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:
RankTitleDistributorBox-office gross
1Kramer vs. KramerColumbia$106,260,000
2The Amityville HorrorAmerican International$86,432,520
3Rocky IIUnited Artists$85,182,160
4Apocalypse NowUnited Artists$83,471,511
5Star Trek: The Motion PictureParamount$82,258,456
6Alien20th Century Fox$80,931,801
7The Muppet MovieUniversal / Associated Film$76,657,000
810Warner Bros.$74,865,517
9The JerkUniversal$73,691,419
10MoonrakerUnited Artists$70,308,099

International

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

Palme d'Or :
'''Golden Bear :'''

1979 films

By country/region