1979 in film

The year 1979 in film involved many significant events.

Highest-grossing films

United States and Canada

The top ten 1979 released films by North American gross are as follows:

+ Highest-grossing films of 1979 (United States and Canada) Rank Title Distributor Box-office gross 1 Kramer vs. Kramer Columbia $106,260,000 2 The Amityville Horror American International $86,432,520 3 Rocky IIUnited Artists $85,182,160 4Apocalypse Now $83,471,511 5Star Trek: The Motion Picture Paramount $82,258,456 6 Alien 20th Century Fox $80,931,801 7 The Muppet Movie Universal / Associated Film $76,657,000Box Office Information for The Muppet Movie The Numbers. Retrieved March 31, 2025. 8 10 Warner Bros. $74,865,517 9The Jerk Universal $73,691,419 10 Moonraker United Artists $70,308,099

International + Highest-grossing films of 1979 (international markets) International market Title Distributor Admissions Gross revenue Production country Local currency US$ChinaGunshots in the CIBChangchun Film Studio600,000,000$,000,000ChinaFranceThe Gendarme and the Extra-TerrestrialsSNC6,280,070FranceWest GermanyThe Jungle Book20th Century Fox9,103,582$,000,000United States India Suhaag Sharma Cine Associates 100,000,000 $12,310,000 IndiaItalySupermanColumbia-EMI-Warner904,000United States Japan Galaxy Express 999 Toei 16,500,000,000 $76,120,000 Japan Soviet Union Sholay (Embers) R. K. Films 60,000,000 15,000,000Rbls $28,200,000 IndiaSpainSupermanWarner Bros.4,795,628₧655,346,759$9,763,080 United States United Kingdom Superman Columbia-EMI-Warner10,190,000 £11,547,308 $24,455,309

Major events March 2 – Buena Vista release their first film since the advent of U.S. movie ratings to not be G-rated, Take Down. March 5 – Production begins on The Empire Strikes Back. March – Frank Price becomes president of Columbia Pictures. May 25 – Alien, a landmark of the science fiction genre, is released. May 29 - Mary Pickford, a silent screen legend and Hollywood pioneer who was, at the height of her career, the most famous woman in the world, dies of a stroke. May 31 – The Muppet Movie, Jim Henson's Muppets' first foray into the world of feature-length motion pictures, is released in United Kingdom. June 11 – John Wayne, a famous Western movie actor, dies at the age of 72 from stomach cancer. June 27 – 20th Century Fox Pictures president Alan Ladd Jr. and vice-presidents Jay Kanter and Gareth Wigan agree to leave Fox. June 29 – Moonraker, the 11th film in the James Bond franchise, is released in the United States and goes on to become the highest-grossing film of the year worldwide. August 15 – Apocalypse Now is released to worldwide critical acclaim and box office success. Heralded as one of the greatest films ever made to this day. September 19 – Don Bluth and a group of fellow animators resign from The Walt Disney Company's animation department to set up a rival studio, Don Bluth Productions. October 1 – Alan Ladd Jr., Jay Kanter and Gareth Wigan who agreed to leave Fox earlier in the year formally announce the creation of The Ladd Company. October 3 – producers Benjamin Melniker and Michael E. Uslan purchase the film rights of Batman from DC Comics. It would be another ten years, before a Batman feature film would be fully realized. November 1 – Production begins on Raiders of the Lost Ark. December 7 – Star Trek: The Motion Picture debuts in the United States to mixed reviews but blockbuster box office, launching a film franchise that leads to 9 sequels and 3 reboots over the next 37 years. It also leads to the creation of five spin-off television series based upon Gene Roddenberry's creation. Allied Artists files for bankruptcy.

Awards Category/Organization 37th Golden Globe AwardsJanuary 26, 1980 33rd BAFTA AwardsMarch 20, 1980 52nd Academy AwardsApril 14, 1980 Drama Musical or Comedy Best Film Kramer vs. Kramer Breaking Away Manhattan Kramer vs. Kramer Best Director Francis Ford CoppolaApocalypse Now Robert BentonKramer vs. Kramer Best Actor Dustin HoffmanKramer vs. Kramer Peter SellersBeing There Jack LemmonThe China Syndrome Dustin HoffmanKramer vs. Kramer Best Actress Sally FieldNorma Rae Bette MidlerThe Rose Jane FondaThe China Syndrome Sally FieldNorma Rae Best Supporting Actor Melvyn DouglasBeing ThereRobert DuvallApocalypse Now Robert DuvallApocalypse Now Melvyn DouglasBeing There Best Supporting Actress Meryl StreepKramer vs. Kramer Rachel RobertsYanks Meryl StreepKramer vs. Kramer Best Screenplay, Adapted Robert BentonKramer vs. Kramer Woody Allen and Marshall BrickmanManhattan Robert BentonKramer vs. Kramer Best Screenplay, Original Steve TesichBreaking Away Best Original Score Carmine Coppola and Francis Ford CoppolaApocalypse Now Ennio MorriconeDays of Heaven Georges DelerueA Little RomanceRalph BurnsAll That Jazz Best Original Song "The Rose"The Rose N/A "It Goes Like It Goes"Norma Rae Best Foreign Language Film La Cage aux Folles N/A The Tin Drum

Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival): Apocalypse Now, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, United States The Tin Drum (Die Blechtrommel), directed by Volker Schlöndorff, W. Germany

Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival): David, directed by Peter Lilienthal, West Germany

People's Choice Award (Toronto International Film Festival): Best Boy, directed by Ira Wohl, United States

1979 films By country/region List of American films of 1979 List of Argentine films of 1979 List of Australian films of 1979 List of Bangladeshi films of 1979 List of British films of 1979 List of Canadian films of 1979 List of French films of 1979 List of Hong Kong films of 1979 List of Indian films of 1979 List of Hindi films of 1979 List of Kannada films of 1979 List of Malayalam films of 1979 List of Marathi films of 1979 List of Tamil films of 1979 List of Telugu films of 1979 List of Japanese films of 1979 List of Mexican films of 1979 List of Pakistani films of 1979 List of South Korean films of 1979 List of Soviet films of 1979 List of Spanish films of 1979

By genre/medium List of action films of 1979 List of animated feature films of 1979 List of avant-garde films of 1979 List of comedy films of 1979 List of drama films of 1979 List of horror films of 1979 List of science fiction films of 1979 List of thriller films of 1979 List of western films of 1979

Births January 1 – Vidya Balan, Indian actress January 2 - Erica Hubbard, American actress January 6 – Cristela Alonzo, American comedian, actress, writer and producer January 8 Ashraf Barhom, Israeli-Arab actor Sarah Polley, Canadian actress January 10 - Maximilian Brückner, German actor January 13 - Katy Brand, English actress, comedian and writer January 16 – Aaliyah, American actress and singer (d. 2001) January 24 – Tatyana Ali, American actress and singer January 25 - Christine Lakin, American actress January 26 – Sara Rue, American actress January 27 – Rosamund Pike, English actress and producer January 28 Adam Bartley, American actor Angelique Cabral, American actress January 29 – Andrew Keegan, American actor January 31 - Emmett J. Scanlan, Irish actor February 1 – Rachelle Lefevre, Canadian actress February 2 – Shamita Shetty, Indian actress February 3 – Costa Ronin, Australian actor and cinematographer February 7 - Cerina Vincent, American actress February 8 - Josh Keaton, American actor and musician February 9 – Zhang Ziyi, Chinese actress and dancer February 11 – Brandy Norwood, American actress and singer February 12 - Angus Sampson, Australian actor and filmmaker February 13 – Mena Suvari, American actress February 19 - Andrew Buchan, English actor and writer February 21 Tituss Burgess, American actor and singer Maryke Hendrikse, Bahamian-born Canadian voice actress Jennifer Love Hewitt, American actress and singer Jordan Peele, American actor, comedian, writer, director and producer March 3 Bonnie Mbuli, South African actress Patrick Renna, American actor March 5 – Riki Lindhome, American actress, comedian and musician March 7 – Arlindo Lopes, Brazilian actor March 9 – Oscar Isaac, Guatemalan-American actor March 10 Edi Gathegi, Kenyan-American actor Danny Pudi, American actor March 12 - Rhys Coiro, American actor March 14 - Chris Klein, American actor March 17 – Stephen Kramer Glickman, Canadian actor, music producer and stand-up comedian March 18 – Adam Levine, American singer, songwriter, musician and actor March 19 - Abby Brammell, American actress March 20 Freema Agyeman, British actress Bianca Lawson, American actress March 24 – Lake Bell, American actress, director and screenwriter March 25 – Lee Pace, American actor March 28 – Shakib Khan, Bangladeshi film actor, producer, singer, film organiser and media personalities March 29 – De'Angelo Wilson, American actor and rapper (d. 2008) March 30 Jose Pablo Cantillo, American actor Pete Holmes, American comedian, actor, writer, producer and podcaster April 4 Bunko Kanazawa, Japanese actress Heath Ledger, Australian actor (d. 2008) Natasha Lyonne, American actress April 5 – Josh Boone, American filmmaker April 7 - Nico Santos, Filipino-American actor April 9 - Edward Bennett, English actor April 10 - Paul Fox, English actor April 11 – Josh Server, American actor April 12 Claire Danes, American actress Jennifer Morrison, American actress, director and producer Paul Nicholls, English actor April 15 Karen David, Canadian actress and singer-songwriter Luke Evans, Welsh actor and singer April 17 Mylene Dinh-Robic, Canadian actress Ken Duken, German actor and director Tate Ellington, American actor April 19 – Kate Hudson, American actress April 21 – James McAvoy, Scottish actor April 23 – Jaime King, American actress April 26 – Klára Issová, Czech actress April 27 - Tom Davis, English actor and comedian May 5 – Vincent Kartheiser, American actor May 6 - Kerry Ellis, English actress and singer May 7 – Yōsuke Kubozuka, Japanese actor May 9 – Rosario Dawson, American actress May 11 - Mary Elizabeth Ellis, American actress May 12 – Aaron Yoo, Korean-American actor May 17 - Lyne Renée, Belgian actress May 19 - Bérénice Marlohe, French actress May 20 - Jana Pallaske, German actress and singer May 21 - Lino Guanciale, Italian actor May 22 – Maggie Q, American actress May 23 – Josh Cooley, American animator, screenwriter, director and voice actor May 24 - Panos Mouzourakis, Greek singer-songwriter and actor May 25 - Corbin Allred, American actor May 28 Jesse Bradford, American actor Monica Keena, American actress May 30 Jenny Mollen, American actress and writer Tadhg Murphy, Irish actor June 2 Morena Baccarin, Brazilian actress James Ransone, American actor (d. 2025) June 7 – Anna Torv, Australian actress June 12 - Wil Horneff, American former child actor June 17 – Young Maylay, American rapper, producer and voice actor June 20 - Sarah Stiles, American singer and actress June 21 – Chris Pratt, American actor June 24 – Mindy Kaling, American writer and actress June 25 Hong Chau, American actress Busy Philipps, American actress June 27 Martin Bourboulon, French film director and screenwriter Benjamin Speed, Australian film composer June 28 - Elaine Tan, English actress June 30 - Rick Gonzalez, American actor and musician July 3 – Ludivine Sagnier, French actress July 5 – Eva Maria Daniels, Icelandic film producer (d. 2023) July 6 Kevin Hart, American actor Abdul Salis, British actor July 7 - Benjamin Mitchell, New Zealand actor July 10 – Gong Yoo, South Korean actor July 12 – Omid Abtahi, Iranian-American actor July 14 – Scott Porter, American actor July 16 Jayma Mays, American actress Gerard Monaco, British actor July 17 – Mike Vogel, American actor and former model July 19 – David Sakurai, Danish-Japanese actor, director and scriptwriter July 24 - Rose Byrne, Australian actress July 25 - Juan Pablo Di Pace, Argentine actor, director, singer and musician July 26 - Mageina Tovah, American actress July 30