The Best of 2025: Movies, TV, Music, and the Stuff That Actually Mattered

Every year, we all say the same thing:

“This year felt… weird.”

And every year, we’re right.

2025 was one of those years where pop culture didn’t just entertain us - it tested us, comforted us, confused us, and occasionally made us stare at the screen like, “Wait… are we back?”

This was the year of bold swings, unexpected comebacks, genre mashups that somehow worked, and a few very expensive flops that will absolutely become “misunderstood cult classics” on TikTok by 2032. It was also a year where streaming finally stopped pretending everything was prestige, horror kept eating better than it has in years, and music felt - dare I say it - alive again.

So instead of one massive, exhausting mega-list that nobody actually finishes, this is your Best of 2025 hub:

A big-picture look at the movies, TV, and music that defined the year and why it all felt like a turning point.

Let’s get into it.

2025 Was the Year Pop Culture Got Its Mojo Back

After a few years of post-pandemic content whiplash - delays, algorithm soup, IP overload - 2025 finally felt like a year where creators stopped chasing trends and started taking risks again.

Movies weren’t afraid to be theatrical.

TV remembered how to tell complete stories.

Music stopped sounding like it was designed by committee.

Not everything worked (oh, it did not), but the stuff that landed?

It really landed.

And across every medium, a few themes kept popping up:

• Genre confidence – Horror leaned into horror. Drama embraced melodrama. Comedy actually told jokes again.

• Shorter, tighter storytelling – Fewer bloated runtimes. Less “this could’ve been an email.”

• Audiences rewarding originality – Even when it wasn’t perfect.

Which brings us to the highlights…

The Best Movies of 2025 (A Surprisingly Strong Year)

If you checked out of theatrical releases for a bit, 2025 was the year that gently grabbed your shoulders and said, “No, really - come back. We made some good ones.”

This was a year where original films actually broke through, franchises either figured themselves out or finally admitted they were tired, and directors were allowed to have a point of view again.

Some films reminded us why going to the theater still matters.

Others proved that streaming premieres don’t have to feel disposable.

👉 Read the full breakdown here: Best Movies of 2025

(Where I rank, analyze, and occasionally yell lovingly at the films that earned it.)

 Horror Didn’t Just Win 2025 - It Dominated

At this point, horror isn’t “having a moment.”

Horror is the moment.

2025 delivered a horror lineup that was scary, strange, emotionally brutal, and—most importantly - confident. Whether it was elevated, feral, indie, studio, supernatural, or “what did I just watch and why do I kind of love it,” the genre kept proving it’s where filmmakers go when they actually want to say something.

It was also a year where horror audiences showed up - opening weekends, word of mouth, and late-night group chats lighting up with “Have you seen this yet?”

👉 Dive deeper here: Best Horror Movies of 2025

TV in 2025 Remembered How to Be TV

For the first time in a while, television stopped feeling like an endless content conveyor belt and started feeling… curated.

Limited series told complete stories.

Returning shows stuck the landing (or at least didn’t crash the plane).

New series actually earned a second season instead of being quietly banished to the algorithmic shadow realm.

And maybe most refreshing of all?

Not everything needed to be eight episodes of existential dread.

👉 Full list and commentary here: Best TV Shows & Series of 2025

Music in 2025 Was Messy, Emotional and Fantastic

If 2024 felt safe, 2025 felt personal.

Albums this year leaned into vulnerability, experimentation, nostalgia, reinvention, and occasionally chaos. Pop stars took risks. Legacy artists reminded us why they’re still here. New voices broke through without immediately being flattened into a playlist algorithm.

And the songs?

Oh, the songs stuck.

These were tracks you played on repeat, screamed in the car, used to soundtrack your entire personality for three weeks and then somehow came back to again months later.

👉 Explore the year in sound:

• Best Albums of 2025

• Best Songs of 2025

Why 2025 Will Be a Year We Actually Remember

Not every year in pop culture sticks. Some blur together. Some are just placeholders.

But 2025 won’t be one of those.

This was a year defined by intentional storytelling, creative risk, and audiences finally saying, “No, actually - we want things that feel made by humans.”

And while not everything on these lists will age perfectly (nothing ever does), the work that mattered in 2025 mattered because it tried.

Which honestly?

That’s the best thing pop culture can do.

Next Up:

• 🎬 Best Movies of 2025

• 🔪 Best Horror Movies of 2025

• 📺 Best TV Shows & Series of 2025

• 💿 Best Albums of 2025

• 🎧 Best Songs of 2025

Bookmark this. Argue with me politely.

And let’s do it all again next year.