Critics’ biggest night has finally arrived — and they told us exactly how they felt about the biggest and best films and TV shows of 2025 at the 31st annual Critics Choice Awards. Critical engagement with art is such a necessary quest, as it tends to bring something to the public consciousness that expands both viewers perspective on the work and how the work itself functions in our cultural landscape, so their yearly picks truly say something about the state of visual art in the now.
Needless to say, we’ve had some seriously good projects come our way in the last year, including the Ryan Coogler period horror breakout Sinners. As you might’ve expected, the film — which stars Michael B. Jordan, Miles Catton, Hailee Steinfeld, Jack O’Connell, and Wunmi Mosaku — ended up winning the most awards for a film this year. Interestingly enough, though, it actually tied with Guillermo del Toro’s Netflix adaptation of Frankenstein for that title.
Both films went home with four awards, and as far as acting goes, both films took home big prizes. Jacob Elordi snagged the Best Supporting Actor award for his portrayal of Frankenstein’s monsters, while Catton took home the Best Young Actor/Actress award for his excellent breakout as preacher boy Sammie. Coogler was also recognized for his writing, being awarded for Best Original Screenplay, while his casting director, Francine Maisler, was recognized for Best Casting and Ensemble.
As for the other big hits of the year, Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another also got its fair share of praise, going home with three awards including both Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for Anderson. The film was also recognized in the Best Picture category, which had some steep competition in it.
There were also a couple of one-off wins that truly felt sweet. Josh Safdie’s Marty Supreme was only recognized once, but it was a big one. Star Timothee Chalamet took home the award for Best Actor for his work in the title role, which could be a precursor for the upcoming Academy Awards, but who can say just yet. But perhaps the best and most satisfying one-off win went to Amy Madigan for her haunting portrayal of Aunt Gladys in Weapons, which took the world by storm when the film was released over the summer.
On the TV side, it should come as no surprise that Netflix’s tragic miniseries Adolescence was the big winner with four awards, including Best Limited Series. It also snagged three acting awards for Stephen Graham, Owen Cooper, and Erin Doherty, all of whom won the same awards for their work at the 77th Primetime Emmys.
Beloved medical drama The Pitt and breakout comedy The Studio both tied for second place on wins, each going home with three awards a piece. The Pitt won Best Drama Series and two acting awards for Noah Wiley and Katherine LaNasa, all of which the series won at the Emmys as well. The Studio took home Best Comedy Series, with Seth Rogen and Ike Barinholtz winning Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor respectively. Rogen and the show also won at the Emmys, but Barinholtz’s win was a first (and only his second nomination for the series).
You can check out the full list of winners from the 31st annual Critics Choice Awards below.
BEST PICTURE
Bugonia Frankenstein Hamnet Jay Kelly Marty Supreme Sentimental Value SinnersTrain Dreams Wicked: For Good One Battle After Another — WINNER
BEST ACTOR
Leonardo DiCaprio (One Battle After Another) Joel Edgerton (Train Dreams)Ethan Hawke (Blue Moon)Michael B. Jordan (Sinners)Wagner Moura (The Secret Agent)Timothée Chalamet (Marty Supreme) — WINNER
BEST ACTRESS
Jessie Buckley (Hamnet) — WINNERRose Byrne (If I Had Legs I’d Kick You) Chase Infiniti (One Battle After Another)Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value) Amanda Seyfried (The Testament of Ann Lee)Emma Stone (Bugonia)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Jacob Elordi (Frankenstein) — WINNERBenicio Del Toro (One Battle After Another)Paul Mescal (Hamnet) Sean Penn (One Battle After Another) Adam Sandler (Jay Kelly)Stellan Skarsgard (Sentimental Value)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Madigan (Weapons) — WINNERElle Fanning (Sentimental Value)Ariana Grande (Wicked: For Good)Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas (Sentimental Value) Wunmi Mosaku (Sinners)Teyana Taylor (One Battle After Another)
BEST YOUNG ACTOR / ACTRESS
Everett Blunck (The Plague)Cary Christopher (Weapons) Shannon Mahina Gorman (Rental Family) Jacobi Jupe (Hamnet) Nina Ye (Left-Handed Girl)Miles Caton (Sinners) — WINNER
BEST DIRECTOR
Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another) — WINNERRyan Coogler (Sinners)Guillermo del Toro – Frankenstein Josh Safdie – Marty Supreme Joachim Trier – Sentimental Value Chloé Zhao – Hamnet
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Ryan Coogler (Sinners) — WINNERNoah Baumbach, Emily Mortimer (Jay Kelly)Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) Zach Cregger (Weapons)Eva Victor (Sorry, Baby) Eskil Vogt, Joachim Trier (Sentimental Value)
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another) — WINNERClint Bentley, Greg Kwedar (Train Dreams) Park Chan-wook, Lee Kyoung-mi, Don Mckellar, Jahye Lee (No Other Choice) Guillermo del Toro (Frankenstein) Will Tracy (Bugonia) Chloé Zhao, Maggie O’Farrell (Hamnet)
BEST CASTING AND ENSEMBLE
Francine Maisler (Sinners) — WINNERNina Gold (Hamnet) Douglas Aibel, Nina Gold (Jay Kelly) Jennifer Venditti (Marty Supreme) Cassandra Kulukundis (One Battle After Another) Tiffany Little Canfield, Bernard Telsey (Wicked: For Good)
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Claudio Miranda (F1) Dan Laustsen (Frankenstein)Łukasz Żal (Hamnet) Michael Bauman (One Battle After Another)Autumn Durald Arkapaw (Sinners)Adolpho Veloso (Train Dreams) — WINNER
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Kasra Farahani, Jille Azis (The Fantastic Four: First Steps) Fiona Crombie, Alice Felton (Hamnet)Jack Fisk, Adam Willis (Marty Supreme) Hannah Beachler, Monique Champagne (Sinners) Nathan Crowley, Lee Sandales (Wicked: For Good) Tamara Deverell, Shane Vieau (Frankenstein) — WINNER
BEST EDITING
Stephen Mirrione (F1) — WINNERKirk Baxter (A House of Dynamite) Ronald Bronstein, Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme)Andy Jurgensen (One Battle After Another) Viridiana Lieberman (The Perfect Neighbor)Michael P. Shawver (Sinners)
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Kate Hawley (Frankenstein) — WINNERMalgosia Turzanska – Hamnet Lindsay Pugh – Hedda Colleen Atwood, Christine Cantella – Kiss of the Spider Woman Ruth E. Carter – Sinners Paul Tazewell – Wicked: For Good
BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP
Mike Hill, Jordan Samuel, Cliona Furey (Frankenstein) — WINNERFlora Moody, John Nolan (28 Years Later)Siân Richards, Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine, Shunika Terry (Sinners)Kazu Hiro, Felix Fox, Mia Neal (The Smashing Machine) Leo Satkovich, Melizah Wheat, Jason Collins (Weapons)Frances Hannon, Mark Coulier, Laura Blount (Wicked: For Good)
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Ryan Tudhope, Nikeah Forde, Robert Harrington, Nicolas Chevallier, Eric Leven, Edward Price, Keith Dawson (F1)Dennis Berardi, Ayo Burgess, Ivan Busquets, José Granell (Frankenstein)Alex Wuttke, Ian Lowe, Jeff Sutherland, Kirstin Hall – Mission: Impossible (The Final Reckoning) Michael Ralla, Espen Nordahl, Guido Wolter, Donnie Dean (Sinners)Stephane Ceretti, Enrico Damm, Stéphane Nazé, Guy Williams (Superman)Joe Letteri, Richard Baneham, Eric Saindon, Daniel Barrett (Avatar: Fire and Ash) — WINNER
BEST STUNT DESIGN
Stephen Dunlevy, Kyle Gardiner, Jackson Spidell, Jeremy Marinas, Jan Petřina, Domonkos Párdányi, Kinga Kósa-Gavalda (Ballerina)Gary Powell, Luciano Bacheta, Craig Dolby (F1)Brian Machleit (One Battle After Another) Andy Gill (Sinners)Giedrius Nagys (Warfare) Wade Eastwood (Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning) — WINNER
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
KPop Demon Hunters — WINNERArco ElioIn Your Dreams Little Amélie or the Character of Rain Zootopia 2
BEST COMEDY
The Naked Gun — WINNERThe Ballad of Wallis Island Eternity Friendship The Phoenician Scheme Splitsville
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
The Secret Agent — WINNERIt Was Just an AccidentLeft-Handed Girl No Other Choice SiratBelén
BEST SONG
“Golden” Ejae, Mark Sonnenblick, Ido, 24, Teddy (KPop Demon Hunters) — WINNER“Drive” – Ed Sheeran, John Mayer, Blake Slatkin (F1)“I Lied to You” – Raphael Saadiq, Ludwig Göransson (Sinners) “Clothed by the Sun” – Daniel Blumberg (The Testament of Ann Lee)“Train Dreams” – Nick Cave, Bryce Dessner (Train Dreams) “The Girl in the Bubble” – Stephen Schwartz (Wicked: For Good)
BEST SCORE
Hans Zimmer (F1)Alexandre Desplat (Frankenstein) Max Richter (Hamnet)Daniel Lopatin (Marty Supreme)Jonny Greenwood (One Battle After Another)Ludwig Göransson (Sinners) — WINNER
BEST SOUND
Al Nelson, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle, Gary A. Rizzo, Juan Peralta, Gareth John (F1) — WINNERNathan Robitaille, Nelson Ferreira, Christian Cooke, Brad Zoern, Greg Chapman (Frankenstein)Jose Antonio Garcia, Christopher Scarabosio, Tony Villaflor (One Battle After Another)Chris Welcker, Benny Burtt, Brandon Proctor, Steve Boeddeker, Felipe Pacheco, David V. Butler (Sinners) Laia Casanovas (Sirat)Mitch Low, Glenn Freemantle, Ben Barker, Howard Bargroff, Richard Spooner (Warfare)
BEST DRAMA SERIES
The Pitt — WINNERAlien: EarthAndorThe DiplomatParadisePluribusSeverance Task
BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Noah Wyle (The Pitt) — WINNERSterling K. Brown (Paradise) Diego Luna (Andor) Mark Ruffalo (Task)Adam Scott (Severance) Billy Bob Thornton (Landman)
BEST ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Rhea Seehorn (Pluribus) — WINNERKathy Bates (Matlock)Carrie Coon (The Gilded Age) Britt Lower (Severance) Bella Ramsey (The Last of Us)Keri Russell (The Diplomat)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES
Tramell Tillman (Severance) — WINNERPatrick Ball (The Pitt)Billy Crudup (The Morning Show)Ato Essandoh (The Diplomat)Wood Harris (Forever)Tom Pelphrey (Task)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A DRAMA SERIES
Katherine LaNasa (The Pitt) — WINNERNicole Beharie (The Morning Show)Denée Benton (The Gilded Age) Allison Janney (The Diplomat)Greta Lee (The Morning Show) Skye P. Marshall (Matlock)
BEST COMEDY SERIES
Abbott Elementary Elsbeth Ghosts Hacks Nobody Wants This Only Murders in the Building The Righteous Gemstones The Studio — WINNER
BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Adam Brody (Nobody Wants This) Ted Danson (A Man on the Inside) David Alan Grier (St. Denis Medical) Danny McBride (The Righteous Gemstones)Alexander Skarsgard (Murderbot) Seth Rogen (The Studio) — WINNER
BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Jean Smart (Hacks) — WINNERKristen Bell (Nobody Wants This)Natasha Lyonne (Poker Face)Rose McIver (Ghosts)Edi Patterson (The Righteous Gemstones)Carrie Preston (Elsbeth)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio) — WINNERPaul W. Downs (Hacks)Asher Grodman (Ghosts)Oscar Nuñez (The Paper) Chris Perfetti (Abbott Elementary)Timothy Simons (Nobody Wants This)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Janelle James (Abbott Elementary) — WINNERDanielle Brooks (Peacemaker)Hannah Einbinder (Hacks)Justine Lupe (Nobody Wants This) Ego Nwodim (Saturday Night Live) Rebecca Wisocky (Ghosts)
BEST LIMITED SERIES
Adolescence — WINNERAll Her Fault Chief of War Death by Lightning Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy Dope Thief Dying for Sex The Girlfriend
BEST MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy — WINNERDeep Cover The GorgeMountainheadNonnas Summer of ’69
BEST ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Michael Chernus (Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy) Brian Tyree Henry (Dope Thief)Charlie Hunnam (Monster: The Ed Gein Story) Matthew Rhys (The Beast in Me)Michael Shannon (Death by Lightning) Stephen Graham (Adolescence) — WINNER
BEST ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Jessica Biel (The Better Sister)Meghann Fahy (Sirens)Michelle Williams (Dying for Sex) Robin Wright (The Girlfriend)Renée Zellweger (Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy) Sarah Snook (All Her Fault) — WINNER
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Owen Cooper (Adolescence) — WINNERWagner Moura (Dope Thief)Nick Offerman (Death by Lightning) Michael Peña (All Her Fault)Ashley Walters (Adolescence)Ramy Youssef (Mountainhead)
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A LIMITED SERIES OR MOVIE MADE FOR TELEVISION
Erin Doherty (Adolescence) — WINNERBetty Gilpin (Death by Lightning)Marin Ireland (Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy)Sophia Lillis (All Her Fault)Julianne Moore (Sirens)Christine Tremarco (Adolescence)
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE SERIES
Squid Game — WINNERAcapulcoLast Samurai Standing Mussolini: Son of the Century Red Alert When No One Sees Us
BEST ANIMATED SERIES
South Park — WINNERBob’s Burgers Harley QuinnLong Story Short Marvel Zombies Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
BEST TALK SHOW
The Daily ShowHot Ones Late Night With Seth MeyersThe Late Show With Stephen Colbert Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen Jimmy Kimmel Live! — WINNER
BEST VARIETY SERIES
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver — WINNERConan O’Brien Must Go Saturday Night Live
BEST COMEDY SPECIAL
Brett Goldstein: The Second Best Night of Your Life Caleb Hearon: Model ComedianLeanne Morgan: Unspeakable Things Marc Maron: Panicked Sarah Silverman: PostMortem SNL50: The Anniversary Special — WINNER
Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Critics Choice Association.
Lex Briscuso is a film and television critic and a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. You can follow her on Twitter at @nikonamerica.
