Here’s how to make sure you don’t miss the 78th Annual Tony Awards
Here’s how to make sure you don’t miss the 78th Annual Tony Awards
Cynthia Erivo will host Broadway’s biggest night from Radio City Music Hall, featuring a special performance by the original Broadway cast of ‘Hamilton’
It is Broadway’s biggest night, and theatre’s brightest stars will all be on hand at Radio City Music Hall for the 78th Annual Tony Awards. Tony-winner Cynthia Erivo will host the festivities for the first time on Sunday, June 8. This year, three musicals share the honor of being the most nominated show of the season with 10 individual noms: “Buena Vista Social Club,” “Death Becomes Her,” and “Maybe Happy Ending.” In total 26 awards will be handed out, starting with the “Tony Awards: Act One” preshow, which kicks off at 6:40 p.m. ET on Pluto TV, then at 8 p.m., the ceremony will move to CBS. If you are looking for a live TV streaming service to watch the Tony Awards, I recommend taking advantage of a **five-day free trial to DIRECTV**.
How to watch the 2025 Tony Awards
- When: Sunday, June 8, 2025 at 8 p.m. ET
- TV: CBS
- Stream: Watch with a five-day free trial of DIRECTV or Paramount+. Tony Awards: Act One preshow will air on Pluto TV at 6:40 p.m. ET
- From anywhere: Watch with a subscription to a VPN.
Everything you need to know about the 2025 Tony Awards
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What time does the 2025 Tony Awards start?
There will be two different start times for the Tonys telecast this year. The “Tony Awards: Act One” will begin at 6:40 p.m. ET on Pluto TV. While this is being referred to as a “preshow,” there will be a number of awards handed out during this broadcast hosted by Tony-winner Renée Elise Goldsberry and current Tony nominee Darren Criss. This show is slated to end at roughly 7:45 p.m., so you have time to flip over to the main broadcast on CBS.
The Tony Awards proper will kick off at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and will be hosted by Tony, Grammy, and Emmy winner Cynthia Erivo live from the iconic Radio City Music Hall.
Why do we recommend watching the 2025 Tony Awards on DIRECTV?
There are a lot of reasons why DIRECTV is a great choice to watch the Tonys, and a lot of other exciting entertainment events and awards shows throughout the year. First is that the platform offers the longest, guaranteed free trial of any live TV streaming service on the market. While others do have longer trials, whether or not you will qualify for them varies greatly depending on a variety of opaque factors. So, at five days, DIRECTV offers more than enough time for you to watch the Tonys and to get a good idea of everything else that the service has to offer.
Beyond that, DIRECTV recently launched genre-specific channel packages that allow cord-cutters to sign up for channel line-ups that are more curated to the types of programming they want to watch. In turn, this can lower their bills significantly, running from $35 to $70 per month.
CBS isn’t included in any of the MyGenre Packs, but it is included in all of DIRECTV’s Signature Packages. Currently, the best option is the CHOICE Package, because not only will you get over 125 channels, but it is on sale for just $60 per month, after the five-day free trial ends. So, you can watch the best that theatre has to offer at the Tonys and get a great deal.
DIRECTV
DIRECTV is one of The Streamable’s top choices for the best live TV streaming service overall in 2026, especially for users who want the most channels or want to watch the most live sports. With an unbeatable lineup of local, news, sports, and entertainment channels, three main signature packages, an unlimited DVR, and 20 simultaneous streams at home, DIRECTV remains a premier choice for any cord-cutter.
Can you watch the 2025 Tony Awards for free?
Yes, there are several streamers other than DIRECTV that offer free trials which will allow you to watch the Tonys.
Fubo carries CBS in its Pro package, which starts at $85 per month after a trial that lasts between one and seven days — depending on factors like what time of month you sign up.
Hulu + Live TV offers a three-day trial, and includes CBS in its base plan as well. It costs $83 per month for plans that include the free Disney Bundle.
YouTube TV also carries CBS, and like Fubo its trial can vary in length for new customers between two and 14 days. After the trial, plans start at $83 per month.
Finally, Paramount+ comes with a seven-day trial for new subscribers. After that, plans start at $8 per month.
What are all the services you can use to watch the 2025 Tony Awards?
If you’re looking for a live TV streaming service that delivers you a package of cable channels to watch the game, you can stream it on DIRECTV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, and YouTube TV. DIRECTV is our favorite of these choices, as we talked about above.
Sling TV doesn’t carry CBS in any market, and thus is not a good choice to watch the Tony Awards. However, you can watch the awards on Paramount+’s ad-free Paramount+ With SHOWTIME plan, since that subscription tier includes access to your local CBS affiliate. The Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan costs just $3 per month.
| DIRECTV | Fubo | Hulu | Philo | Sling TV | YouTube TV | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Trial | Free Trial | Free 3-Day Trial | Free Trial | Save with Sling | Free Trial | |||||
| $20.99 | $9.99 | $28.99 | $25 | $19.99 | $29.99 | $45.99 | $45.99 | $64.99 | ||
| CBS | + $24 | + $59 | + $61 | - | - | - | - | - | ✓ | |
Check out a preview of the Tony Awards
About 2025 Tony Awards
The 78th Annual Tony Awards will celebrate a fantastic year on Broadway. Tony-winner Cynthia Erivo will host the ceremony for the first time, while Tony-winner Renée Elise Goldsberry and Tony-nominee Darren Criss will host the pre-show. Starting on “Tony Awards: Act One” on Pluto TV, 26 competitive awards and a handful of honorary awards will be given out to some of the best and the brightest artists in the theatrical community.
In total, 10 nominated shows are set to perform: “Buena Vista Social Club,” “Dead Outlaw,” “Death Becomes Her,” “Floyd Collins,” “Gypsy,” “Maybe Happy Ending,” “Operation Mincemeat,” “Pirates! The Penzance Musical,” “Sunset Blvd.,” “Just In Time,” and “Real Women Have Curves.”
In addition to all of the awards and performances slated for the telecast, in honor of the show’s 10th anniversary, Lin-Manuel Miranda and the original Broadway cast of “Hamilton” will reunite for a special “HamilTEN” performance. Also slated to appear are Alex Winter, Allison Janney, Ariana DeBose, Ben Stiller, Bryan Cranston, Jean Smart, Jesse Eisenberg, Glenn Close, Katie Holmes, Keanu Reeves, Michelle Williams, Oprah, Samuel L. Jackson, Sara Bareilles, Sarah Paulson, and more.
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