by Chris Peterson, OnStage Blog Founder
We’re just one day away from the 2025 Tony Award nominations. I’ve made peace with the fact that my predictions will be partially wrong, wildly biased, and fueled by nothing but vibes and obsessive scrolling. But hey, that’s tradition.
This season has been bold, offbeat, and chaotic in the best possible way. Some shows were small and searing, others big and bombastic, and a few somehow managed both. Here are my predictions for some of the categories for who’ll be called tomorrow morning—and a shoutout in each category to someone who should be in the mix, even if they’re not on voters’ radar.
best director of a play:
David Cromer – Good Night, and Good Luck
Sam Pinkleton – Oh, Mary!
Sam Mendes – The Hills of California
Knud Adams – English
Danya Taymor – John Proctor Is the Villain
Honorable Mention:
Leigh Silverman – Yellow Face
best director of a musical:
Michael Arden – Maybe Happy Ending
David Cromer – Dead Outlaw
Jamie Lloyd – Sunset Blvd.
Christopher Gattelli – Death Becomes Her
George C. Wolfe – Gypsy
Honorable Mention:
Alex Timbers - Just in Time
best featured actress in a play:
Kara Young – Purpose
Jessica Hecht – Eureka Day
Bianca Leigh – Oh, Mary!
Leanne Best – The Hills of California
Amalia Yoo – John Proctor Is the Villain
Honorable Mention:
Mare Winningham – Cult of Love
best feautred actor in a play:
Clark Gregg – Good Night, and Good Luck
Gabriel Ebert – John Proctor Is the Villain
Francis Jue – Yellow Face
Kieran Culkin – Glengarry Glen Ross
Bob Odenkirk – Glengarry Glen Ross
Honorable Mention:
Bill Irwin – Eureka Day
best featured actress in a musical:
Joy Woods – Gypsy
Michelle Williams – Death Becomes Her
Bernadette Peters – Old Friends
Natasha Hodgson – Operation Mincemeat
Natalie Venetia Belcon – Buena Vista Social Club
Honorable Mention:
Justina Machado – Real Women Have Curves
best featured actor in a musical:
Jak Malone – Operation Mincemeat
Danny Burstein – Gypsy
Christopher Sieber – Death Becomes Her
David Thaxton – Sunset Blvd.
Thom Sesma – Dead Outlaw
Honorable Mention:
Brooks Ashmanskas – Smash
Best actress in a play:
Sarah Snook – The Picture of Dorian Gray
Laura Donnelly – The Hills of California
Sadie Sink – John Proctor Is the Villain
LaTanya Richardson Jackson – Purpose
Mia Farrow – The Roommate
Honorable Mention:
Marjan Neshat – English
best actor in a play:
Cole Escola – Oh, Mary!
Jake Gyllenhaal – Othello
Jon Michael Hill – Purpose
Louis McCartney – Stranger Things: The First Shadow
George Clooney – Good Night, and Good Luck
Honorable Mention:
Daniel Dae Kim – Yellow Face
best actress in a musical:
Audra McDonald – Gypsy
Helen J Shen – Maybe Happy Ending
Jasmine Amy Rogers – Boop! The Musical
Megan Hilty – Death Becomes Her
Jennifer Simard – Death Becomes Her
Honorable Mention:
Nicole Scherzinger – Sunset Blvd.
best actor in a musical:
Darren Criss – Maybe Happy Ending
Tom Francis – Sunset Blvd.
Jeremy Jordan – Floyd Collins
Andrew Durand – Dead Outlaw
Jonathan Groff – Just in Time
Honorable Mention:
David Hyde Pierce – Pirates! The Penzance Musical
best play revival:
Eureka Day
Glengarry Glen Ross
Our Town
Yellow Face
Honorable Mention:
Othello
best musical revival:
Gypsy
Sunset Boulevard
Floyd Collins
Honorable Mention:
Once Upon a Mattress
best play:
Oh, Mary!
The Hills of California
English
Purpose
John Proctor Is the Villain
Honorable Mention:
Good Night, and Good Luck
best musical:
Dead Outlaw
Operation Mincemeat
Maybe Happy Ending
Death Becomes Her
Real Women Have Curves
Honorable Mention:
BOOP! The Musical
We’ll see how it all shakes out when the nominations are announced tomorrow morning. Will Broadway go bold, traditional, or somewhere in between? With a season this rich in talent and variety, there are bound to be a few surprises—and a few snubs that sting. Either way, it’s an exciting snapshot of where theater is right now. Let the debates (and celebrations) begin.