Good things that got us through 2025

Was 2025 a bad year? The last 12 months brought mass federal job layoffs, destructive wildfires and natural disasters and AI-enabled deception. There were many shocking deaths, from Pope Francis and Charlie Kirk to Gene Hackman and Rob Reiner. Not to mention the government shutdown, economic unease and global instability.

But enough with the bad stuff. You didn’t click on this story for that. You’re here for the good stuff, which we found in abundance through a pop culture lens. That’s the power of entertainment – to inspire us, lift us up and make us feel seen when we need it the most. 

From stars’ historic achievements to their outrageous shenanigans – and everything in between – here are the things that brought joy to USA TODAY’s entertainment staff in 2025, in no particular order.

1. Charli XCX bringing the spirit of “Brat Summer” to the Grammy Awards with her electric performance.
2. Watching Beyoncé watch her daughters Blue Ivy and Rumi with her on stage during the opening show of her Cowboy Carter tour with pride and tenderness. It was a fourth-wall-breaking reminder that despite her goddess stature in music, Bey most treasures being a mom.
3. David Corenswet’s new Man of Steel was the best dog dad putting off saving the world to save pooch Krypto in “Superman”: “He’s out there alone, and probably scared.”
4. Listening to the soundtrack of “KPop Demon Hunters” over and over, and not even because my kid wanted to. Because I did. And it was “Golden.”
5. Sabrina Carpenter releasing a “God-approved” album cover for “Man’s Best Friend” after controversy.
6. Meryl Streep, as her “Devil Wears Prada” character Miranda Priestly, uniting with Anna Wintour at Milan Fashion Week.
7. Lindsay Lohan paying homage to her past characters on the “Freakier Friday” press tour, delivering a refreshing boost of Zillennial nostalgia.
8. Karol G performing “Papasito” on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (and teaching Jimmy Fallon the “Tropicoqueta” dance).
9. Kate McKinnon explaining the mating habits of angler fish on “Hot Ones” in the most NSFW nature lesson ever.
10. Paul McCartney playing for a few hundred fans at The Bowery Ballroom, proving that spirit defies age and true legends don’t need the big stage.
11. Austin Butler going viral for his dancing at Bad Bunny’s Puerto Rico residency in an edibles-induced daze.
12. Lady Gaga going on tour with The Mayhem Ball and reviving her theatrical pop spectacle.
13. The Twilight Saga returning to theaters for the 20th anniversary of “Twilight” (the novel), reigniting the passion of Twihards everywhere.
14. Pop princess and Disney Channel icon Hilary Duff making her much-anticipated musical comeback with her single “Mature.”
15. Jonathan Bailey making history as the first openly gay Sexiest Man Alive, sparking an explosion of queer joy.
16. Benson Boone backflipping his way through a sold-out arena tour while still nailing Freddie Mercury-like vocals and making jumpsuits and mustaches look cool.
17. Experiencing “The Wizard of Oz” at Sphere in Las Vegas. Judy Garland’s crystalline delivery of “Over the Rainbow” on the Sphere’s immaculate sound system coupled with the intensity of feeling like you’re in that tornado that drops Dorothy in Munchkinland is absolutely inimitable.
18. Latina icon Rita Moreno giving Bad Bunny his flowers at the Billboard Latin Music Awards by presenting him with the top Latin artist of the 21st century award.
19. Selena Gomez marrying Benny Blanco and sharing wedding photos with fans.
20. Taylor Swift revealing her engagement to Travis Kelce and breaking the internet (again).
21. Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers performing a pitch-perfect parody of Aerosmith‘s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” at Las Culturistas Culture Awards.
22. Cole Escola becoming the first nonbinary actor to win best leading actor in a play at the Tony Awards.
23. Jennifer Lopez teaming up with Linda Perry for the delightfully chaotic “What’s Up?” x “Beez in The Trap” mashup trend.
24. Dolly Parton playfully reassuring fans that she “ain’t dead yet” after illness rumors.
25. The entire original cast of “The Breakfast Club” reuniting at the C2E2 convention for the first time in 40 years.
26. Cyndi Lauper hitting the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame stage with an all-women band and reunited Salt-N-Pepa to sing “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” and saying about induction: “See what happens when you let the riff-raff in?”
27. How do you outshine surviving the ire of Trump? Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night eulogy to his friend and band-leader Cleto Escobedo III. Heartbreaking, inspiring, devastatingly perfect.
28. Michelle Yeoh couldn’t stop saying “Madame Morrible, flip it around Wicked Witch!” on every “Wicked” red carpet interview.
29. Addison Rae came out of nowhere (well, TikTok, if that’s your thing) to drop one of the most effortlessly confident, singular and transcendent debut pop LPs since the likes of Madonna and Britney Spears (yes, really). A new supreme rises.
30. Two years after his death, the resolutely private and enigmatic Paul Reubens (aka Pee Wee Herman) let fans into his life and world via Matt Wolf’s revelatory, moving two-part docuseries “Pee Wee as Himself.”
31. Role Model surprised us with a new “Sally” during every performance of “Sally, When the Wine Runs Out” on his “No Place Like Tour,” including Natalie Portman, Al Roker, Hilary Duff, Bowen Yang and his mom.
32. Beyoncé finally won album of the year at the Grammys for “Cowboy Carter” after four previous losses in the coveted category. She became the first Black woman to win the award since Lauryn Hill’s “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” in 1999.
33. The cast of “Stranger Things” said goodbye to the sci-fi juggernaut that launched their careers. Stars like Millie Bobby Brown and Finn Wolfhard shared heartfelt moments at the Season 5 premiere after growing up together over the past decade.
34. Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo made us cry by kicking off the Oscars with a stunning live performance, culminating in a chill-worthy rendition of “Defying Gravity.”
35. Ego Nwodim debuted her new stand-up character Miss Eggy on “Saturday Night Live” and accidentally prompted the crowd to curse, reminding us of the joys – and pitfalls – of live television.
36. Marvel’s most exciting 2025 release was, improbably, a five-and-a-half hour shot of a series of chairs, as the studio slowly revealed the cast of “Avengers: Doomsday” in a live stream that had us riveted for nearly an entire work day.
37. Bill Burr and Billy Corgan addressed whether they’re half-brothers in a hilariously awkward interview on Howie Mandel’s podcast, sure to appeal to fans of cringe comedy everywhere.
38. Horror icon Tony Todd delivered a posthumous, meta goodbye to fans in a beautiful unscripted scene in “Final Destination Bloodlines.”
39. Ana de Armas gave us action-movie life by lighting up bad guys like a champ in the memorable flamethrower faceoff from “John Wick” spinoff “Ballerina.”
40. Benicio del Toro hilariously acknowledged having had “a few small beers,” and showed off some pre-arrest dance moves as Sergio St. Carlos in “One Battle After Another.”
41. All the music in “Sinners,” was delectable, but the energy of Jack O’Connell’s performance of “The Rocky Road to Dublin” amidst his new vampire creations while covered in blood was the heady climax of the film that kept playing in my head, and on social media, for long after.
42. Rush choosing the ridiculously talented Anika Nilles to claim the hallowed drum stool of the late Neil Peart for the band’s 2026 tour. Never doubt chicks with sticks.