From left: Poorna Jagannathan in 'Deli Boys,' Nick Offerman in 'Death by Lightning,' Sarah Sherman as Matt Gaetz on 'SNL.' James Washington/Disney; Larry Horricks/Netflix; Will Heath/NBC Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on Reddit Post a Comment Share on Whats App Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn Print the Article Share on Tumblr There were no rules governing where the best TV performances of 2025 might come from. You could have as few credits as Owen Cooper, who won an Emmy at 15 for his first screen performance in Adolescence, or as many credits as the late, great Graham Greene, who brought immeasurable gravity to a guest role on The Lowdown. You could draw attention for a brief appearance in a comedy sketch or as the centerpiece of a prestige drama in which you were playing one of the last free-thinking people on Earth. You could be a decorated movie star dabbling on the small screen or a veteran of countless failed shows, finally grabbing the spotlight. As always, there were more great performances than we could possibly salute, which meant that we had to make rules. That's why, once again, we began the winnowing process by eliminating shows that already received end-of-year accolades in our respective Top 10 lists. So Cooper (and his excellent Adolescence co-stars) didn't make the cut, nor did Rhea Seehorn, front and center as the star of Vince Gilligan's Pluribus. We determined that praises had been sufficiently sung for the likes of Diego Luna (Andor), Noah Wyle (The Pitt) and Seth Rogen (The Studio), while some of our other favorite performances are sure to be mentioned when we celebrate 10 of our favorite episodes of the year later this week. So with those parameters in mind, we give you not necessarily the best TV performances of the year, but 10 - actually 11 - performances we love. Malin Akerman, The Hunting Wives Image Credit: Courtesy of Netflix Starz-castoff-turned-Netflix-hit The Hunting Wives may have been one of the most purely entertaining shows of the year, with its juicy combination of sex, violence and soap-opera silliness. And while Akerman's mischievous performance as Margo wasn't the only reason for its success, it's hard to deny she was the sun around which the rest of the series revolved. Akerman played the gun-toting, social-climbing seductress with a wink that let you know Margo is aware exactly how thick she's laying it on. But that never came across like Akerman herself felt embarrassed or self-conscious to be there - even when she was stripping down within moments of meeting Brittany Snow's Sophie, or practically purring while flirting with her under the guise of teaching her to shoot. Sure, Margo would turn out to be as toxic as they come, setting off a chain of events leading to multiple deaths. But with her beguiling mix of Texan warmth, straight-shooting snark and brazen sexuality, was it any wonder that we, like Sophie, found ourselves powerless under her spell? - ANGIE HAN Robby Hoffman, Hacks Image Credit: Courtesy of Max It's no shade to say that in its fourth season, HBO Max's hit comedy, while still very sharp, was no longer as surprising as it once was. What a joy, then, to be caught completely off guard by Randi, one of the most delightful oddballs the show has ever graced us with. Played by Hoffman with a stupefying combination of aggressive cheeriness and completely unearned confidence, the formerly Hasidic Randi doesn't let the fact that she'd never even seen a movie until a few days ago stop her from making grand proclamations about "the industry" - or, ultimately, from turning out to be a pretty good assistant to Paul W. Downs' Jimmy and Megan Stalter's Kayla. But Hoffman's Emmy-nominated turn on Hacks was just part of a very good year that also included a sexy guest spot on FX's Dying for Sex and an IRL wedding to another beloved pop culture figure, Traitors breakout Gabby Windey. Seriously, was anyone having a better time than Hoffman in 2025? - A.H. Poorna Jagannathan, Deli Boys Image Credit: James Washington/Disney Jagannathan, a Tunisian-born Indian-American actress with an impressively international upbringing, long ago moved past the stage of her career when casting directors saw her primarily as "Background Indian Doctor With No First Name" (see: standout roles in shows like Never Have I Ever and The Night Of). As good as she's been in so many things, you don't need to imagine the elation Jagannathan felt when Abdullah Saeed's Deli Boys landed at her feet. That joy is evident in every frame of the Hulu comedy, in which Jagannathan plays "Lucky," former consigliere to a Pakistani-American crime boss, now forced to deal with his bumbling sons (Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh). Lucky is funny, but we've seen Jagannathan be funny before. She's also vicious, violent and generally badass, and Jagannathan seems thoroughly liberated, bringing a dangerous and hilarious swagger to e