The year is coming to a close, and you know what that means: End of the year rankings. I wish I was above this over-played media trend, and yet here I am with my own list of the top creators of the year.
Because each platform handles engagement and viewership a bit differently, it’s always difficult to determine the “best” creators at any point in time. There are also dozens of companies out there that swear they hold the answer to who’s on top, but those systems are almost always in dispute (often by rival social media ranking companies).
So for this particular roundup, I looked at three categories: best of creator lists that were released throughout the year that I think accurately reflected the current creator landscape (specifically, the lists from Forbes, Rolling Stone, Time and Mashable), end of the year charts released by platforms and Golden Globes nominations.
I’m also breaking up my ranking into top creators and top podcasters because of the data available. Because Spotify, YouTube and Apple released their end-of-the-year podcast rankings while platforms like Instagram and TikTok didn’t release a creator roundup, podcasters would have been unfairly represented if the lists weren’t separated. Let’s get into it:
Top creators of 2025:
- MrBeast (454 million YouTube subscribers)
- iShowSpeed (46.6 million YouTube subscribers)
- Rhett and Link (24.8 millionYouTube subscribers)
- Kai Cenat (20.1 million Twitch followers)
- Drew Afualo (8.2 million TikTok followers)
Top podcasters of 2025:
- Alex Cooper (“Call Her Daddy”)
- Joe Rogan (“The Joe Rogan Experience”)
- Theo Von (“This Past Weekend w/ Theo Von”)
- Mel Robbins (“The Mel Robbins Podcast”)
- Steven Bartlett (“The Diary of a CEO With Steven Bartlett”)
Each creator or podcaster on this list scored at least four points, meaning they appeared on top creator roundups in least one of four different publications, were featured on a platform’s end-of-the-year ranking or — in the case of Alex Cooper and Mel Robbins — scored a Golden Globes nod.
Speaking of Cooper, she came in as the most esteemed creator of 2025, appearing on all four creator lists, three platform lists and securing a major awards nomination during the first year the Globes will highlight podcasts. On the creator side, MrBeast and iShowSpeed were tied with five points each, but Beast’s massive subscriber count pushed him to the top.
Regardless of which publication says who is “best” or “top,” it’s been a stellar year for creators. Hollywood power players like Netflix started taking creators more seriously in a way we’ve never seen before. Payouts to creators rose by 79%, according to CreatorIQ, and more creators like Dhar Mann and Rhett and Link have built their own studios. The future is indeed bright.
Sadly, this will be the last newsletter until after New Year’s. We’re taking two weeks off so you can spend at least a little bit of the year not panicking about the fate of entertainment. But I’ll be back on Jan. 8 to fret over TikTok’s fate and share my latest creator obsessions. Happy holidays, and thanks for reading.
Now onto the rest.
Kayla Cobb
Senior Reporter [email protected]
What’s New
And the Oscars go to … YouTube
Starting in 2029, YouTube will be the new home of the Academy Awards — an awards show ABC has hosted for over 50 years. Many in Hollywood are panicking about this change with one former Disney executive calling it “the day network TV finally, truly died.” But the reality is viewership for the Oscars has been dropping for years. Maybe streaming it on YouTube means people will actually watch the movie industry’s biggest night. Also, if YouTube’s Brazil NFL game is anything to go by, there are likely going to be some big opportunities for creators.
Nostalgia aside, from where I’m sitting this is a good deal. YouTube gets to buddy up more with Hollywood, and a dying awards show gets a few more years. Win win.
Netflix keeps investing in podcasts
Two months after signing a deal with Spotify, Netflix made two more major podcasting announcements. Netflix will bring 15 iHeartMedia video podcasts exclusively to its platform, including Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark’s “My Favorite Murder and Charlamagne tha God’s “The Breakfast Club,” and three podcasts from Barstool Sports. Those latter selections include “Pardon My Take,” “The Ryen Russillo Show” and “Spittin Chiclets.” In case you thought Netflix’s podcasting interest was a fad, it’s not.
Tribeca adds social media creators as part of a new category
The 2026 Tribeca Film Festival will feature an all-new category for social media creators across TikTok, YouTube and Instagram. The New York festival is the first-ever event of its kind to add this type of content (read: shortform) to its official selections. Submissions will be due Feb. 5 and will evaluate a creator’s work “holistically, celebrating not only standout pieces of content but also a creator’s full body of work and storytelling voice.”
Platform Updates
Instagram Reels are coming to your TV
Instagram launched an app for TVs this week that will allow users to watch Reels in their living rooms. That partner program is with Amazon Fire TV. Looks like someone’s jealous of YouTube.
The Meta-owned platform is also experimenting with a new AI algorithm titled “Your Algorithm” in the U.S. The offering will let users adjust their content preferences for Reels and even share their list of interests with followers. This option is similar to the “Manage Topics” option TikTok rolled out in August.
Twitch competitor Kick will eventually have ads
Between its gambling affiliations and occasionally questionable content, there has been a lot of noise around Kick, the livestreaming platform that was launched in 2022 as a Twitch competitor. But the streamer may lose the one notable edge that has pulled multiple people. During a livestream (of course), CEO Ed Craven said that in-stream advertising spots will be coming “at some point” in Kick’s future.
Roblox broke two world records as part of its very good 2025
In 2025, Roblox set not one but two Guinness World Records for the most concurrently played video game. “Grow a Garden” broke that first record in July when 21.6 million users played it simultaneously. Two months later, “Steal a Brainrot” then broke it with over 25 million concurrent users.
The gaming platform that’s massively popular with younger players also shared that 45 million players logged on during the platform’s busiest day of the year in August. So if you’re wondering what your kid nephew’s been up to lately, it’s probably Roblox.
Movers and Shakers
Chef Matty Matheson’s “Just a Dash” is coming to Netflix for Season 3
If you’re a Hollywood insider, you probably know Matty Matheson as Neil Fak on “The Bear.” But for a good portion of the internet, Matheson is better known for his YouTube channel (1.6 million subscribers), specifically his cooking show “Just a Dash.” Four years after releasing the latest episode of the series, Matheson is bringing “Just a Dash” back for Season 3, and it’s coming to Netflix.
Jon Youshaei launches a company to take care of all the boring parts of creator life
The Creator’s Creator, aka Jon Youshaei (655,000 YouTube subscribers), launched a new company designed to help creators handle everything they hate from taxes to bookkeeping. Fittingly, it’s called Boring Stuff, and Youshaei is a great guy for the job. For years he and his team have been handling these logistical headaches for creators like Airrack, The Try Guys and Yes Theory.
Youshaei is also working on an eight-episode documentary series about Season 2 of MrBeast’s “Beast Games.” That doc is set to premiere in 2026.
Fixated secures a $50 million investment, and DraftKings’ co-founder launches a creator company
Fixated, a creator management company and content studio, secured a $50 million investment from Eldridge Industries, TheWrap learned exclusively. This money will be used to build out the company’s creator tools and acquire other creator management companies (M&A changeups in the creator industry have been big this year). I spoke to co-founders Zach Katz and Jason Wilhelm about the investment as well as how they built a virality machine for their clients.
Speaking of creator industry companies, DraftKings co-founder Matt Kalish launched HardScope this week, a company designed to help creators build and scale their brands. The team behind HardScope was also behind FaZe Clan’s (580,000 Twitch followers) 2024 relaunch. It’s good news for any livestreamer looking to level up because Kalish has a lot of experience with that niche.
@sergio.cilli AI actor versus Milla Jovovich. @Milla Jovovich ♬ original sound – Sergio Cilli
Who to Watch
Sergio Cilli
Thanks to the rise of AI, it’s been a tough year to be creative. But Sergio Cilli (5,000 TikTok followers) is proving AI actors aren’t going to replace real actors anytime soon. In each episode of his series, Cilli pretends to be a casting director instructing an AI actor through an audition. And every time they fail miserably, swapping heads and accents halfway through, spawning multiple pairs of glasses and adding in unsettling laugh tracks. Cilli has even started asking human actors to compete against the artificial auditions (So far it’s humans 2, AI 0).
As funny as the series is, there’s some credibility to it as Cilli’s IMDB page includes directing credits for Comedy Central and Funny or Die. If you’re feeling disheartened, give him a follow.
Bonus Content
- ‘Alan’s Universe’ Shows What It Might Look Like to Win at YouTube (via New York Times)
- The Creator Infrastructure Gap Will Define Journalism’s Next Chapter (via Nieman Lab)
- How Jordan The Stallion became inescapable on TikTok (via Mashable)
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This report provides a weekly deep dive into the creator economy. It highlights key trends, political and technological developments, data points and industry leaders all with the goal of making you smarter about this constantly evolving space.
The post Creatorverse: The Biggest Creators of 2025 appeared first on TheWrap.
