Nerdist's favorite TV and film moments of 2025

About halfway through the first episode of IT: Welcome to Derry, you think you know what you’re in for. It’s going to be a repeat of the original IT, only 27 years earlier, with different kids. By the middle of the pilot episode, we are introduced to our new (original?) Loser’s Club, seeking to uncover the truth about their missing friend. But by the end of the episode, when Pennywise in its more primordial form appears, he murders three of the kids in brutal fashion in an orgy of chaos and gore, inside of a movie theater. Afterward, the survivors are left screaming and literally holding body parts of dead friends.

The end of episode one of Welcome to Derry shows that the series creators are not messing around. It may be television, but it’s still a horror show in every way. In a climate where kid deaths in movies have become almost non-existent, gutting horror films of tension, Welcome to Derry had the gumption to people a very memorable bait and switch on us. So RIP, new/old Loser’s Club, your deaths had us shook, creating one of the most memorable endings for a TV show’s first episode in recent memory. -Eric Diaz

Joel’s Therapy Session With Gail in The Last of Us Season 2

The great Catherine O’Hara joined The Last of Us in season two as Gail Lynden and instantly became one of the show’s best characters. And we do mean instantly. Her very first scene was one of 2025’s best, as an inebriated Gail turned Joel’s therapy session into a confrontation. The beautifully written sequence was powerful, strangely funny, and incredibly emotional. It also added mystery and intrigue while also establishing the current, strained relationship between Joel and Ellie.

But what made a well-written moment a true standout were the performances of both O’Hara and Pedro Pascal. This quiet scene, which is nothing more than two people simply talking, featured two of the best actors in the world at their absolute best. -Mikey Walsh

Daniel Molloy Reads From His Book, Interview with the Vampire, on Talamasca: The Secret Order

Some best moments of TV and movies in a year are personal. And this one was exactly that. With the long gaps between seasons these days, you’re often forced to go a long time without your favorite characters. So when you get to see them again by surprise on an off year, it’s always a welcome treat. Daniel Molloy is one of my favorite characters on Interview with the Vampire (and not to mention as a proud Armand apologist, loving Interview with the Vampire’s Daniel Molloy is part and parcel of the pact I made). And Daniel’s appearance in the Talamasca series, the latest in the Immortal Universe, was delightfully rich and nuanced.

The last time we saw Daniel Molloy on Interview with the Vampire season two’s finale, he seemed to be rocking the dark gift with aplomb. But on Talamasca, he seemed lost, afraid, and deeply conflicted, while still being his usual grumpy, snarky, beloved self. It was as short scene but a ton for fans to sink their teeth into. For me, it was like a sip of blood in the…blood desert. Ehm. You feel me. The wonderful meta-fun of Daniel Molloy reading from his own book Interview with the Vampire also really tickled me. (As did the in-world/in our world marketing where Eric Bogosian as Daniel was cancelled and then gave a Notes app apology.)

All this to say, I can’t wait for The Vampire Lestat in 2026, but in the meantime, I am happy to let Talamasca and its Interview with the Vampire cameos carry my best TV moment crown. -Ro Rusak

Clark’s Apartment Scene With Lois in Superman

Superman needed to prove a lot of things for audiences to fully buy in to a brand new (but not) cinematic universe. Chief among them for me wasn’t whether or not the action would be good or if the many DC Comics characters appeared the way comic fans wanted. No, what I was hoping for most was just that Superman, himself, felt like Superman. The moment in the movie that really solidified that was the scene in Clark’s apartment, after all the stuff about his Kryptonian parents comes to light.

He talks to Lois while the Justice Gang fights a cosmic whatever out the window. His biggest concern isn’t his reputation or even what all of this means for his own personal history. It’s just that Krypto has been taken. Lois is flabbergasted. “It’s a dog!” she cries. Superman, glumly, says “Yeah. And he’s not even a very good one. But he’s out there alone, and probably scared.” Superman isn’t the powers or the suit or the god allegory. He’s a guy who cares about others and can actually do something about it. -Kyle Anderson

Benicio del Toro’s “A Few Small Beers” in One Battle After Another

“I’ve had a few.”

“A few what?”

“A few small beers.”

Put. It. On. My. Gravestone. Benicio del Toro’s “a few small beers” is as good a line delivery as anyone has ever had in any movie ever. His performance as Sensei Sergio, in what might very well be next year’s Best Picture winner, was a masterclass in understatement even before that moment. The Sensei personified cool, calm, and collected in the middle of total chaos. The way he deftly delayed the cops with a little lie in his final moment on screen was an all-time capper to an all-time memorable performance, one I haven’t stopped thinking about since I left the theater. -Mikey Walsh

The Final Juke Joint Showdown in Sinners

Yes, I am a mom who doesn’t want vampires to turn my offspring into the undead. No, I still do not agree with Grace going rogue in Sinners and taking it upon herself to invite Remmick and company into the juke joint. (She didn’t even help because she died pretty much instantly.) But, the result of her impulsive decision led to one of the most frenetic, gory, and absolutely dazzling displays of horror to ever hit the big screen. The rapid succession of demises, the heartbreak on Smoke’s face from losing Annie, Delta Slim’s sacrifice, and Sammie’s standoff against Remmick are all cinematic perfection. -Tai Gooden

That Wild Aunt Gladys Chase Scene in Weapons

One movie that took the world by storm this summer is Zach Cregger’s Weapons. The comedic horror flick follows the experiences of residents in a small town where, one night, a group of kids mysteriously vanishes into the night. All at the same time, and all from the same classroom. As it turns out, witchy woo-woo is at play. The wildly popular film introduces us to one of the most iconic villains of modern-day horror, Aunt Gladys (whom we saw plenty of this Halloween). Weapons is filled with memorable moments, but none are quite as satisfying as the ending when a horde of screaming children chase Gladys across town for nearly two minutes straight.

Gladys, robe and all, does her best to evade the angry children, but they are persistent. The chase takes them in and out of houses, neighbors terrified as they watch the kids crash through windows and walls just to get to her. The whole thing is actually kind of funny, more than scary. It’s almost hard not to crack a grin as we watch Gladys get what’s coming to her. And get it, she does. The scene climbs the ranks as one of the most iconic endings in recent horror, and thus is well deserving of a spot on this list. -Sarah Campbell

The Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ Zippy Space Scene 

At this point, we’ve seen roughly 400,000 superhero action sequences. I was certain nothing I could see in 2025 would blow me away the way they did in 2008. But watching The Fantastic Four: First Steps changed that. The movie features one of the most exciting action sequences I’ve seen in a really long time. In it, our heroes, after having their first meeting with Galactus in deep space, attempt to flee as Silver Surfer Shalla-Bal gives chase.

While on their ship, Sue Storm goes into labor and, in zero gravity, while going through a black hole, Reed and Johnny have to try to deliver a baby. The scene goes incredibly hard and is by far the best sequence in the movie. And while it wasn’t my favorite comic book movie of the year, it does easily take the spot for my favorite superhero action of the year. -Kyle Anderson

Olivia Holt’s Declaration to Saint Valentine That “Your Day Sucks” in Heart Eyes 

I’ll admit that Heart Eyes, a horror comedy film starring Olivia Holt and Mason Gooding, fell under my radar back in February. But, a couple of months after its release, I gave it a whirl while on an airplane and, to my delight, I LOVED this movie. Far too often, we forget that a film can just be a good time. Heart Eyes boasts a pretty unique premise that marries romcom with horror. Ally is a failing pitch designer who must work with Jay, a successful and handsome consulting adviser, to fix a terrible ad she crafted. -Tai Gooden

Unfortunately, their decision to meet over dinner on Valentine’s Day attracts the attention of the Heart Eyes Killer, who wants to kill couples on February 14. After a night of much terror, Ally stands in a chapel covered in blood and guts. She looks at a statue of Saint Valentine and declares that his day sucks. Holt’s humorously deadpan delivery and exhausted expression sell the moment.