“Next Level Baker” 2025 is here for a festive three-week holiday showdown, and Gordon Ramsay is kicking things off with enough heat to melt a gingerbread house. As a new lineup of bakers steps into his towering, high-pressure kitchen, the holiday spirit quickly mixes with fierce competition. From surprise twists to sugar-fueled standoffs, here’s everything to know about the 2025 premiere—including contestants, challenges, and early spoilers stirring up buzz.
‘Next Level Baker’ Premiere
For this three-week baking holiday special, it will involve bakers divided into three different categories: home, pro, and social media. They will each be tasked with creating eye-popping, festive holiday treats.
“Next Level Baker” 2025 premieres on Thursday, December 4, 2025. It will air at 9 p.m. ET on FOX, with episodes available to stream on Hulu the next day.
Gordon Ramsay will have some special help for this holiday baking competition. In addition to mentoring the bakers himself, he will be joined by Carla Hall, a “Top Chef” alum and former co-host of “The Chew,” and Candace Nelson, founder of Sprinkles Cupcakes.
Who Are the Bakers Competing on ‘Next Level Baker’?
As mentioned above, the bakers will be divided into three different categories: professional bakers, social media bakers, and home bakers.
FOXFor the professional bakers, we have Maricsa Trejo from Mesquite, Texas, Winston Murdock from Orlando, Florida, Chad Visger from Delavan, Wisconsin, and Aubrey Smith Shaffner from Baltimore, Maryland.
FOXFor the social media bakers, we have Justin Ellen from Passaic, New Jersey, Chloe Sexton from Germantown, Tennessee, Nikita “Nikki” Jackson from Rowlett, Texas, and Zoha Malik from Newark, California.
FOXLastly, we have the home bakers. They are Michael Mararian from Buffalo, New York, Jeff Chudakoff from West Hollywood, California, Deirdra Lambright from Atlanta, Georgia, and Stefanie Embree from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
What to Expect on ‘Next Level Baker’ 2025?
So, how does “Next Level Baker” work? For this holiday special, the bakers will be challenged to bake some amazing holiday treats. The competition will take place over the three-level kitchen created for “Next Level Chef.” However, it’s been transformed into a winter wonderland for this holiday competition.
The bakers will be using all three of the levels, with the basement level having equipment that leaves a lot to be desired. The middle level is just an average kitchen, and the top level is a state-of-the-art kitchen.
At the end of three weeks, one baker will be chosen as the winner of “Next Level Baker.” For winning, they will take home $25,000 and a HexClad prize package.
“Next Level Baker” airs on Thursdays at 9/8c on FOX. New episodes are available to stream the next day on Hulu.
Watch with us tonight during our premiere LIVE RECAP right here!
