This is a list of films which have placed number one at the weekend box office in the United States during 1986.
Number-one films †This implies the highest-grossing movie of the year. Weekend end date Film Box office Notes 1 Rocky IV $7,147,074 2 Out of Africa $5,137,370 Out of Africa reached number 1 in its fourth weekend of release. 3 Iron Eagle $6,104,754 4 The Color Purple $4,412,456 The Color Purple reached number 1 in its seventh weekend of release. 5 Down and Out in Beverly Hills $5,726,495 6 $6,112,115 7 4-day weekend $7,023,743 8 $5,042,912 9 Pretty in Pink $6,065,870 10 $4,919,668 11 Gung Ho $7,170,830 12 Police Academy 3: Back in Training $9,049,586 13 $5,750,986 14 $5,089,751 15 The Money Pit $3,646,200 The Money Pit reached number 1 in its third weekend of release. 16 Legend $4,261,154 17 $2,591,751 18 Jo Jo Dancer, Your Life Is Calling $4,879,107 19 Short Circuit $5,346,808 Independent sources suggested that the film only grossed between $4.5 to $4.725 million. 20 Top Gun † $8,193,052 21 4-day weekend Cobra $15,652,147 Cobra broke Superman IIs record ($14.1 million) for highest weekend debut for a Warner Bros. film. 22 $7,511,542 23 Top Gun † $8,231,279 Top Gun reclaimed number 1 in fourth weekend of release. 24 Back to School $8,881,035 25 The Karate Kid Part II $12,652,336 26 $8,870,625 27 $6,284,953 28 $6,667,787 29 Aliens $10,052,042 Aliens broke Halloween IIs record ($7.67 million) for highest weekend debut for a film featuring a female protagonist. 30 $8,640,292 31 $7,060,101 Initial estimates had Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives ahead of Aliens. 32 $5,779,352 33 The Fly $7,007,423 34 $4,725,970 35 4-day weekend Stand by Me $5,037,343 Stand by Me reached number 1 in its second weekend of release. 36 $3,426,615 37 $3,010,922 38 Top Gun † $3,292,817 Top Gun reclaimed number 1 in its nineteenth week of release, with the 14 week gap since it was last number one, the longest gap for a film since 1982. 39 Crocodile Dundee $8,038,855 Crocodile Dundee set the record for highest-grossing weekend in September. 40 $8,207,503 41 4-day weekend $10,560,827 42 $7,434,202 43 $6,745,249 44 $5,716,215 45 $6,392,661 46 $5,521,551 47 $5,537,875 In second place, An American Tails opening ($5.2 million) broke The Fox and the Hounds record ($4.2 million) for the highest weekend debut for an animated film and The Care Bears Movies record ($3.7 million) for the highest weekend debut for a non-Disney animated film. 48 Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home $16,881,888 Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home had the highest weekend debut of 1986. 49 $8,833,818 50 The Golden Child $11,549,711 51 $7,877,899 52 $10,118,277
Highest-grossing films
Calendar Gross Highest-grossing films of 1986 by Calendar Gross Rank Title Studio(s) Actor(s) Director(s) Gross 1. Top GunParamount Pictures Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, Val Kilmer, Anthony Edwards and Tom Skerritt Tony Scott $176,781,728 2. Crocodile Dundee Paul Hogan, Linda Kozlowski, Mark Blum, David Gulpilil, Michael Lombard and John Meillon Peter Faiman $116,849,307 3. The Karate Kid Part II Columbia Pictures Ralph Macchio, Pat Morita, Tamlyn Tomita and Yuji Okumoto John G. Avildsen $115,103,979 4. Back to School Orion Pictures Rodney Dangerfield, Keith Gordon, Sally Kellerman, Burt Young, Terry Farrell, William Zabka, Ned Beatty, Sam Kinison, Paxton Whitehead, Robert Downey Jr., M. Emmet Walsh and Adrienne Barbeau Alan Metter $91,258,000 5. Aliens 20th Century Fox Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, Paul Reiser, Carrie Henn, Bill Paxton, Jenette Goldstein and Lance Henriksen James Cameron $85,160,248 6. The Color Purple Warner Bros. Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, Danny Glover, Adolph Caesar, Margaret Avery and Rae Dawn Chong Steven Spielberg $83,993,103 7. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home Paramount Pictures William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, George Takei, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols and Catherine Hicks Leonard Nimoy $72,742,016 8. Ruthless People Buena Vista Distribution Danny DeVito, Judge Reinhold, Helen Slater, Bette Midler, Anita Morris and Bill Pullman Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker $70,788,212 9. Out of Africa Universal Pictures Robert Redford, Meryl Streep and Klaus Maria Brandauer Sydney Pollack $70,365,426 10. Ferris Bueller's Day Off Paramount Pictures Matthew Broderick, Mia Sara, Alan Ruck, Jennifer Grey, Jeffrey Jones, Cindy Pickett, Edie McClurg, Lyman Ward and Charlie Sheen John Hughes $70,136,369
In-Year Release + Highest-grossing films of 1986 by In-year release Rank Title Distributor Domestic gross 1. Top Gun Paramount $176,781,728 2. Crocodile Dundee $174,803,506 3. Platoon Orion $138,530,565 4. The Karate Kid Part II Columbia $115,103,979 5. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home Paramount $109,713,132 6. Back to School Orion $91,258,000 7. Aliens 20th Century Fox $85,160,248 8. The Golden Child Paramount $79,817,937 9. Ruthless People Disney $71,624,879 10. Ferris Bueller's Day Off Paramount $70,136,369
+ Highest-grossing films by MPAA rating of 1986 G An American Tail PG Top Gun PG-13 Crocodile Dundee R Platoon
See also List of American films — American films by year Lists of box office number-one films
References
Chronology