1978 in film

Years in film
1870s
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1970s 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
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2020s 2020

The year 1978 in film involved some significant events.

Highest-grossing films (U.S.)

The top ten 1978 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:

Events

• February 1 – Bob Dylan's film Renaldo and Clara, a documentary of the "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour premieres in Los Angeles, California.
• March 1 – Charlie Chaplin's coffin is stolen from a Swiss cemetery three months after burial. After recovery a few weeks later, the casket is sealed in a concrete vault which is then buried in the same grave.
• March – Leigh Brackett completes the first draft for The Empire Strikes Back, but dies only two weeks later.
• June 4 – Grease, starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, has its world premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood.
• August – Production begins on Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
• September – George Lucas purchases Bulltail Ranch, on Lucas Valley Road, for the development of Skywalker Ranch.
• November 17 – Star Wars Holiday Special airs on CBS. The special gives fans their first glimpse of Boba Fett, a character from the upcoming sequel.
• December – Superman premieres at the Kennedy Centre in Washington DC on December 10 and has a European Royal Charity Premiere at the Empire, Leicester Square in London three days later in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Andrew.

Awards

Academy Awards:

Best Picture: The Deer Hunter – EMI Films/Cimino, Universal

Best Director: Michael Cimino – The Deer Hunter

Best Actor: Jon Voight – Coming Home

Best Actress: Jane Fonda – Coming Home

Best Supporting Actor: Christopher Walken – The Deer Hunter

Best Supporting Actress: Maggie Smith – California Suite

Best Foreign Language Film: Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (Preparez vos mouchoirs), directed by Bertrand Blier, France

Golden Globe Awards:

Drama:

Best Picture: Midnight Express

Best Actor: Jon Voight – Coming Home

Best Actress: Jane Fonda – Coming Home

Musical or comedy:

Best Picture: Heaven Can Wait

Best Actor: Warren Beatty – Heaven Can Wait

Best Actress (tie): Ellen Burstyn – Same Time, Next Year

Best Actress (tie): Maggie Smith – California Suite

Other

Best Director: Michael Cimino – The Deer Hunter

Best Foreign Language Film: Autumn Sonata, Sweden

Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):

The Tree of Wooden Clogs (L'Albero degli zoccoli), directed by Ermanno Olmi, Italy

Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):

Trout (Las Truchas), directed by José Luis García Sánchez, Spain

What Max Said (Las Palabras de Max), directed by Emilio Martínez-Lázaro, Spain

1978 film releases

January–March

• February 1978
  • Remember My Name
  • 1 February
    • Coma
  • 2 February
    • The Boys in Company C
  • 3 February
    • The One and Only
  • 10 February
    • The Other Side of the Mountain Part 2
    • Blue Collar
• March 1978
  • 5 March
    • An Unmarried Woman
  • 10 March
    • Return from Witch Mountain
    • Gray Lady Down
    • The Fury
  • 15 March
    • House Calls
  • 17 March
    • Casey's Shadow

April–June

• April 1978
  • 20 April
    • Dawn of the Dead
    • FM
  • 21 April
    • I Wanna Hold Your Hand
• May 1978
  • Warlords of Atlantis
  • 10 May
    • It Lives Again
    • The End
  • 12 May
    • Nunzio
  • 18 May
    • The Buddy Holly Story
  • 19 May
    • Thank God It's Friday
• June 1978
  • 2 June
    • Corvette Summer
  • 6 June
    • Damien: Omen II
  • 9 June
    • The Cat from Outer Space
    • The Jungle Book (re-release)
  • 10 June
    • The Driver
  • 16 June
    • Grease
    • Jaws 2
  • 21 June
    • Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
  • 23 June
    • The Cheap Detective
  • 28 June
    • Heaven Can Wait

July–September

• July 1978
  • 5 July
    • Hot Lead and Cold Feet
  • 19 July
    • Revenge of the Pink Panther
    • International Velvet
  • 28 July
    • Hooper
    • Animal House
• August 1978
  • 2 August
    • Eyes of Laura Mars
• September 1978
  • 8 September
    • Almost Summer
  • 15 September
    • Up in Smoke
  • 22 September
    • Paradise Alley
  • 29 September
    • Somebody Killed Her Husband
    • Death on the Nile

October–December

• October 1978
  • 6 October
    • The Big Fix
    • Midnight Express
    • Goin' South
  • 15 December
    • Oliver's Story
  • 20 October
    • Attack of the Killer Tomatoes
  • 24 October
    • The Wiz
  • 25 October
    • Halloween
• November 1978
  • 1 November
    • Watership Down
  • 2 November
    • Caravans
  • 15 November
    • The Lord of the Rings
  • 22 November
    • Same Time, Next Year
• December 1978
  • 8 December
    • Force 10 from Navarone
    • The Deer Hunter
  • 15 December
    • California Suite
    • Superman
  • 16 December
    • Pinocchio (re-release)
  • 20 December
    • Every Which Way but Loose
    • Invasion of the Body Snatchers
  • 31 December
    • Ice Castles

Notable films released in 1978

U.S.A. unless stated
#

• The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (Shao Lin san shi liu fang), starring Gordon Liu – (Hong Kong)

A

• The Adventures of Jody Shanan
• Almost Summer, directed by Martin Davidson, starring Bruno Kirby and Lee Purcell
• American Boy: A Profile of Steven Prince, directed by Martin Scorsese (documentary)
• American Hot Wax, a biopic of Alan Freed, starring Tim McIntire, Fran Drescher, Laraine Newman, Jay Leno
• L'argent des autres (Other People's Money), starring Jean-Louis Trintignant and Catherine Deneuve – (France)
• The Astral Factor, starring Robert Foxworth and Stefanie Powers
• Autumn Sonata (Höstsonaten), directed by Ingmar Bergman, starring Ingrid Bergman and Liv Ullmann – (Sweden)
• Avalanche, starring Rock Hudson, Robert Forster, Mia Farrow

B

• The Bad News Bears Go to Japan, starring Tony Curtis and Jackie Earle Haley
• Bandits vs. Samurai Squadron (Kumokiri Nizaemon) – (Japan)
• Battlestar Galactica (Canada and most European countries only; released in U.S. theatres the following year)
• The Betsy, starring Laurence Olivier, Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, Katharine Ross, Kathleen Beller, Lesley-Anne Down
• The Big Fix, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Susan Anspach, F. Murray Abraham, John Lithgow
• The Big Sleep, starring Robert Mitchum, Sarah Miles, Oliver Reed, Richard Boone, Candy Clark, Joan Collins, James Stewart – (U.K.)
• Big Wednesday, directed by John Milius, starring Jan-Michael Vincent, William Katt, Gary Busey
• Bloodbrothers, starring Richard Gere and Paul Sorvino
• Blue Collar, directed by Paul Schrader, starring Richard Pryor, Yaphet Kotto, Harvey Keitel
• Born Again, starring Dean Jones and Anne Francis
• The Boys from Brazil, directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, starring Gregory Peck, Laurence Olivier, James Mason – (U.K./U.S.A.)
• The Boys in Company C, starring Stan Shaw, Andrew Stevens and Craig Wasson
• The Brink's Job, directed by William Friedkin, starring Peter Falk, Gena Rowlands, Peter Boyle, Paul Sorvino, Warren Oates
• The Buddy Holly Story, starring Gary Busey, Don Stroud and Charles Martin Smith
• Bye Bye Monkey (Rêve de singe / Ciao maschio), starring Gérard Depardieu and Marcello Mastroianni – (France/Italy)

C

• La Cage aux Folles, directed by Édouard Molinaro, starring Ugo Tognazzi and Michel Serrault – (France/Italy)
• California Suite, starring Alan Alda, Jane Fonda, Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, Richard Pryor, Bill Cosby, Elaine May, Walter Matthau
• Capricorn One, directed by Peter Hyams, starring Elliott Gould, James Brolin, O. J. Simpson, Sam Waterston, Hal Holbrook, Brenda Vaccaro
• Caravans, starring Anthony Quinn, Jennifer O'Neill, Michael Sarrazin
• Casey's Shadow, starring Walter Matthau, Alexis Smith, Robert Webber
• The Cat from Outer Space, starring Ronnie Schell and Sandy Duncan
• Centennial, TV miniseries, starring Raymond Burr, Richard Chamberlain, Richard Crenna, Andy Griffith, David Janssen, Alex Karras
• La chambre verte (The Green Room), directed by and starring François Truffaut – (France)
• The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, directed by Fred Schepisi – (Australia)
• The Cheap Detective, starring Peter Falk, Ann-Margret, Marsha Mason, Sid Caesar
• China 9, Liberty 37 (Amore, piombo e furore), starring Fabio Testi, Jenny Agutter, Warren Oates – (Italy/Spain)
• The Class of Miss MacMichael, starring Glenda Jackson - (U.K.)
• Closed Circuit (Circuito chiuso) – (Italy)
• Coma, directed by Michael Crichton, starring Geneviève Bujold, Michael Douglas, Richard Widmark
• Comes a Horseman, directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Jane Fonda, James Caan, Jason Robards
• Coming Home, directed by Hal Ashby, starring Jane Fonda, Jon Voight, Bruce Dern, Penelope Milford
• Convoy, directed by Sam Peckinpah, starring Kris Kristofferson, Ali MacGraw and Ernest Borgnine
• Corvette Summer, starring Mark Hamill
• Cosi' come sei (aka Stay As You Are) starring Marcello Mastroianni and Nastassja Kinski – (Italy)
• Crippled Avengers (Can que), directed by Chang Cheh – (Hong Kong)

D

• The Dain Curse, mini-series for TV, starring James Coburn and Jean Simmons
• Damien: Omen II, starring William Holden and Lee Grant
• d'Artagnan and Three Musketeers (d'Artanyan i tri mushketera) – (U.S.S.R.)
• Dawn of the Dead, directed by George A. Romero – (U.S.A./Italy)
• Days of Heaven, directed by Terrence Malick, starring Richard Gere, Sam Shepard, Brooke Adams
• Death on the Nile, directed by John Guillermin, starring Peter Ustinov, David Niven, Bette Davis, Maggie Smith, Angela Lansbury, Olivia Hussey, Mia Farrow – (U.K.)
• Deathsport, starring David Carradine
• Debbie Does Dallas, pornographic comedy
• The Deer Hunter, directed by Michael Cimino, starring Robert De Niro, John Cazale, John Savage, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep
• The Demon (Kichiku) – (Japan)
• A Different Story, starring Meg Foster, Perry King, Valerie Curtin
• El diputado (The Deputy) – (Spain)
• Don, starring Amitabh Bachchan – (India)
• A Dream of Passion (Kravgi gynaikon), directed by Jules Dassin, starring Melina Mercouri and Ellen Burstyn – (Greece)
• The Driver, directed by Walter Hill, starring Ryan O'Neal, Bruce Dern, Isabelle Adjani, Ronee Blakley
• Drunken Master (Jui kuen), starring Jackie Chan – (Hong Kong)

E

• Ecce bombo, directed by and starring Nanni Moretti – (Italy)
• Empire of Passion (Ai no Bōrei), directed by Nagisa Oshima – (Japan)
• The End, directed by and starring Burt Reynolds, with Dom DeLuise, Joanne Woodward, Pat O'Brien, Myrna Loy, Sally Field
• An Enemy of the People, starring Steve McQueen
• Enter the Fat Dragon (Fei Lung gwoh gong), starring Sammo Hung – (Hong Kong)
• Every Which Way but Loose, directed by James Fargo, starring Clint Eastwood, Sondra Locke, Geoffrey Lewis
• Eyes of Laura Mars, directed by Irvin Kershner, starring Faye Dunaway and Tommy Lee Jones

F

• F.I.S.T., directed by Norman Jewison, starring Sylvester Stallone, Melinda Dillon, Rod Steiger
• FM, starring Cleavon Little and Eileen Brennan
• Fedora, directed by Billy Wilder, starring William Holden and Marthe Keller
• Fingers, directed by James Toback, starring Harvey Keitel
• Five Deadly Venoms
• Force 10 from Navarone, starring Robert Shaw, Edward Fox, Harrison Ford – (U.K.)
• Foul Play, directed by Colin Higgins, starring Goldie Hawn, Chevy Chase, Dudley Moore and Billy Barty
• The Fury, directed by Brian De Palma, starring Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, Carrie Snodgress, Andrew Stevens, Amy Irving

G

• Gates of Heaven, a documentary film
• Germany in Autumn (Deutschland im Herbst) – (West Germany)
• Get Out Your Handkerchiefs (Preparez vos mouchoirs), directed by Bertrand Blier – (France)
• Girlfriends, directed by Claudia Weill, starring Melanie Mayron – Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner
• Go Tell the Spartans, starring Burt Lancaster
• Gray Lady Down, starring Charlton Heston, David Carradine, Stacy Keach, Ronny Cox, Ned Beatty
• Grease, directed by Randal Kleiser, starring John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Jeff Conaway, Stockard Channing, Sid Caesar, Eve Arden

H

• Halloween, directed by John Carpenter, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasence
• Harper Valley PTA, starring Barbara Eden
• Heaven Can Wait, directed by Buck Henry and Warren Beatty, starring Beatty, Julie Christie, Charles Grodin, Dyan Cannon, Jack Warden, James Mason
• The Herd (Sürü) – (Turkey)
• High-Ballin', starring Peter Fonda, Michael Ironside, Helen Shaver, Jerry Reed
• Holocaust, TV miniseries, starring Meryl Streep, James Woods, Michael Moriarty, Tovah Feldshuh, Fritz Weaver, Ian Holm
• Hooper, directed by Hal Needham, starring Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jan-Michael Vincent, Robert Klein, Brian Keith
• Hot Lead and Cold Feet, directed by Robert Butler, starring Jim Dale, Karen Valentine, Don Knotts
• House Calls, directed by Howard Zieff, starring Walter Matthau, Glenda Jackson, Richard Benjamin, Art Carney
• A Hunting Accident (Moy laskovyy i nezhnyy zver) – (U.S.S.R.)

I–J

• I Wanna Hold Your Hand, directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Nancy Allen, Marc McClure, Bobby Di Cicco
• Ice Castles, directed by Donald Wrye, starring Lynn-Holly Johnson and Robby Benson
• In a Year of 13 Moons (In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden), directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder – (West Germany)
• In Praise of Older Women, starring Tom Berenger, Karen Black, Helen Shaver – (Canada)
• Interiors, directed by Woody Allen, starring Geraldine Page, Diane Keaton, E. G. Marshall, Mary Beth Hurt, Maureen Stapleton
• International Velvet, starring Tatum O'Neal, Nanette Newman and Anthony Hopkins
• Invasion of the Body Snatchers, remake of 1956 movie, directed by Philip Kaufman, starring Donald Sutherland, Brooke Adams, Jeff Goldblum
• Jaws 2, directed by Jeannot Szwarc, starring Roy Scheider and Lorraine Gary

K–L

• Killer of Sheep, directed by Charles Burnett
• King of the Gypsies, starring Eric Roberts, Sterling Hayden, Judd Hirsch, Shelley Winters, Brooke Shields
• Kondura (The Boon), directed by Shyam Benegal – (India-Bollywood/Telugu)
• Lady on the Bus (A Dama do Lotação), starring Sônia Braga – (Brazil)
• The Left-Handed Woman (Die linkshändige Frau) – (West Germany)
• The Last Waltz, directed by Martin Scorsese, featuring The Band, Van Morrison, Neil Young, Bob Dylan
• Long Weekend, starring John Hargreaves – (Australia)
• The Lord of the Rings, animated film by Ralph Bakshi, with voices of William Squire, John Hurt, Anthony Daniels

M

• Magic, directed by Richard Attenborough, starring Anthony Hopkins, Ann-Margret, Burgess Meredith, Ed Lauter
• De Mantel der Liefde (The Mantle of Love) – (Netherlands)
• Mean Dog Blues, starring Gregg Henry, Kay Lenz, Tina Louise and George Kennedy
• The Medusa Touch, starring Richard Burton, Lino Ventura and Lee Remick – (U.K.)
• Midnight Express, directed by Alan Parker, starring Brad Davis, Randy Quaid, John Hurt – (U.K./U.S.A.)
• Moment by Moment, directed by Jane Wagner, starring John Travolta and Lily Tomlin
• Movie Movie, directed by Stanley Donen, starring George C. Scott, Harry Hamlin, Barry Bostwick, Trish Van Devere, Red Buttons, Art Carney
• Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (Conqueror of Destiny), starring Amitabh Bachchan – (India)

N–O

• National Lampoon's Animal House, directed by John Landis, starring John Belushi, Tim Matheson, Peter Riegert, Tom Hulce, Karen Allen, John Vernon
• Newsfront, directed by Phillip Noyce, starring Wendy Hughes and Bryan Brown – (Australia)
• A Night Full of Rain (Una notte piena di pioggia), directed by Lina Wertmüller, starring Giancarlo Giannini and Candice Bergen – (Italy/U.S.A.)
• The Night the Prowler, directed by Jim Sharman – (Australia)
• Occupation in 26 Pictures (Okupacija u 26 slika) – (Yugoslavia)
• Oliver's Story, directed by John Korty, starring Ryan O'Neal and Candice Bergen
• The One and Only, directed by Carl Reiner, starring Henry Winkler and Kim Darby
• Orchestra Rehearsal (Prova d'orchestra), directed by Federico Fellini – (Italy)

P–Q

• Paradise Alley, directed by and starring Sylvester Stallone, with Armand Assante and Anne Archer
• Passion Flower Hotel (Leidenschaftliche Blümchen), starring Nastassja Kinski – (West Germany)
• Perceval le Gallois (Percival the Gaul), directed by Éric Rohmer – (France)
• Piranha, directed by Joe Dante, starring Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies, Kevin McCarthy
• The Place Without Limits (El lugar sin límites) – (Mexico)
• Pretty Baby, directed by Louis Malle, starring Keith Carradine, Susan Sarandon, Brooke Shields
• The Prophet, the Gold and the Transylvanians (Profetul, aurul si Ardelenii) – (Romania)
• Pugachev – (U.S.S.R.)

R

• Rabbit Test, directed by Joan Rivers, starring Billy Crystal
• Remember My Name, starring Geraldine Chaplin and Anthony Perkins
• Renaldo and Clara, directed by and starring Bob Dylan
• Return from Witch Mountain, starring Bette Davis and Christopher Lee
• Revenge of the Pink Panther, starring Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom and Dyan Cannon – (U.K./U.S.A.)
• Rhinegold – (West Germany)
• Ringing Bell (Chirin no Suzu), an anime film – (Japan)
• Rockers, starring Burning Spear, Gregory Isaacs and Big Youth – (Jamaica)

S

• The Sailor's Return, starring Tom Bell – (U.K.)
• Same Time Next Year, starring Alan Alda and Ellen Burstyn
• The Second Awakening of Christa Klages, directed by Margarethe von Trotta – (West Germany)
• Sextette, starring Mae West, Timothy Dalton, Dom DeLuise, Ringo Starr, Keith Moon, George Hamilton, Alice Cooper
• Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, starring Peter Frampton, Steve Martin and the Bee Gees with music by The Beatles
• Shogun's Samurai (Yagu ichizoku no inbō), starring Sonny Chiba – (Japan)
• The Shout, directed by Jerzy Skolimowski, starring Alan Bates, John Hurt and Susannah York – (U.K.)
• The Silent Partner, directed by Daryl Duke, starring Elliott Gould, Christopher Plummer, Susannah York
• Slow Dancing in the Big City, directed by John G. Avildsen, starring Paul Sorvino
• The Small One
• Snake in the Eagle's Shadow (Shé xíng diāo shǒu), starring Jackie Chan – (Hong Kong)
• Somebody Killed Her Husband, starring Farrah Fawcett and Jeff Bridges
• Stevie, starring Glenda Jackson and Trevor Howard – (U.K.)
• Straight Time, directed by Ulu Grosbard, starring Dustin Hoffman, Theresa Russell, Harry Dean Stanton, Gary Busey
• The Stud, starring Joan Collins – (U.K.)
• Superman, directed by Richard Donner, starring Christopher Reeve, Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Valerie Perrine, Ned Beatty, Glenn Ford
• The Swarm, starring Michael Caine, Katharine Ross, Richard Widmark, Henry Fonda, Fred MacMurray, Olivia de Havilland, Ben Johnson, Lee Grant
• The Swissmakers (Die Schweizermacher) – (Switzerland)

T

• Thank God It's Friday, starring Debra Winger, Donna Summer, Jeff Goldblum
• Three from Prostokvashino (Troye iz Prostokvashino) – (U.S.S.R.)
• Toplo (Heat) – (Bulgaria)
• The Tree of Wooden Clogs (L'Albero degli zoccoli), directed by Ermanno Olmi – (Italy) – Palme d'Or winner
• Trishul, starring Sanjeev Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan – (India)
• Las truchas (The Trout) – (Spain) – Golden Bear winner
• Two Solitudes, starring Jean-Pierre Aumont and Stacy Keach – (Canada)

U–V

• Uncle Joe Shannon, starring Burt Young
• An Unmarried Woman, directed by Paul Mazursky, starring Jill Clayburgh, Alan Bates, Michael Murphy
• Up in Smoke, starring Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong
• Violette Nozière, directed by Claude Chabrol, starring Isabelle Huppert and Stéphane Audran – (France)

W

• Ward Six (Paviljon VI) – (Yugoslavia)
• Warriors Two (Zan xian sheng yu zhao qian Hua), starring Bryan Leung and Sammo Hung – (Hong Kong)
• The Water Babies, directed by Lionel Jeffries, starring James Mason, Bernard Cribbins, Billie Whitelaw – (U.K./Poland)
• Watership Down, animated film directed by Martin Rosen, with the voices of John Hurt and Richard Briers – (U.K.)
• A Wedding, directed by Robert Altman, starring Desi Arnaz, Jr., Carol Burnett, Geraldine Chaplin, Lauren Hutton, Paul Dooley, Mia Farrow
• Who Is Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?, starring George Segal and Jacqueline Bisset – (West Germany/U.S.A.)
• Who'll Stop the Rain, directed by Karel Reisz, starring Nick Nolte and Tuesday Weld
• The Wild Geese, starring Richard Burton, Roger Moore, Richard Harris – (U.K.)
• Without Anesthesia (Bez znieczulenia), directed by Andrzej Wajda – (Poland)
• The Wiz, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell
• Wolf Lake, directed by Burt Kennedy, starring Rod Steiger

XYZ

• You Are Not Alone (Du er ikke alene) – (Denmark)

Births

• January 1 – Christian Tessier, Canadian actor
• January 5 – Clarine Harp, voice actress
• January 8 – Scott Whyte, actor
• January 9 - A. J. McLean, American musician, singer, dancer, actor, and entertainer
• January 15 – Eddie Cahill, actor
• January 17
  • Ricky Wilson, English actor, singer
  • Pater Sparrow, Hungarian actor, filmmaker
• January 20 – Omar Sy, French actor
• January 24 – Mark Hildreth, Canadian actor, voice actor
• February 7 – Ashton Kutcher, actor
• February 9 – A. J. Buckley, Canadian actor
• February 17 - Ashton Holmes, actor
• February 20
  • Julia Jentsch, German actress
  • Jay Hernandez, actor
• March 1 – Jensen Ackles, actor
• March 5 – Kimberly McCullough, actress, dancer, director
• March 8 – Nick Zano, actor
• March 17
  • Patrick Seitz, voice actor
  • Jason M. Burns, American writer
• March 21 – Rani Mukerji, Indian actress
• March 23 – Nicholle Tom and David Tom, actress and actor
• April 1 – Anamaria Marinca, Romanian actress
• April 2 – Deon Richmond, former child actor
• April 3 – Matthew Goode, English actor
• April 12 – Riley Smith, actor
• April 13 – Kyle Howard, actor
• April 16 – Lara Dutta, Indian actress
• April 19 – James Franco, actor
• April 20
  • Matt Austin, Canadian actor
  • Clayne Crawford, actor
• April 23 - Ian Brennan, writer, actor, producer
• April 26 – Pablo Schreiber, Canadian actor
• April 29 – Tyler Labine, Canadian actor
• May 8 – Matthew Davis, actor
• May 10 – Kenan Thompson, actor, comedian
• May 12 – Jason Biggs, actor
• May 15
  • Caroline Dhavernas, Canadian actress
  • David Krumholtz, actor
• May 16 – Jim Sturgess, actor
• May 18 – Chad Donella, Canadian actor
• May 24 – Bryan Greenberg, actor
• June 2
  • Nikki Cox, actress
  • Dominic Cooper, actor
• June 4 - Robin Lord Taylor, actor
• June 6 – Judith Barsi, child actress (d. 1988)
• June 7 – Bill Hader, actor, comedian
• June 8 – Maria Menounos, actress
• June 10
  • Shane West, actor
  • DJ Qualls, actor
• June 11 – Joshua Jackson, Canadian actor
• June 13 – Ethan Embry, actor
• June 14 – Diablo Cody, Canadian writer
• June 16 – Daniel Brühl, German actor
• June 19 – Zoe Saldana, actress
• June 21 – Erica Durance, Canadian actress
• July 2 – Owain Yeoman, Welsh actor
• July 3 – Ian Anthony Dale, actor
• July 4 – Becki Newton, actress
• July 6 – Tia Mowry and Tamera Mowry, actresses
• July 8 – Rachael Lillis, voice actress
• July 12
  • Michelle Rodriguez, actress
  • Topher Grace, actor
• July 19 – R. J. Williams, actor, television host, CEO of Young Hollywood
• July 20 – Charlie Korsmo, former child actor
• July 21
  • Josh Hartnett, actor
  • Justin Bartha, actor
• July 22 – A. J. Cook, Canadian actress
• July 24 – Jeff Mauro, actor, chef
• August 3 - Tommy Dewey, actor, producer, writer
• August 8 – Countess Vaughn, actress
• August 10 - Leo Fitzpatrick, actor
• August 18 – Andy Samberg, actor, comedian
• August 22 – James Corden, singer, actor, television host
• August 25 – Kel Mitchell, actor, comedian
• August 31 – Mike Erwin, actor
• September 3 – Nick Wechsler, actor
• September 4 – Wes Bentley, actor
• September 7 – Devon Sawa, Canadian actor
• September 12 - Benjamin McKenzie, actor
• September 18 – Billy Eichner, American comedian, actor, writer, and television personality
• September 20 – Charlie Weber, actor
• September 23 – Anthony Mackie, American actor
• September 28 – Lucas Bryant, Canadian actor
• September 29 – Nathan West, actor
• October 3 – Shannyn Sossamon, actress
• October 9 – Randy Spelling, actor
• October 10 – Trevor Eyster, actor
• October 11 – Trevor Donovan, actor
• October 14 – Usher, singer, actor
• October 15 – Devon Gummersall, actor
• October 18 – Wesley Jonathan, actor
• October 21
  • Will Estes, actor
  • Michael McMillian, actor
• October 27 – David Walton, actor
• October 30 – Matthew Morrison, singer, actor
• October 31 – Brian Hallisay, actor
• November 1 – Mary Kate Schellhardt, actress
• November 9 – Sisqó, singer, actor, songwriter
• November 10
  • David Paetkau, Canadian actor
  • Diplo, actor, DJ, record producer, rapper, songwriter
• November 11 - Dean S. Jagger, English actor
• November 17
  • Tom Ellis, Welsh actor
  • Rachel McAdams, Canadian actress
• November 24 – Katherine Heigl, actress
• December 7
  • Shiri Appleby, actress
  • Kristofer Hivju, Norwegian film actor, producer and writer
• December 8 – Ian Somerhalder, actor
• December 9 – Jesse Metcalfe, actor
• December 13 – Cameron Douglas, actor
• December 16 – Joe Absolom, English actor
• December 18
  • Katie Holmes, actress
  • Josh Dallas, actor
• December 21 – Mike Vitar, American actor
• December 24 – Carlson Twins, American actors, models
• December 30 – Tyrese Gibson, actor, singer, model

Notable deaths

Film debuts

• Karen Allen – National Lampoon's Animal House
• Pedro Almodóvar (director) – Folle...folle...fólleme Tim!
• Kevin Bacon – National Lampoon's Animal House
• Jim Broadbent – The Shout
• Jake Busey – Straight Time
• Billy Crystal – Rabbit Test
• Jamie Lee Curtis – Halloween
• Corey Feldman – Born Again
• Daryl Hannah – The Fury
• Mark Harmon – Comes a Horseman
• Ed Harris – Coma
• Michael Keaton – Rabbit Test
• Cheech Marin – Up in Smoke
• James Remar - On the Yard
• James Spader – Team-Mates
• Mary Steenburgen – Goin' South
• Alfre Woodard – Remember My Name

References