"The Perfect Neighbor" Wins Best Nonfiction Film at 2025 Critics Choice Awards

The 10th annual Critics Choice Documentary Awards, held on November 10, 2025 in New York City, recognized several standout nonfiction films from the past year. The top honor of Best Nonfiction Film went to "The Perfect Neighbor," a Netflix production directed by Geeta Gandbhir. The film explores a troubling incident in Florida where a white woman shot and killed her Black neighbor.

Gandbhir was also named Best Director for her work on "The Perfect Neighbor." This marks the second time in the awards' history that the Critics Choice winner has gone on to win the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature, following "O.J.: Made in America" in 2016 and "Summer of Soul" in 2021.

In other categories, actress Mariska Hargitay received the award for Best First Documentary for her film "My Mom Jayne: A Film by Mariska Hargitay," a personal look at her famous mother, actress Jayne Mansfield. The ceremony also recognized excellence in various documentary genres, from political to sports to historical.

The Critics Choice Documentary Awards continue to be a prestigious honor in the nonfiction filmmaking community, shining a light on the most impactful and thought-provoking documentaries of the year.