It List guide to 2025 awards season: ‘Wicked,’ ‘Anora’ and more must-see movies

Awards season is finally upon us. As we prepare for ceremonies like the Golden Globes and the Oscars, it’s time to catch up on the acclaimed films that will likely be nominated.

Though there are many accolades to be won, Yahoo Entertainment narrowed down a list of the films that have earned praise for acting, directing and overall production. With limited distribution and late theatrical releases, some of them might be a bit harder to get your hands (and eyeballs) on than others.

We’ll keep you updated as nominations are announced, but here’s what you need to see to be in the loop for awards season.

Anora

• How to watch: Anora is in theaters now.

• What to know: A Brooklyn, N.Y., sex worker falls for a Russian oligarch who offers her a chance at a new life, but his family tries to intervene.

• Stars: Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karren Karagulian

• Genre: Romantic comedy drama

• Runtime: 2 hours, 19 minutes

---

The Brutalist

• How to watch: The Brutalist is in theaters Dec. 20.

• What to know: The film follows a Jewish architect and Holocaust survivor who flees Hungary and emigrates to the United States in search of the American Dream.

• Stars: Adrien Brody, Guy Pearce, Felicity Jones, Joe Alwyn

• Genre: Epic historical drama

• Rating: Not yet rated

• Runtime: 3 hours, 35 minutes

---

Conclave

• How to watch: Conclave is now playing in theaters and is available on PVOD. It starts streaming on Peacock Dec. 13.

• What to know: As a group of cardinals assemble at the Vatican to select a new pope, scandals and gossip create factions and challenge their faith and relationships.

• Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Isabella Rossellini

• Genre: Mystery thriller

• Rating: PG

• Runtime: 2 hours

---

Dune: Part Two

• How to watch: Dune: Part Two is now streaming on Max.

• What to know: Paul Atreides works with the Fremen on the desert planet of Arrakis to prevent a doomed future that only he can see.

• Stars: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Javier Bardem

• Genre: Science fiction epic

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 2 hours, 46 minutes

---

Emilia Pérez

• How to watch: Emilia Pérez is now streaming on Netflix.

• What to know: A lawyer helps a cartel leader fake her death and undergo gender confirmation surgeries. Over the years, a higher calling and family entanglements complicate the plan.

• Stars: Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez

• Genre: Musical crime comedy

• Runtime: 2 hours, 10 minutes

---

Wicked

• How to watch: Wicked is in theaters now.

• What to know: A magical woman who is mistreated all her life for having green skin forms an unlikely bond with a popular student.

• Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum

• Genre: Musical fantasy

• Rating: PG

• Runtime: 2 hours, 40 minutes

---

A Real Pain

• How to watch: A Real Pain is in theaters now.

• What to know: Two very different cousins travel to Poland to visit the home of their Jewish grandmother and connect with their heritage.

• Stars: Jesse Eisenberg, Kieran Culkin, Will Sharpe, Jennifer Grey

• Genre: Comedy drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 30 minutes

---

Nickel Boys

• How to watch: Nickel Boys is in select theaters Dec. 13.

• What to know: An innocent mistake shatters a Black teenager’s dreams of attending college and lands him at Nickel Academy, an abusive and segregated reformatory, where he forms a friendship with a more pessimistic student.

• Stars: Ethan Herisse, Brandon Wilson, Daveed Diggs, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor

• Genre: Historical drama

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 2 hours, 20 minutes

---

The Room Next Door

• How to watch: The Room Next Door is in select theaters Dec. 20.

• What to know: Two former co-workers reunite after years apart under unusual circumstances.

• Stars: Tilda Swinton, Julianne Moore, John Turturro

• Genre: Drama

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 1 hour, 47 minutes

---

Blitz

• How to watch: Blitz is now streaming on Apple TV+.

• What to know: After being sent away from London amid a threat of bombings during World War II, a young boy defiantly decides to go on an adventure to reunite with his mother.

• Stars: Saoirse Ronan, Elliot Heffernan, Harris Dickinson

• Genre: Historical war drama

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 2 hours

---

A Complete Unknown

• How to watch: A Complete Unknown is in theaters Dec. 25.

• What to know: The film charts the rise of a young Bob Dylan as he skyrockets to fame and changes the course of American music.

• Stars: Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, Monica Barbaro

• Genre: Biographical drama

• Runtime: 2 hours, 21 minutes

---

Sing Sing

• How to watch: Sing Sing returns to theaters Jan. 17.

• What to know: A man imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit finds purpose acting in a theater group with other incarcerated men.

• Stars: Colman Domingo, Paul Raci, Clarence Maclin

• Genre: Drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 47 minutes

---

September 5

• How to watch: September 5 is in select theaters Dec. 13 and in wide release Jan. 17.

• What to know: Based on a true story, the film follows an American sports broadcasting crew that finds itself thrust into a hostage crisis involving Israeli athletes during the 1972 Munich Olympics.

• Stars: Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, Leonie Benesch

• Genre: Historical drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 31 minutes

---

Nosferatu

• How to watch: Nosferatu is in theaters Dec. 25.

• What to know: An ancient vampire stalks a newly married woman and terror descends on a town in 19th century Germany.

• Stars: Bill Skarsgård, Nicholas Hoult, Lily-Rose Depp, Willem Dafoe

• Genre: Gothic supernatural horror

• Runtime: 2 hours, 12 minutes

---

Inside Out 2

• How to watch: Inside Out 2 is streaming on Disney+.

• What to know: A teenager navigates complex new emotions like Anxiety as she starts high school, causing her old emotions to wonder if they’ll be replaced.

• Stars: Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Maya Hawke

• Genre: Animated coming-of-age

• Rating: PG

• Runtime: 1 hour, 36 minutes

---

I’m Still Here

I’m Still Here. (Sony Pictures Classics)

• How to watch: I’m Still Here is in select theaters Jan. 17.

• What to know: The Brazilian film follows a woman and her five children after their lives change dramatically when her politician husband disappears.

• Stars: Fernanda Torres, Fernanda Montenegro, Selton Mello

• Genre: Political biographical drama

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 2 hours, 17 minutes

---

The Wild Robot

• How to watch: The Wild Robot is available on PVOD.

• What to know: A robot adapts to its new surroundings on an island after being shipwrecked, forming bonds with native animals.

• Stars: Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Bill Nighy

• Genre: Animated science fiction adventure

• Rating: PG

• Runtime: 1 hour, 42 minutes

---

Saturday Night

• How to watch: Saturday Night is available on PVOD.

• What to know: The film charts the final moments leading up to the first broadcast of Saturday Night Live in 1975, including the chaos and interpersonal tension involving executives, producer Lorne Michaels and a troupe of young comedians.

• Stars: Gabriel LaBelle, Rachel Sennott, Cory Michael Smith, Dylan O’Brien

• Genre: Biographical comedy-drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 49 minutes

---

The Piano Lesson

• How to watch: The Piano Lesson is now streaming on Netflix.

• What to know: A family grapples with the legacy and value of their heirloom piano in this film adapted from an August Wilson play.

• Stars: John David Washington, Ray Fisher, Samuel L. Jackson, Danielle Deadwyler

• Genre: Drama

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 2 hours, 5 minutes

---

Gladiator II

• How to watch: Gladiator II is in theaters now.

• What to know: An enslaved man becomes a gladiator and seeks revenge on the general responsible for his wife’s death.

• Stars: Paul Mescal, Pedro Pascal, Connie Nielsen, Denzel Washington

• Genre: Epic historical action

• Runtime: 2 hours, 28 minutes

---

Challengers

• How to watch: Challengers is now streaming on Prime Video.

• What to know: A tennis player forced to give up the game after an injury transforms her husband into a champion. Tensions rise when his career hits a low point and they face off with a former friend and flame.

• Stars: Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist

• Genre: Romantic sports drama

• Runtime: 2 hours, 11 minutes

---

The Seed of the Sacred Fig

• How to watch: The Seed of the Sacred Fig is in select theaters.

• What to know: A judge in Iran grapples with paranoia as political protests increase and his gun disappears, leading to tension within his family.

• Stars: Soheila Golestani, Misagh Zareh, Mahsa Rostami, Setareh Maleki

• Genre: Political thriller drama

• Rating: PG-13

• Runtime: 2 hours, 47 minutes

---

Babygirl

• How to watch: Babygirl is in theaters Dec. 25.

• What to know: A high-powered CEO has an affair with a young intern, calling into question the balance of power dynamics and desire.

• Stars: Nicole Kidman, Harris Dickinson, Sophie Wilde, Antonio Banderas

• Genre: Erotic thriller

• Runtime: 1 hour, 54 minutes

---

Hard Truths

• How to watch: Hard Truths is in select theaters Dec. 6 and in theaters nationwide on Jan. 10.

• What to know: A depressed woman struggles with anger toward her family and strangers, isolating her from her cheerful yet sympathetic sister.

• Stars: Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Michele Austin

• Genre: Drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 37 minutes

---

Maria

• How to watch: Maria starts streaming on Netflix Dec. 11.

• What to know: Greek opera legend Maria Callas looks back on her life in her final days as her iconic voice fades and she deals with drug-induced hallucinations.

• Stars: Angelina Jolie, Pierfrancesco Favino, Alba Rohrwacher, Kodi Smit-McPhee

• Genre: Biographical psychological drama

• Runtime: 2 hours, 3 minutes

---

The Substance

• How to watch: The Substance is now streaming on Mubi.

• What to know: After facing a devastating blow to her career on her 50th birthday, a performer tries a “substance” to obtain an enhanced version of herself.

• Stars: Demi Moore, Margaret Qualley, Dennis Quaid

• Genre: Satirical horror

• Runtime: 2 hours, 20 minutes

---

Queer

• How to watch: Queer is in select theaters now.

• What to know: Based on a William S. Burroughs novel, the film follows a man who flees the U.S. for Mexico after a drug bust and obsessively chases after a younger man.

• Stars: Daniel Craig, Drew Starkey, Omar Apollo, Lesley Manville

• Genre: Period romantic drama

• Runtime: 2 hours, 15 minutes

---

His Three Daughters

• How to watch: His Three Daughters is now streaming on Netflix.

• What to know: Estranged sisters come back together to take care of their father on his deathbed.

• Stars: Carrie Coon, Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen

• Genre: Drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 41 minutes

---

All We Imagine as Light

• How to watch: All We Imagine as Light is in select theaters now.

• What to know: Two nurses who live together in working-class Mumbai contend with a challenging housing situation and complicated relationships.

• Stars: Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam

• Genre: Drama

• Rating: Not rated

• Runtime: 2 hours, 3 minutes

---

A Different Man

• How to watch: A Different Man is available on PVOD.

• What to know: An actor with a facial difference undergoes a life-changing procedure but finds that he’s still not happy with himself as he becomes obsessed with a new acquaintance.

• Stars: Sebastian Stan, Renate Reinsve, Adam Pearson

• Genre: Black comedy psychological thriller

• Runtime: 1 hour, 52 minutes

---

The Last Showgirl

• How to watch: The Last Showgirl is in theaters Jan. 10.

• What to know: When her show announces its closure after 30 years, a performer must contend with her future.

• Stars: Pamela Anderson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brenda Song, Kiernan Shipka

• Genre: Drama

• Runtime: 1 hour, 25 minutes