Tony Awards Snubs and Surprises: ‘Death Becomes Her’ Goes One for 10 as ‘Purpose’ Scores Upset Best Play Win

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At the start of the 2025 Tony Awards ceremony, the host, Cynthia Erivo, highlighted a promising newcomer who earned his initial nomination in that year: George Clooney.

The Oscar-winning filmmaker was expected to achieve success, as stated by Erivo, but surprisingly, only a few hours later, Clooney, who received several shout-outs during the live broadcast of the Tonys, departed without the Broadway play winning any awards, despite being nominated for five categories, including a best actor in a play nomination for Clooney, which he ultimately did not win, with Cole Escola from the production “Oh, Mary!” taking that honor instead.

I just wrapped up playing an epic game that’s been smashing records with its massive weekly earnings. The grand finale was a matinee session before the awards ceremony on Sunday. After the show, George Clooney swiftly returned his hair color to its original hue, having dyed it brown for the role. Saturday night’s live performance was broadcast on CNN in a much-anticipated special event.

Just like the recent restaging of “Gypsy,” which received five nominations and marked Audra McDonald’s 11th, making her the most Tony-nominated performer ever, also failed to win any awards on Sunday evening. In fact, the award for Best Actress in a Musical went to Nicole Scherzinger for “Sunset Blvd” instead.

Some other notable snubs were “Dead Outlaw” and “John Proctor Is the Villain,” each earning seven nominations, as well as “Floyd Collins” and “Just in Time,” both with six nominations apiece. “Real Women Have Curves” also received two nominations, but its best chance at a win was in the score category, where it unfortunately lost to “Maybe Happy Ending.

Regardless, even though “Maybe Happy Ending” had already racked up several awards prior to Darren Criss being announced as the best actor in a musical, his win on his first nomination still came as something of a shock since he was closely competing against Jonathan Groff, who was vying for his second consecutive Tony Award.

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Although “Maybe Happy Ending” had already been honored with numerous awards before Darren Criss was named the best actor in a musical, his win on his first nomination was still unexpected given that he was up against Jonathan Groff, who was trying to secure his second Tony Award in succession.

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Despite “Maybe Happy Ending” having previously won multiple awards, Darren Criss’ victory as the best actor in a musical, being his first nomination, came as somewhat of a surprise considering he was in competition with Jonathan Groff, who was aiming for his second consecutive Tony.

Despite being nominated for ten Tony Awards alongside “Maybe Happy Ending” and “Buena Vista Social Club,” “Death Takes a Holiday” won just one – in the category of best costume design, awarded to Oscar-winning designer Paul Tazewell.

In an unexpected turn of events, “Purpose” emerged victorious at the Tony Awards, snatching the title for the best play over “Oh, Mary!” and “John Proctor Is the Villain,” both of which had garnered significant attention, with strong box office performances and industry buzz. However, “Purpose,” a play about a powerful Black American political family rebounding from scandal, had previously won the Pulitzer Prize for drama this year and saw five of its cast members nominated for Tony Awards. Notably, Kara Young, who won a Tony Award for the second consecutive year, was among the nominees.

Last year, I snagged the award for Best Revival of a Play for my work on “Appropriate,” starring the incredibly talented Sarah Paulson, while my play “Purpose” was also making waves.

This year’s play category was exceptionally competitive, boasting Sanaz Toossi’s “English,” a work that earned the Pulitzer Prize in 2023.

Caitlin Huston contributed to this report.

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2025-06-09 08:54