We made it! An awards season that felt especially long, particularly in the final sprint, wrapped up with the 98th Academy Awards ceremony. And while it’s not easy to definitively call a set of winners “good” or “bad,” on the whole, it’s hard to feel too aggrieved by the Academy’s selection of victors for the best in film of 2025. Ultimately, “One Battle After Another” and “Sinners” both finished strong, with nearly half of the ceremony’s Oscars going to those two films. And although it ended up being arguably more predictable than some experts and fans thought it would be, it was still a night filled with surprises and unexpected moments. Let’s take one last look at the 2025 Oscars.
One Oscar After Another
As some have been saying it would be since its premiere six months ago, Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another“ proved to be the big winner of the night. Along with its night-capping award of Best Picture, the modern epic scooped up Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor for Sean Penn, Best Film Editing, and the first-ever Best Casting Oscar. This was a particularly welcome outcome for fans of master filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, who won his first, second, and third Oscars all in one night, putting an end to his reign as the most-nominated filmmaker without a win (Bradley Cooper now holds that title).
Sean Penn received his third acting Oscar, following his previous Best Actor wins for “Mystic River“ and “Milk.” Although, to misquote presenter Kieran Culkin, it doesn’t seem that the actor cared about the Oscars or even wanted to win. Penn didn’t show up to collect his Academy Award, making the presentation of Best Supporting Actor one of the briefest segments of the night.
A Heavenly Night For “Sinners”
Although it didn’t take the top prize, Ryan Coogler’s blockbuster vampire musical “Sinners“ earned four Oscars, including Best Actor for Michael B. Jordan, Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score, and Best Cinematography. In winning the latter category, Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first female director of photography to win this award, meaning that every non-gendered category at the Academy Awards has now been won by a non-male recipient at least once. In addition, Michael B. Jordan is now the sixth Black performer to win Best Actor, and Ryan Coogler became only the second Black writer to win Best Original Screenplay (Jordan Peele was the first for “Get Out“).Â
Ludwig Göransson continued his incredible run with his Oscar for Best Original Score; this marks his third win in that category in just seven years, after previous victories for “Black Panther“ and “Oppenheimer“ (and with his upcoming score for Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey,” it’s not impossible that he may be back on the Oscar stage in about a year). The music of “Sinners“ was a cause for celebration all night, with the live performance of its Oscar-nominated song “I Lied to You“ standing out as one of the ceremony’s highlights. A cavalcade of esteemed Black performing artists filled the stage in a recreation of the film’s iconic scene, including Misty Copeland, Brittany Howard, Shaboozey, and Alice Smith.
Witches Are Winners
Jessie Buckley won Best Actress for her performance as Shakespeare’s earthy wife in “Hamnet,“ capping off a clean sweep of the televised awards. Although it was undoubtedly the most predictable of the acting wins, Buckley seemed truly surprised. On the other hand, Best Supporting Actress was unquestionably the most unpredictable acting race, with Amy Madigan winning for her already-iconic performance as the evil Aunt Gladys in “Weapons.“ Having won the Critics’ Choice and Actor Award, she seemed to have the odds in her favor going into the night, but there were also just as many factors that seemed opposed to typical Academy voting patterns. She was a lone nominee from a non-Best Picture contender in a genre that the Academy has historically treated unkindly: horror. But the veteran actress’s incredible, maniacal performance was strong enough to overcome these points, leading to a delightfully wacky speech from Madigan.
Oscar Voters Find “Frankenstein“ Monstrously Gorgeous
Guillermo del Toro’s adaptation of Mary Shelley’s masterpiece won three very predictable Academy Awards for Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Production Design. None of the three awards was particularly surprising, as the film was deemed a frontrunner for the craft awards immediately after its premiere at the Venice Film Festival. Still, it gave the telecast a chance to shine a light on Guillermo del Toro, one of the most vocal champions of the cinematic experience. Hopefully, it’ll be easier for audiences to watch his next film in a theater (it’s never a bad idea to take a shot at Netflix’s desecration of the theatrical experience whenever one can).
“KPop Demon Hunters“ Goes Up, Up, Up
Netflix’s other big contender, “KPop Demon Hunters,“ was the only other film to win multiple Oscars and was one of the very few non-Best Picture nominees to win anything. As expected, it was victorious in Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song for the megahit earworm “Golden.“ Unfortunately, the winners’ speech for the latter award was cut violently short by the orchestra, leaving the victors stranded on the darkened stage. It was a categorically rude moment and undoubtedly the low point of the otherwise efficient and mostly inoffensive ceremony. Still, the performance of “Golden“ by EJAE, Rei Ami, and Audrey Nuna was beautifully sung and staged, with the singers accompanied by dozens of dancers waving appropriately golden flags.
Close Races In The Feature Categories
Two of the trickiest categories to predict were Best International Feature and Best Documentary Feature. The former featured two Best Picture nominees, “The Secret Agent“ and “Sentimental Value,“ meaning that voters clearly adored both. Ultimately, Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value“ was triumphant, meaning that Brazil wasn’t able to win in back-to-back ceremonies with this year’s “The Secret Agent“ and last year’s champion “I’m Still Here.“ Best Documentary Feature was truly anyone’s guess, with many predicting Netflix’s harrowing “The Perfect Neighbor“ to emerge victorious. Ultimately, “Mr. Nobody Against Putin“ was victorious after previously winning the BAFTA, possibly serving as proof of the Academy’s international voting bloc’s strength.
Conan Nails It
Returning for the second year in a row, Conan O’Brien served as a funny, focused host. Starting with a hilarious opener in which he played Aunt Gladys from “Weapons” as he ran through the nominated films, he used humor to elevate the movies being celebrated and the humans who made them. Hilariously, he took shots at the ceremony’s upcoming move from broadcast television to YouTube, making exaggerated appeals to a younger demographic and the ways they consume media with extremely short attention spans (one bit about recutting classic films for the vertical video format was particularly hilarious and, to cinephiles, comedically disconcerting). But O’Brien wasn’t afraid to be sincere, ending his opening monologue with a simple case for the importance of art as a connective tool in an increasingly fractured world.
A Mixed Bag Of Bits
Awards show banter between presenters is notoriously tricky to nail. At this year’s ceremony, the most successful category introduction came from the cast of “Bridesmaids,“ reunited in honor of the film’s 15th anniversary. They read notes supposedly given to them by famous audience members to humorous effect. Anne Hathaway and Anna Wintour also made for an unexpectedly perfect pair in their presentations of Best Costume Design and Best Makeup and Hairstyling. Hathaway blended her off-screen persona with her character from “The Devil Wears Prada,“ desperately asking a hilariously deadpan Wintour what she thought of her dress. But as seems to be the rule, for as many successful celebrity bits as there were, there were just as many that fell flat. The two worst moments came from brazen displays of corporate synergy, courtesy of ABC’s overlords at Disney. Pedro Pascal and Sigourney Weaver, co-stars of the upcoming “The Mandalorian and Grogu,“ were tasked with a creaky bit with a Grogu puppet in the audience (notably seated next to nominee Kate Hudson). Chris Evans and Robert Downey Jr. also had the displeasure of introducing two categories under the pretense of being reunited for the fourteenth anniversary of “The Avengers.“ Their less-than-thrilled delivery (particularly on Downey Jr.’s part) just made the whole thing feel uncomfortable.Â
Best Casting And Best Cinematography Upset The Oscar Pools
The brand-new category of Best Casting went to Cassandra Kulukundis for her assemblage of the ensemble of “One Battle After Another.“ Thanks to its heralded cast, a few precursor wins (as few as there were in this category), and a large number of nominations, most Oscar followers predicted that casting legend Francine Maisler would win the inaugural award for her work on “Sinners.“ On the flipside, “Sinners“ won Best Cinematography after “One Battle After Another” won many guild awards, leading most pundits to predict Paul Thomas Anderson’s film. The neat and tidy swap from the majority of predictions led to both films still winning the expected number of Oscars, just not in the expected categories.
It’s A Tie!
For the first time since the 2012 ceremony, one category ended in a tie. Best Live Action Short was awarded to both the barroom-set “The Singers“ and the dystopian, black-and-white “Two People Exchanging Saliva.“ This is likely due to the Academy’s new voting procedures that firmly require that members see all of the nominated films in a category before voting, leading to comparatively low voter engagement in the short film categories (this suspicion is somewhat supported by the fact that nearly every one of the infamous anonymous Oscar ballots showed voters abstaining from these categories due to not having seen the films). Still, it was a mathematically shocking moment, and presenter Kumail Nanjiani handled it flawlessly. He assured the audience that he wasn’t joking, talked them through how this would proceed (one winner would be announced and give a speech, followed by the announcement of the second winner), and even managed to crack a joke about the shorts categories now being the longest presentations of the night.
Misty Watercolor Memories
The past year saw a great number of Hollywood legends passing away, leaving behind stellar artistic legacies. It was guaranteed that this year’s “In Memoriam“ segment would be emotional, but given the Academy’s less-than-immaculate history of putting together respectful presentations, some were understandably nervous. Thankfully, the show’s production team recognized the importance of this part of the ceremony, putting together one of the longest and most successful tributes to the dearly departed in awards show history. Billy Crystal introduced the segment with a lovely look at the career of his friend, Rob Reiner, highlighting his legendary directorial run in the 1980s and 90s and emphasizing the social justice work he and his wife, Michele, became known for. The traditional montage of names and faces of the recently deceased was interspersed with lengthier speeches, first from Rachel McAdams commemorating Catherine O’Hara and her on-screen mother in “The Family Stone,“ Diane Keaton. And the legendary Barbra Streisand made a rare appearance in honor of Robert Redford, her co-star from “The Way We Were,“ which she concluded with an even rarer live performance of a section of the film’s title song. It was impossible not to be moved by the entire segment, which was executed with taste, affection, and an appropriately tender energy.
And so, we close the books on another awards season. 2025 was a great year for film, arguably the best of the post-COVID shutdown era, and the Oscars reflected that with an exceptional batch of nominees and winners. Here’s to 2026, which is already off to a good start with critical hits like “Project Hail Mary.“ The slate of upcoming films looks promising, and hopefully next year’s Oscars reflect what just might be another great year for the art of film.
What did you think of the Oscars last night? How did you do with your Oscar predictions? What was the biggest shock of the evening? How did Conan O’Brien do as host? Please let us know in the comments section below and on Next Best Picture’s X account, click here here for the final tally of awards season winners, and here for Next Best Picture’s podcast reactions episode to the ceremony last night.
