2025 WGA Award Nominees Include ‘A Real Pain,’ ‘Anora,’ ‘Wicked,’ and More
Despite having to postpone its announcement due to the turmoil currently being faced in Los Angeles as a result of the Southern California wildfires, the Writers Guild of America has now released its nominations for the 2025 WGA Awards.
The Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) and Writers Guild of America East (WGAE) have revealed nominations for outstanding achievement in screenwriting, television, new media, news, radio/audio, and promotional writing for work released in 2024.
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Screenplays for “A Real Pain,” “Anora,” “Challengers,” “A Complete Unknown,” “Wicked,” and “Nickel Boys” were all featured among the nominees. Surprise nods include Glen Powell and Richard Linklater’s “Hit Man,” Alex Garland’s “Civil War,” and Megan Park’s “My Old Ass,” boosting their chances as Oscar voting wraps up.
For those confused as to why some films aren’t represented amongst the nominations, “All We Imagine As Light,” “The Brutalist,” “A Different Man,” “Dídi,” “Hard Truths,” “His Three Daughters,” “Sing, Sing,” “I Saw the TV Glow,” “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” “September 5,” and “The Substance” were all deemed ineligible as they were either not written by guild members or under a WGA collective bargaining agreement. A full list of ineligible titles can be found here.
WGA members now have the chance to vote on these nominees until Monday, January 27. This now coincides with the closing of Oscar voting, as the Academy extended its voting period as a result of the wildfires. The last chance for members to cast their vote will be on Friday, January 17 before 5pm PT with Oscar nominations being announced Thursday, January 23 and the official ceremony still set to be held on Sunday, March 2 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood.
The 2025 WGA Awards will be held a few weeks ahead of the 97th Academy Awards, on Saturday, February 15 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles.
See the full list of nominations below.
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“A Real Pain”, Written by Jesse Eisenberg (Searchlight Pictures)
“Anora”, Written by Sean Baker (NEON)
“Challengers,” Written by Justin Kuritzkes (Amazon MGM Studios)
“Civil War,” Written by Alex Garland (A24)
“My Old Ass,” Written by Megan Park (Amazon MGM Studios)
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“A Complete Unknown,” Screenplay by James Mangold and Jay Cocks, Based on the Book “Dylan Goes Electric!” by Elijah Wald (Searchlight Pictures)
“Dune: Part 2,” Screenplay by Denis Villeneuve and Jon Spaihts, Based on the Novel “Dune” by Frank Herbert (Warner Bros. Pictures)
“Hit Man,” Screenplay by Richard Linklater & Glen Powell, Based on the Texas Monthly Article by Skip Hollandsworth (Netflix)
“Nickel Boys,” Screenplay by RaMell Ross & Joslyn Barnes, Based on the Book “The Nickel Boys” by Colson Whitehead (Orion Pictures/Amazon MGM Studios)
“Wicked,” Screenplay by Winnie Holzman and Winnie Holzman & Dana Fox, Based on the musical stage play with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and book by Winnie Holzman, From the Novel by Gregory Maguire (Universal Pictures)
DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
“Jim Henson: Idea Man,” Written by Mark Monroe (Imagine Documentaries)
“Kiss the Future,” Screenplay by Bill S. Carter, Story by Bill S. Carter and Nenad Cicin-Sain (Fifth Season)
“Martha,” Written by R.J. Cutler (Netflix)
“War Game,” Written by Tony Gerber & Jesse Moss (Submarine Deluxe)
TELEVISION, STREAMING, AND NEWS NOMINEES
DRAMA SERIES
“The Boys,” Written by Geoff Aull, Jessica Chou, Paul Grellong, Eric Kripke, Ellie Monahan, Judalina Neira, David Reed, Anslem Richardson (Prime Video)
“The Diplomat,” Written by Peter Ackerman, Eli Attie, Debora Cahn, Anna Hagen, Julianna Dudley Meagher, Peter Noah (Netflix)
“Fallout,” Written by Jake Bender, Karey Dornetto, Zach Dunn, Kieran Fitzgerald, Chaz Hawkins, Lisa Joy, Carson Mell, Jonathan Nolan, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Gursimran Sandhu, Graham Wagner (Prime Video)
“Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” Written by Carla Ching, Adamma Ebo, Adanne Ebo, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover,Schuyler Pappas, Francesca Sloane, Yvonne Hana Yi (Prime Video)
“Shōgun,” Written by Shannon Goss, Maegan Houang, Rachel Kondo, Matt Lambert, Justin Marks, Caillin Puente, Nigel Williams, Emily Yoshida (FX/Hulu)
COMEDY SERIES
“Abbott Elementary,” Written by Quinta Brunson, Ava Coleman, Riley Dufurrena, Justin Halpern, Joya McCrory, Chad Morton, Morgan Murphy, Brittani Nichols, Rebekka Pesqueira, Kate Peterman, Brian Rubenstein, Patrick Schumacker, Justin Tan, Jordan Temple, Garrett Werner (ABC)
“The Bear,” Written by Karen Joseph Adcock, Joanna Calo, Rene Gube, Will Guidara, Matty Matheson, Alex Russell, Catherine Schetina, Christopher Storer, Courtney Storer (FX/Hulu)
“Curb Your Enthusiasm,” Written by Larry David, Jon Hayman, Justin Hurwitz, Carol Leifer, Stephen Leff, Jeff Schaffer, Nathaniel Stein (HBO | Max)
“Hacks,” Written by Genevieve Aniello, Lucia Aniello, Guy Branum, Jessica Chaffin, Paul W. Downs, Jess Dweck, Ariel Karlin, Andrew Law, Carol Leifer, Carolyn Lipka, Joe Mande, Aisha Muharrar, Pat Regan, Samantha Riley, Jen Statsky (HBO | Max)
“What We Do in the Shadows,” Written by Jake Bender, Max Brockman, Zach Dunn, Shana Gohd, Amelia Haller, Sam Johnson, Jeremy Levick, Chris Marcil, William Meny, Sarah Naftalis, Marika Sawyer, Paul Simms, Rajat Suresh, Lauren Wells (FX/Hulu)
NEW SERIES
“English Teacher,” Written by Brian Jordan Alvarez, Wally Baram, Jake Bender, Emmy Blotnick, Zach Dunn, Dave King, Stephanie Koenig, Jonathan Krisel, Paul Simms, Samantha Shier (FX/Hulu)
“Fallout,” Written by Jake Bender, Karey Dornetto, Zach Dunn, Kieran Fitzgerald, Chaz Hawkins, Lisa Joy, Carson Mell, Jonathan Nolan, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Gursimran Sandhu, Graham Wagner (Prime Video)
“Mr. & Mrs. Smith,” Written by Carla Ching, Adamma Ebo, Adanne Ebo, Donald Glover, Stephen Glover, Schuyler Pappas, Francesca Sloane, Yvonne Hana Yi (Prime Video)
“Nobody Wants This,” Written by Barbie Adler, Jane Becker, Jack Burditt, Vali Chandrasekaran, Craig DiGregorio, Erin Foster, Lindsay Golder, Steven Levitan, Pat Regan, Niki Schwartz-Wright, Neel Shah, Noelle Valdivia, Ron Weiner, Ryann Werner (Netflix)
“Shōgun,” Written by Shannon Goss, Maegan Houang, Rachel Kondo, Matt Lambert, Justin Marks, Caillin Puente, Nigel Williams, Emily Yoshida (FX/Hulu)
LIMITED SERIES
“The Penguin,” Written by Vladimir Cvetko, Breannah Gibson, Erika L. Johnson, Lauren LeFranc, Corina Maritescu, Megan Martin, John McCutcheon, Shaye Ogbonna, Nick Towne, Noelle Valdivia, Kira Snyder (HBO | Max)
“Presumed Innocent,” Written by Miki Johnson, David E. Kelley, Sharr White (Apple TV+)
“Ripley,” Written by Steven Zaillian (Netflix)
“Say Nothing,” Written by Clare Barron, Joe Murtagh, Kirsten Sheridan, Joshua Zetumer (FX/Hulu)
“True Detective: Night Country,” Written by Katrina Albright, Alan Page Arriaga, Namsi Khan, Issa López, Chris Mundy, Wenonah Wilms (HBO | Max)
TV & STREAMING MOTION PICTURES
“The Great Lillian Hall,” Written by Elisabeth Seldes Annacone (HBO | Max)
“Prom Dates,” Written by D.J. Mausner (Hulu)
“Rebel Ridge,” Written by Jeremy Saulnier (Netflix)
“Terry McMillan Presents Forever,” Written by Bart Baker (Lifetime)
ANIMATION
“Bottle Episode” (“The Simpsons”), Written by Rob LaZebnik & Johnny LaZebnik (Fox)
“Cremains of the Day” (“The Simpsons”), Written by John Frink (Fox)
“Night of the Living Wage” (“The Simpsons”), Written by Cesar Mazariegos (Fox)
“Saving Favorite Drive-In” (“Bob’s Burgers”), Written by Katie Crown (Fox)
“The Tina Table: The Tables Have Tina-ed” (“Bob’s Burgers”), Written by Greg Thompson (Fox)
“Winter Is Born” (“Blood of Zeus”), Written by Charles Parlapanides & Vlas Parlapanides (Netflix)
EPISODIC DRAMA
“Anjin” (“Shōgun”), Written for Television by Rachel Kondo & Justin Marks (FX/Hulu)
“The Beginning” (“Fallout”), Written by Gursimran Sandhu (Prime Video)
“Fear of the End” (“Evil”), Written by Rockne S. O’Bannon & Nialla LeBouef (Paramount+)
“First Date” (“Mr. & Mrs. Smith”), Written by Francesca Sloane & Donald Glover (Prime Video)
“Olivia” (“Sugar”), Written by Mark Protosevich (Apple TV+)
“Pilot” (“Elsbeth”), Written by Robert King & Michelle King (CBS)
EPISODIC COMEDY
“AGG” (“Somebody Somewhere”), Written by Hannah Bos & Paul Thureen and Bridget Everett (HBO | Max)
“Bulletproof” (“Hacks”), Written by Lucia Aniello & Paul W. Downs & Jen Statsky (HBO | Max)
“Linda” (“English Teacher”), Written by Jake Bender & Zach Dunn (FX/Hulu)
“Napkins” (“The Bear”), Written by Catherine Schetina (FX/Hulu)
“Once Upon a Time in the West” (“Only Murders in the Building”), Written by John Hoffman & Joshua Allen Griffith (Hulu)
“Petiole” (“The Sticky”), Written by Brian Donovan & Ed Herro (Prime Video)
COMEDY/VARIETY SERIES – TALK OR SKETCH
“The Daily Show,” Head Writer Dan Amira, Senior Writers Lauren Sarver Means, Daniel Radosh, Writers David Angelo, Nicole Conlan, Devin Delliquanti, Zach DiLanzo, Jennifer Flanz, Jason Gilbert, Dina Hashem, Scott Hercman, Josh Johnson, David Kibuuka, Matt Koff, Joe Opio, Randall Otis, Zhubin Parang, Kat Radley, Lanee’ Sanders, Scott Sherman, Jon Stewart, Ashton Womack, Sophie Zucker (Comedy Central)
“John Mulaney Presents: Everybody’s in L.A.,” Writers Anna Drezen, David Ferguson, Fran Gillespie, Langston Kerman, Jeremy Levick, John Mulaney, Alex Scordelis, Rajat Suresh (Netflix)
“The Kelly Clarkson Show,” Head Writer Jordan Watland, Writers Kevin Hurley, Nik Robinson (Syndicated)
“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” Senior Writers Daniel O’Brien, Owen Parsons, Charlie Redd, Joanna Rothkopf, Seena Vali, Writers Johnathan Appel, Ali Barthwell, Tim Carvell, Liz Hynes, Ryan Ken, Mark Kramer, Sofia Manfredi, John Oliver, Taylor Kay Phillips, Chrissy Shackelford (HBO | Max)
“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” Head Writers Ariel Dumas, Jay Katsir, Writers Delmonte Bent, Michael Brumm, Aaron Cohen, Stephen T. Colbert, Paul Dinello, Glenn Eichler, Gabe Gronli, Barry Julien, Michael Cruz Kayne, Eliana Kwartler, Matt Lappin, Caroline Lazar, Pratima Mani, Felipe Torres Medina, Opus Moreschi, Carley Moseley, Asher Perlman, Michael Pielocik, Tom Purcell, Kate Sidley, Brian Stack, John Thibodeaux, Steve Waltien (CBS)
“Saturday Night Live,” Head Writers Alison Gates, Streeter Seidell, Kent Sublette, Writers Rosebud Baker, Dan Bulla, Megan Callahan-Shah, Steven Castillo, Michael Che, Mike DiCenzo, Alex English, Jimmy Fowlie, Martin Herlihy, John Higgins, Steve Higgins, Vannessa Jackson, Colin Jost, Erik Kenward, Ben Marshall, Dennis McNicholas, Lorne Michaels, Jake Nordwind, Ceara O’Sullivan, Josh Patten, Gary Richardson, Pete Schultz, KC Shornima, Will Stephen, Bryan Tucker, Asha Ward, Auguste White, Celeste Yim (NBC)
COMEDY/VARIETY SPECIALS
“The 77th Annual Tony Awards,” Written by Dave Boone (CBS)
“A Closer Look with Seth Meyers: Primetime Live Election Special,” Head Writer Alex Baze, Writing Supervised by Mike Scollins, Closer Look Writing Supervised by Sal Gentile, Written by Alex Baze, Bryan Donaldson, Sal Gentile, Matt Goldich, Allison Hord, Mike Scollins, Seth Meyers, Mike Shoemaker (NBC)
“Nikki Glaser: Someday You’ll Die,” Written by Nikki Glaser (HBO | Max)
“Ramy Youssef: More Feelings,” Written by Ramy Youssef (HBO | Max)
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