Best Moments on TV of 2025... So Far

One caveat to this list is that I am not a subscriber to Apple TV Plus. I can't speak to any of the programming on that streaming service. Many of which are highly acclaimed or popular among the members of the TV Academy. Severance (2022) is at the top of that list. Back at the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, Severance was up for 14 categories, including Outstanding Drama Series. A lot of predictions has that science-fiction program in the lead. Speaking of Apple TV Plus, there's another show that's ranked high on Emmy predictions as being one of the best shows or one of the programs that's really in contention. The Studio (2025) by Seth Rogen has risen up as a possible spoiler to the front-runner in the Outstanding Comedy Series category. The front-runner is Max's Hacks (2021), which like Rogen's show is also about Hollywood and the entertainment industry. Arguably, these programs are very high quality, but they are somewhat naval gazing in their scope.

Many are arguing that the best competition to Severance is Max's The Pitt (2025), which is in many ways the spiritual successor to ER (1994). Both The Pitt and ER star the same actor, Noah Wyle who many think is a lock to win Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. In the top five in that category is Sterling K. Brown who made a splash with his new series Paradise (2025). Brown is an incredible actor who is on a bit of a roll. He was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 96th Academy Awards. Yet, he's been nominated for the Emmy Award ten times, winning three times, including for This Is Us (2016) and The People v. O. J. Simpson (2016). His odds of getting in again are rather good.

Speaking of Brown, it's always important to make a note of how many minorities, specifically how many BIPOC people are getting recognized at the Emmys. As usual, there are barely any programs that are led by someone who is BIPOC or that are cast with predominantly BIPOC people. The only such shows that are in contention are Abbott Elementary (2021) in the Outstanding Comedy Series category, Rebel Ridge (2024) in Outstanding TV Movie, RuPaul's Drag Race (2009) and Fantasmas (2024). Rebel Ridge was a film produced by Netflix and could've been ineligible if it had gotten a theatrical release. There's also no guarantee that Fantasmas will be nominated, but it's predicted to get recognized. No shows in the Outstanding Drama Series will be led by BIPOC people or have a predominant BIPOC cast. It can be argued that the shows in contention have diverse ensembles. The White Lotus (2021) has a mixed group of people but generally the shows lean more on the white characters than the non-white ones.

On the positive side, 17, or nearly a dozen and a half, people are predicted to be nominated who are BIPOC. Of those predictions, three BIPOC men have the possibility of getting recognized for the very first time. They include Tramell Tillman, one of the standouts from Severance. Tillman also made an impression to many people in the recent blockbuster Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning (2025). There's also Rhenzy Felix, the young Dominican-American actor from HBO's The Penguin (2024). Finally, there's Ashley Walters, a British actor and rapper who was actually in three TV shows this year. He was in Missing You (2025) on Netflix and A Thousand Blows (2025) on Hulu. His standout, even though brief, will be for Adolescence (2025), a hit limited series on Netflix.

When the Emmy nominations are announced, the takeaway that most people will have will likely be that Adolescence (2025) is the most dominant in the Outstanding Limited Series category. People have been really impressed with the cinematography and the acting, as well as the writing of Adolescence, which is about cyberbullying and also about parenting during the Internet age. It was only released three months ago but the viewership has been so high that it's currently in the Top Ten of all-time watched shows. Stephen Graham who is the writer, producer and star of the show will likely be recognized in multiple categories. It will be interesting to see if the young teen actor, Owen Cooper will get nominated as well. 

Another crime drama that is competing against Adolescence is Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story (2024). Cooper Koch who played the character of Erik Menendez has been doing a lot of press for the show. He did Variety's Actors on Actors and he did The Hollywood Reporter's Drama Actor Roundtable. The website Gold Derby, which tracks predictions, has Koch ranked third behind Graham and Colin Farrell in The Penguin (2024), but, as far as I'm concerned, Koch should be number-one.

Best TV Movie or Individual Episode

I DON'T KNOW WHO I AM (Dekkoo)
SLY LIVES! AKA THE BURDEN OF BLACK GENIUS (Hulu)
BLACK MIRROR: SEASON 7 - "USS Callister: Into Infinity" (Netflix)
FRANKLIN (VIM Media)
BULLET TRAIN EXPLOSION (Netflix)
BEYOND THE GATES - "Episode 47" (CBS)

Best Returning Series

MO: SEASON 2 (Netflix)
THE LAST OF US: SEASON 2 (HBO)
THE BEAR: SEASON 4 (FX)
THE RECRUIT: SEASON 2 (Netflix)
THE NIGHT AGENT: SEASON 2 (Netflix)
THE GILDED AGE: SEASON 3 (HBO)
AND JUST LIKE THAT...: SEASON 3 (HBO)
COBRA KAI: SEASON 6 (Netflix)
HARLEM: SEASON 3 (Amazon Prime)
ABBOTT ELEMENTARY: SEASON 4 (ABC)
THE DEVIL'S PLAN: SEASON 2 (Netflix)
LAW & ORDER: SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT: SEASON 26 (NBC)

Best New Series

FOREVER (2025) (Netflix)
PARADISE (2025) (Hulu)
A THOUSAND BLOWS (Hulu)
MR LOVERMAN (BritBox)
MISSING YOU (2025) (Netflix)
RUNNING POINT (Netflix)
POPPA'S HOUSE (CBS)
MID-CENTURY MODERN (Hulu)