Realscreen Awards Program competition nominees announced

Realscreen announced the 94 nominees selected for the 2025 Realscreen Awards Program Competition. This competition recognizes content from around the world in the industry’s global celebration of excellence in non-fiction and unscripted entertainment. Hosted by unscripted producer, podcast host, and on-air personality Carlos King (OWN’s "Love & Marriage" franchise, WE tv’s "Bold & Bougie," and the "Reality with the King" podcast), the 15th annual ceremony will take place on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, at the Miami InterContinental Hotel as part of the 27th edition of the Realscreen Summit.

Leading the nominations by company, Netflix stands out with 20 nominations, followed by Prime Video with 7. ARTE, MTV Documentary Films, and National Geographic each garnered 5 nominations, while Food Network, Paramount+, and PBS received 4 nominations each.

Realscreen EVP Mary Maddever referred to the high level of quality among the competitors: “The caliber of the finalist programs reflects how high the bar has risen globally and how far genres have evolved. For instance, nominees in the inaugural talent categories range from two nods for Sir David Attenborough-presented BBC shows on the non-fiction side, to unscripted finalists like Studio Lambert’s 'The Traitors' host Alan Cumming and the cast from 'Squid Game: The Challenge.' The level of craft and innovation across the board will make the next round of judging incredibly difficult.We’re also delighted to honor Cris Abrego with the Realscreen Hall of Fame award for his seminal influence on the industry. His leadership and groundbreaking work have set new standards and paved the way for future generations of creators and storytellers," commented.

The event will also celebrate Cris Abrego, a visionary leader and television executive who pioneered the celeb-reality genre early in his career, ushering in a new era of talent-led unscripted storytelling. Today, Abrego leads studio and holdings company Hyphenate Media Group as co-founder and CEO and continues as Chairman of the Americas for Banijay, a position he has held since 2020. Abrego’s induction into the Realscreen Hall of Fame recognizes his significant contributions and influential career spanning more than two decades, during which he has founded and scaled multiple production companies and initiatives across the Americas. Past Hall of Fame and Legacy Award honorees include industry icons such as A+E’s Paul Buccieri, HBO Documentary Films' Nancy Abraham and Lisa Heller, filmmakers Alex Gibney and Stanley Nelson, and PBS CEO Paula Kerger.