1973 in film


This page covers significant events of the year 1973 in film.
Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Studios celebrated their 50th anniversaries.

Highest-grossing films

United States and Canada

The top ten 1973 released films by box office gross in the United States and Canada are as follows:
RankTitleDistributorDomestic rentals
1The ExorcistWarner Bros.$88,500,000
2The StingUniversal$79,000,000
3American GraffitiUniversal$55,900,000
4PapillonAllied Artists$22,500,000
5The Way We WereColumbia$22,457,000
6Magnum ForceWarner Bros.$20,100,000
7Last Tango in ParisUnited Artists$16,711,000
8Paper MoonParamount$16,559,000
9Live and Let DieUnited Artists$15,925,000
10SerpicoParamount$15,400,000

Outside North America

The highest-grossing 1973 films in countries outside of North America.
CountryTitleStudioGross
FranceThe Mad Adventures of Rabbi JacobSNC7,295,727 admissions
GermanyPapillonColumbia Pictures8,500,000 admissions
Hong KongThe House of 72 TenantsShaw Brothers Studio
IndiaBobbyR. K. Films
ItalyMaliciousParamount Pictures11,756,327 admissions
Soviet UnionThe Headless HorsemanLenfilm64,900,000 admissions
SpainCabaretTBD125.8 million ₧
United KingdomLive and Let DieEon Productions9,000,000 admissions

Worldwide gross revenue

The following table lists known worldwide gross revenue figures for several high-grossing films that originally released in 1973. Note that this list is incomplete and is therefore not representative of the highest-grossing films worldwide in 1973. This list also includes gross revenue from later re-releases.
TitleWorldwide grossCountry
The Exorcist$441,306,145United States
Enter the Dragon$400,000,000Worldwide
The Sting$257,000,000United States
Live and Let Die$161,800,000United Kingdom
American Graffiti$140,000,000United States
BobbyIndia

The year's highest-grossing actor worldwide was Hong Kong martial arts film star Bruce Lee, who died the same year.

Events

  • March – Five Fingers of Death is released in the United States and is a surprise success starting a kung fu film craze in North America
  • April 11 – Kim Jong-il publishes his film treatise On the Art of the Cinema.
  • May 1 – The Marx Brothers' Zeppo Marx divorces his second wife, Barbara Blakely; she will marry actor/singer Frank Sinatra in 1976.
  • July 20 – Martial arts legend Bruce Lee dies before Enter the Dragon is released on July 26.
  • August 17 – The sci-fi movie Westworld is the first feature film to use digital image processing.
  • December 25 – The Sting is released and goes on to become one of the top-grossing films of all time.
  • December 26 – The Exorcist reawakens the horror film genre and becomes one of the most popular and controversial films ever released.

    Awards

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

1973 films

By country/region