From climate denial to gothic movies to ‘treat culture’ … what to expect in 2025

The new US president will almost certainly bring unpredictability but several themes will dominate the year ahead. Observer writers offer their guide on what lies ahead in politics, film, fashion, sport and more

The only thing that can be predicted with absolute certainty about Donald Trump's second term as US president is that it will be unpredictable. Trump does not really know what he wants to do on a range of issues. He talks a good game, which is how he got re-elected. But he often seems to decide policy on the basis of what the last person he spoke to told him. Is he serious about mobilising the military to carry out mass deportations of illegal" migrants? Will he use the justice department to hunt down political enemies and media critics? Will he impose sweeping tariffs on foreign imports and trigger aglobal trade war? Or will he act with greater circumspection, using these threats as bargaining tools? Who knows? Hedoesn't yet.