With the top supporting performances of 2025 in the books (you can check out my supporting actor picks [HERE]), today we began the task of looking back at the very best lead performances from last year. We’ll start with lead actress – a category full of incredible and worthy considerations. With so many deserving leading ladies to choose from, narrowing this particular category down to just five choices proved hard. But here they are, along with a few honorable mentions as well.

Honorable Mentions: Emily Bett Rickards (“Queen of the Ring”), June Squibb (“Eleanor the Great”), Chase Infiniti (“One Battle After Another”), Emma Stone (“Bugonia”), Julia Roberts (“After the Hunt”), Sydney Sweeney (“Christy”), Elizabeth Olsen (“Eternity”), Cate Blanchett (“Black Bag”), Diane Lane (“Anniversary”), Vera Farmiga (“The Conjuring: Last Rites”), Ana de Armas (“Ballerina”), Dale Dickey (“The G”), Mia Threapleton (“The Phoenician Scheme”),

#5 – Zoe Saldaña (“Avatar: Fire and Ash”)

Zoe Saldaña follows up her Academy Award winning performance in “Emilia Perez” by returning to a world she knows well. The Avatar films are true technical achievements that are rarely noted for their performances. That’s a shame considering the level of work involved. Saldaña is a shining example. Combining traditional acting with state-of-the-art motion capture, she pours her soul into her latest turn as Neytiri, resulting in one of the best performances of her career.

#4 – Renate Reinsve (“Sentimental Value”)

Norwegian actress Renate Reinsve burst onto the global scene with 2021’s “The Worst Person in the World”. Now she has re-teamed with director Joachim Trier in “Sentimental Value” and once again grabbed the world’s attention. Reinsve’s portrayal of a young woman carrying the weight of her painful childhood is deeply affecting. It’s full of raw emotion, repression, and vulnerability. Reinsve’s authenticity is breathtaking and she’s an essential piece in this superb movie.

#3 – Paula Beer (“Stella. A Life.”)

Perhaps known best for her three terrific collaborations with director Christian Petzold, Paula Beer takes on an especially challenging role in “Stella. A Life.”. Over the course of this compelling Holocaust drama, Beer’s character significantly and tragically transforms, beguiling us with her vivacity and charm until the allure turns to repulsion. Beer both gains our empathy and turns our stomachs via an astonishing performance that’s not to be missed.

#2 – Kate Hudson (“Song Sung Blue”)

Among the bigger surprises of 2025 was Craig Brewer’s rousing and heartfelt “Song Sung Blue”. Kate Hudson was a big reason why. Her crackling chemistry with co-star Hugh Jackman energizes this biographical musical drama that celebrates the songs of Neil Diamond. But it’s the true story’s darker turn that sees Hudson’s performance rise to another level. Whether she’s singing loud or losing herself to crippling depression, Hudson truly shines.

#1 – Jessie Buckley (“Hamnet”)

Of the many great lead performances in 2025, none were as devastating as Jessie Buckley’s in “Hamnet”. In portraying Shakespeare’s wife Agnes, Buckley covers a broad array of emotions as she takes her character from the highs of maternal joy to the depths of agonizing grief. At times she comes across as a vibrant force of nature. Other times she seems crushed by the overwhelming weight of loss. It’s all conveyed through an unflinching realism that helps make this a defining performance in Buckley’s career.

That wraps up the lead actress category for 2025. Do you agree or disagree with my picks? Let me know in the comments below. And check back tomorrow as we finish up with the lead actors.