The 10 Best Movie Performances of 2025

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Even though many of us think movies are the greatest art form, most movies aren’t perfect. That’s when talented actors save the day – a brilliant performance can make even a flawed film worthwhile. Actors are ultimately the main reason we connect with movies. Here’s a look at some of my favorite performances from 2025, featuring both leading and supporting roles. Long live actors!

Kirsten Dunst, Roofman

It’s common to feel sorry for someone who falls for a con artist, assuming they simply didn’t recognize the deception. But in the often-overlooked film Roofman, Kirsten Dunst delivers a nuanced portrayal of this experience. As Leigh, a woman who falls for Jeffrey (Channing Tatum), a thief posing as an ordinary man, Dunst beautifully conveys the complexities of loving someone who has lied. Her performance reveals that truly trusting someone—a trust that requires immense strength—can even overcome betrayal.

Delroy Lindo, Sinners

Courtney B. Vance consistently delivers excellent performances, but he often goes unnoticed during awards season—his understated skill seems to work against him. Hopefully, his remarkable role in Ryan Coogler’s Sinners will change that. He plays Delta Slim, a talented but struggling blues musician who teams up with twin brothers Smoke and Stack (both played by Michael B. Jordan) to open a club in Mississippi. Delta Slim isn’t just a gifted musician; he embodies a wealth of cultural history, serving as a mentor who shares important stories with the younger generation. He’s the emotional core of the film, providing a consistent and dependable presence.

Jennifer Lawrence, Die My Love

Jennifer Lawrence delivers a truly captivating and disturbing performance as Grace, a new mother struggling with postpartum depression. She doesn’t simply play the illness; she fully embodies Grace’s experience, allowing us to see the world through her increasingly distorted perspective. Lawrence’s performance is remarkably empathetic, deeply unsettling, and surprisingly, at times, humorous. She creates an immersive experience, drawing us into Grace’s reality – though unlike Grace, we have the freedom to look away.

Joel Edgerton, Train Dreams

Clint Bentley brilliantly adapted Denis Johnson’s story by casting Joel Edgerton as Robert Grainier, a hardworking man living a difficult life in early 20th-century Idaho. Grainier is a man of few words, but deeply loves his wife and daughter, even though his job as a logger often keeps him away from home. When a terrible event occurs, he’s left lost and burdened not only by his personal loss, but also by the harsh realities of the world around him. Edgerton perfectly portrays Grainier’s sadness, not as overwhelming darkness, but as a quiet, glowing sorrow. While the film is visually stunning, Edgerton’s performance is truly what makes it shine.

Zoey Deutch, Nouvelle Vague

What’s most impressive about Emma Deutch’s performance in Richard Linklater’s brilliant film about the making of Breathless isn’t her physical resemblance to Jean Seberg. Instead, she perfectly embodies Seberg’s blend of quiet thoughtfulness and spontaneous energy. In a thoroughly enjoyable movie, Deutch’s work is the perfect finishing touch.

Paul Mescal, Hamnet

In 1596, William Shakespeare and his wife, Anne Hathaway, tragically lost their 11-year-old son, Hamnet, to the bubonic plague. The film Hamnet, directed by Chloe Zhao and based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, explores the father’s grief and how it may have inspired one of Shakespeare’s most famous plays. While Jesse Buckley is receiving praise for her portrayal of the grieving mother, Paul Mescal’s performance as a fictionalized Shakespeare is particularly impactful. Mescal excels at conveying emotion through what he doesn’t express, creating a subtly powerful performance – understated like a fingerprint, yet deeply moving like the sound of the ocean.

Rebecca Hall, Peter Hujar’s Day

Ira Sachs’ film, Peter Hujar’s Day, features Parker Hall as Linda Rosenkrantz, a writer who spent a day in 1974 interviewing photographer Peter Hujar (Ben Whishaw). The interview focuses on everything Hujar did the previous day, with him doing most of the talking and Hall’s character primarily listening. She occasionally asks questions or gently challenges his stories, but mostly she provides a space for him to share. Hall transforms this simple act of listening into something profound, and while other performances this year were more attention-grabbing, few were as skillfully done.

Channing Tatum, Roofman

Channing Tatum is naturally likable, and sometimes that’s worked against him – actors who consistently play lighter roles aren’t always taken seriously. But in the film Roofman, where he plays real-life thief and escapee Jeffrey Winchester, Tatum tackles the difficult subject of modern masculinity. Jeffrey loses his first family while trying to provide for them through crime. When he has a chance to build a new one, he’s determined to protect it at all costs. Roofman is a comedy, but it’s surprisingly deep and emotionally resonant. Tatum’s performance is filled with subtle longing, making it almost painful to laugh at times.

Keke Palmer and SZA, One of Them Days

Comedy often gets overlooked during awards season, and as the saying goes, it’s harder to make people laugh than to make them cry. In this show, Palmer and SZA are a hilarious duo – roommates and best friends struggling to pay rent in Los Angeles. Their playful back-and-forth, full of witty arguments, is incredibly entertaining. They’re clearly having fun, and they want you to join in!

Ethan Hawke, Blue Moon

Before Richard Rodgers famously collaborated with Oscar Hammerstein, he wrote songs with Lorenz Hart in the early 1900s. Hart struggled with alcohol and was often unreliable, eventually leading Rodgers to work with someone else. However, as Ethan Hawke portrays him in the film Blue Moon, it’s clear why the songs they created together – including classics like “My Funny Valentine” and “Manhattan” – still resonate with our feelings about love and loss. Hawke depicts Hart as a charming but melancholy character, someone who could light up a room even while deeply hurting – and perhaps that pain was the source of his creativity. Hawke brilliantly captures this complex energy in his performance.

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2025-12-11 15:06