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Tv S Best New Shows Of 2025 Ranked Indiewire

Leo Migdal
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tv s best new shows of 2025 ranked indiewire

As the freshman comedy that won more Emmys than any single season of a comedy ever, it’s easy to take “The Studio” down a few pegs. Its satire isn’t that biting, its casting can cover up any oversights, and its insular appeal to Hollywood obsessives may not speak to the masses like other shows do. But it’s still really, really funny. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s Apple series is devoted to getting laughs and consistently snags them. Following recently promoted studio head Matt Remick (Rogen) as he suffers through the first year of his dream job, “The Studio” chooses a prime subject to be skewered in each half-hour episode. The throwback episodic structure matches the nostalgia-tinged vibes Matt and his cronies give off, while they work up a big presentation for CinemaCon, sweat through the Golden Globes, fight to preserve films shot on...

Perhaps “The Studio’s” greatest asset is its insider vantage point of an industry in decline. Making movies is harder than ever, and no one knows that better than Rogen & Co. With that backdrop framing Matt’s dilemma over creating timeless classics and keeping his company in the black, the series could pack an even greater punch going forward — and carve out new territory for... But hey, even if Hollywood’s produced a zillion satires of itself over the years, it’s still fun to feel like you’re in on the joke. —BT Wong Kar-Wai’s long-anticipated TV debut technically premiered two years ago, garnering massive ratings and awards recognition — in China.

Since 2025 marks its domestic debut (thanks to the Criterion Channel), I think it’s proper to treat it like a “new show,” even if its 30 episodes will all be out by the end... A melodrama rooted in commerce and ripped open by compassion, Wong’s “limited” series sees the legendary director toiling in familiar and foreign territory at once. Much like past heroes, the main character, Mr. Bao (Hu Ge), is a stoic, striking lead trapped by invisible forces and torn between passions. He’s tied to three distinct women and prefers the richest food with the right people over the priciest dishes at the chicest venues. Fans should appreciate these familiar models, but they may be shocked when the first few episodes cram in more dialogue than all of Wong’s previous films combined, while much of what happens — internally...

When it comes to excellent TV shows, 2025 was not short of them. Between daring new concepts, new shows by established creators, and stories that pushed your emotions, the year of television is one for the history books. With such a large pool of series to pull from, including Emmy darlings and underrated hits, it was a bit difficult to pick the greatest ten, but after some careful consideration, these ten series... From Emmy darlings like The Pitt and The Studio to underdog series like Overcompensating, these shows got us talking online. Some we binged in a single sitting, like Adolescence. Others, we waited patiently week after week for the next chapter of our story, like Task.

However you consumed your television this year, chances are these shows were part of your lineup. It's time to celebrate the best new shows of 2025! They say write what you know, and Benito Skinner took that to heart. Literally. Prime Video's Overcompensating is the breakout series of the year. Easily the most underrated series of the year, Skinner's story spoke to the millennials, making us all wish we could go back to college.

The series follows Benny (Skinner), a former high school football star and valedictorian from Idaho, as he begins college at Yates College. Trying to present a machismo front to hide himself as a gay man, Benny navigates new friendships and bold crushes in this smart new comedy. Not since Greek has college life been depicted so perfectly. The comedy is sharp, the situations are believable, and the characters are far too real. But there's more to this campus comedy. Skinner's story, based on his life, is still relevant.

It's an important narrative to present that’s done with precision, care, and warmth. Once known solely as a social media content creator, Skinner is a bona fide television star and scribe. Bash him all you want for looking like the most mature college freshman, it doesn't matter when the writing and performance are filled with passion and heart. Skinner and Mary Beth Barone have innate chemistry as siblings, but it's his on-screen pairing with Wally Baram as bestie Carmen Neil that comes out as the most touching and authentic. If you're looking for cameos, the first season is filled with them. Come for Charli XCX, stay for the exceptionally hilarious duo of Connie Britton and Kyle McLaughlin.

With so many shows to choose from, finding a show worthy of a rewatch is rare. Fortunately for Overcompensating, it's a show that deserves to be seen over and over again as you watch along with your friends. Visibility and representation are important in the media, and that was never more evident than in Abdullah Saeed's brilliant comedy Deli Boys. The Hulu series two spoiled Pakistani-American brothers, hardworking Mir (Asif Ali) and party animal Raj Dar (Saagar Shaikh), whose lives are upended when they must take over their deceased father's secret cocaine-smuggling operation, Dark... A witty, unabashedly unafraid crime caper, Deli Boys is a fast-paced comedy with cultural relevance. IndieWire: The 10 Best TV Series of 2025

[see also 2024 • 2022 • 2010s • 2018 • 2017 • 2016] Year-end lists are fingerprints; aggregate statistics are smudges. Therefore, I make no tallies. Look, 2025 may just be a little more than half over, but it’s already been a great year of television for both new and returning shows. Severance returned after a three-year hiatus and did not disappoint. Hacks continues to show that comedies can be comedic.

HBO hits like The Gilded Age and The White Lotus returned with new seasons that delighted viewers. And broadcast proved that it can still hold its own against cable and streaming with some solid series. HBO Max delivered a solid hit with the debut of the new medical drama The Pitt, while Paradise reunited Sterling K. Brown and Dan Fogelman for a show very different from This Is Us. And Apple TV+ offered a look inside Hollywood with The Studio. Below, TV Insider’s staff has gathered to share our picks for the Best Shows of 2025 so far (taking into account those that have aired through the first week of August).

Let us know what makes your list in the comments section below. If you want to know your favorite reality TV stars’ favorite reality TV show, look no further than Love on the Spectrum U.S.. Featuring vibrant series newbies, Madison Marilla and Pari Kim, alongside returning favorites Abbey Romeo, Tanner Smith, Connor Tomlinson, Dani Bowman, James Jones, and more, Season 3 takes the Netflix docuseries to the next level,... In a sea of gamified dating competitions, Cian O’Cleary’s Love on the Spectrum U.S. rises above as romance reality TV at its best. — Rebecca Perlmutter

After an eight-year hiatus from TV, Too Much is a return to form for Girls creator Lena Dunham. The director pulls from her own life experiences to create a different kind of rom-com. There’s plenty of clichés, tropes, and bits of optimism, but it also bears a certain realism and insightfulness that’s rare for the genre. At the heart of it is Megan Stalter’s Jessica, who flits between moments of exaggerated comedy and gut-punching heartbreak. It may not be the most revelatory show of the year, but Stalter’s performance and Dunham’s clever-as-ever writing make for a love story that we won’t forget any time soon. — Morgan Pryor

The latest: Stranger Things: Season 5, Landman: Season 2, The Mighty Nein: Season 1 , A Man on The Inside: Season 2, I Love LA, Nobody Wants This, Down Cemetery Road, It: Welcome to... Welcome to our guide of the Best TV Shows of 2025, featuring every Certified Fresh series as they come in week by week! (If you were looking for the previous edition to this list featuring the best of 2024, see its new home as every 2024 Certified Fresh series.) Find Something Fresh! Discover What to Watch, Read Reviews, Leave Ratings and Build Watchlists. Download the Rotten Tomatoes App.

25 Most Popular TV Shows Right Now: What to Watch on Streaming 30 Most Popular Movies Right Now: What to Watch In Theaters and Streaming What a year it’s been for television. The small screen has dominated the pop-culture conversation in 2025, with watercooler shows like The Pitt, Severance, and Adolescence proving that people still sat down together to watch the tube. Meanwhile, genre shows dominated, with sci-fi TV like Pluribus, Andor, and Alien: Earth proving to be the escape we need in an increasingly dystopian reality. But what makes a TV show great in 2025?

Is it its willingness to push the boundaries that television usually lays down? Is it sharp and provocative messaging that draws parallels to our current reality? Or is it simply the amount of alien goop and human gore that it’s willing to throw at its audience? Maybe it’s all of the above. After much careful deliberation and a very democratic polling process, Inverse has chosen its top 25 TV shows of the year. Here are Inverse’s top TV picks of 2025.

Mark my words: “Wilderness reform schools” will become the next big thing in horror, and Mae Martin’s Netflix series just confirmed that with a twisting tale of small-town cults, the “wayward teen” industry, and... Add a spine-tingling performance by Toni Collette on top of that, and you’ve got a great weekend watch. — Dais Johnston Faster, bloodier, and funnier than Season 1, Twisted Metal Season 2 also managed to tell a tender family story. Come for requisite vehicular mayhem. Stay for Anthony Mackie reading vintage Babysitter’s Club paperbacks.

— Ryan Britt In real life, 2025 has been a chaotic year. We've navigated the beginning of a divisive presidential term, the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, witnessed a pope from Chicago get elected, a pop star in space, natural disasters and history-making events almost daily. In the fictional worlds that fill our TV screens when we look for just a little distraction at the end of our days, things haven't been particularly calm, either. But in a good way.

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