The American Film Institute has unveiled its selections for the 2025 AFI Awards, recognizing ten films and ten television programs that the organization deems the year’s most significant artistic achievements. One additional project, It Was Just an Accident, received the annual Special Award, given to works outside AFI’s standard eligibility.
This year’s film lineup spans major studio releases, acclaimed auteurs, and international literary adaptations, with titles including Avatar: Fire and Ash, Bugonia, Frankenstein, Hamnet, Jay Kelly, Marty Supreme, One Battle After Another, Sinners, Train Dreams, and Wicked: For Good.
On the television side, the honorees reflect a broad mix of prestige drama, genre storytelling, and serialized world-building. The 2025 selections include Adolescence, Andor, Death by Lightning, The Diplomat, The Lowdown, The Pitt, Pluribus, Severance, The Studio, and Task.
AFI President and CEO Bob Gazzale emphasized the awards’ long-standing focus on celebrating collective achievement rather than competition. Honorees will be recognized at AFI’s annual luncheon on January 9, 2026, a gathering known for bringing filmmakers and television creators together in an informal, industry-wide celebration of the year’s work.
The AFI Awards have become a consistent bellwether for awards-season momentum, often overlapping significantly with later Oscar and Emmy nominations.
