol in front of the Studio 6B sign. Billboard premiered the clip: “Grande takes the lead on vocals, of course, and the audience can’t help but applaud when she hits those high notes. Stiller gives a valiant effort for his part of the song, and De Niro — well, it’s worth tuning in.” ^[2][5]

The lyrics are the classic ones, “Not only green when summer’s here, but also when it is cold and drear.” The clip ends with all three taking a bow. ^[5]

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WHAT DID ARIANA GRANDE WEAR ON THE TONIGHT SHOW?

All black and sharp. Photos from the night show a black tailored blazer with strong shoulders, a black choker, and her hair in a sleek, flipped-under bob. No sparkle, no pink. Pop Base’s two photos from the taping passed 21,000 likes within about two hours. ^[6]

That composed face is exactly what made the next game work.

ARIANA GRANDE’S TRUE CONFESSIONS STORY: WAS IT TRUE?

In True Confessions, every player reads a confession from an envelope. One is true, one is a lie. The others interrogate, then must agree on a verdict. ^[1]

Ariana’s card: “When I was a kid, I fell into a giant fish tank at the Boca Aquarium.” Then she built the story. Her brother Frankie studied marine biology and is a certified scuba diver, she said, so he was diving in the tank. She was four, “little and clumsy”, and saw him and “just went over.” There was coral, fish, starfish and “a little shark… the nurse sharks.” A waiver had to be signed. And Boca being Boca, “everything’s over the top.” Asked if it was traumatic: “No, I’ve worked through it.” ^[1]

The table voted true. It was a lie. Ariana called it “such a bad lie” and the table erupted. In the full YouTube cut, Grande later teased that a moment in Stiller’s story “was the equivalent of my waiver story.” ^[1]

The rest of the table, from the full YouTube cut: De Niro claimed he tried to copyright a “Robert De Niro sandwich” (the table said no way). Stiller swore he was a teenage production assistant in the room when Foreigner recorded “I Want to Know What Love Is”, and Fallon’s verdict that “that story did not happen” was wrong. ^[1]

WHAT IS FOCKER-IN-LAW AND WHO DOES ARIANA GRANDE PLAY?

Focker-in-Law is the new Meet the Parents movie, in theaters 25 November 2026. Stiller and De Niro return as Greg Focker and Jack Byrnes. Grande plays Olivia Jones, an FBI-trained hostage negotiator dating Greg’s grown-up son Henry (Skyler Gisondo), and possibly the next Focker. ^[2][3]

She teased it nearly a year ago. Hosting SNL in December 2025, she joked that when something is so good it doesn’t need a sequel, “That’s why I just finished filming Meet the Parents 4.” ^[7]

NBC’s guest notes also list her July 2026 album petal and her run as Glinda in Wicked and Wicked: For Good. ^[8]

Related: another in-law movie with a Halloween twist. Jennifer Lopez’s Barbarella costume and the Monster-in-Law callback. J.Lo is next on Fallon’s Sunday slot, on 15 November, with Anthony Mackie and Quavo. ^[2] More on her: Jennifer Lopez 2026.

MORE ARIANA AND POP STARS ON SCANDAL PLANET

FAQ

When was Ariana Grande on The Tonight Show?

Sunday, 8 November 2026, on a special episode after NBC’s Sunday Night Football, with Robert De Niro, Ben Stiller and musical guest Lil Baby. ^[2][3]

What song did Ariana Grande sing on Fallon?

“O Christmas Tree,” with Robert De Niro and Ben Stiller, crashing Jimmy Fallon’s monologue to celebrate the 2026 Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. ^[2][5]

Did Ariana Grande really fall into a fish tank?

No. Her True Confessions story about falling into a fish tank at the “Boca Aquarium” at age four was the lie. The table voted it true. ^[1]

What did Ariana Grande wear on The Tonight Show?

An all-black look: a tailored black blazer, a black choker and a sleek flipped bob. ^[6]

Who does Ariana Grande play in Focker-in-Law?

Olivia Jones, an FBI-trained hostage negotiator dating Henry Focker (Skyler Gisondo). The film opens on 25 November 2026. ^[2][3]

SOURCES

[1] The Tonight Show, official clips: True Confessions on X https://x.com/FallonTonight/status/2119656318508073228 and the full YouTube cut https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r07P9Fa9Xo4 (quotes transcribed from the official video; transcript in package)

[2] Billboard, Ashley Iasimone, 8 Nov 2026: https://www.billboard.com/culture/tv-film/ariana-grande-o-christmas-tree-robert-de-niro-ben-stiller-1236377155/

[3] LateNighter: https://latenighter.com/news/jimmy-fallon-focker-in-law-post-sunday-night-football-guests/

[4] Variety, 2 Nov 2026: https://variety.com/2026/tv/news/jimmy-fallon-big-plays-nbc-tonight-show-fockers-olympics-1236937477/

[5] The Tonight Show, “O Christmas Tree”: https://x.com/FallonTonight/status/2119652997777052089 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En4fD03PNCM ; Lil Baby “Dead Fresh”: https://x.com/FallonTonight/status/2119649945204503007

[6] Pop Base on X (photos, engagement figure as of 9 Nov ~09:40 BKK): https://x.com/PopBase/status/2119620517246484859 ; The Tonight Show Studio 6B photos: https://x.com/FallonTonight/status/2119644155358187535

[7] Just Jared, 21 Dec 2025: https://www.justjared.com/2025/12/21/ariana-grande-sings-parody-of-mariah-careys-all-i-want-for-christmas-in-snl-monologue-watch-now/

[8] NBC guest page: https://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/guests/robert-de-niro-ben-stiller-ariana-grande/c915f4b8fa8c37a15fd878c403c0d3f80af26e2a

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