1982 in film

Highest-grossing films

North America

Outside North America

Worldwide gross revenue

Events

• January 1 - Terry Semel becomes president of Warner Bros.
• June 11
• * E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is released; it will become the highest-grossing film of all time.
• * Michelle Pfeiffer appears in her first leading role, in Grease 2, the sequel to the top-grossing film of 1978.
• June 22 – The Coca-Cola Company acquires Columbia Pictures for $750 million.
• July 9 — Sci-fi movie Tron is the first feature film to use computer animation extensively.
• July 23 — During production of , 53-year-old American actor Vic Morrow and two child actors are accidentally killed during a scene involving an operated helicopter. The accident leads to reforms in filmmaking safety and child-labor laws.
• October 22 – First Blood is released to widespread commercial and critical success. It will go on to launch the extremely popular Rambo film franchise.
• December 8 – Comedian Eddie Murphy makes his film debut in 48 Hrs. which becomes a hit and starts his film career.
• December 17 – Tootsie is released and becomes the highest-grossing comedy of all-time and Columbia Pictures highest-grossing film with $177 million.
• December 27 - Ned Tanen resigns as president of Universal Pictures. Robert Rehme becomes president of Universal's new Theatrical Motion Picture Group.
• The THX Sound System is developed for use in movie theaters.

  Awards

Notable films released in 1982

#

• 48 Hours, directed by Walter Hill, starring Nick Nolte, Eddie Murphy, James Remar and Annette O'Toole

  A

• ', starring Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Chad Everett, Raymond Burr, Sonny Bono, William Shatner
• Alice
• Alone in the Dark, starring Jack Palance and Martin Landau
• Alsino and the Condor –
• ', starring James Olson, Burt Young, Rutanya Alda
• Android, starring Klaus Kinski
• The Angel, directed by Patrick Bokanowski –
• Angel, directed by Neil Jordan, starring Stephen Rea –
• Angoor, starring Sanjeev Kumar –
• Annie, directed by John Huston, starring Aileen Quinn, Albert Finney, Carol Burnett, Bernadette Peters, Ann Reinking, Tim Curry
• Another Way –
• Arth, directed by Mahesh Bhatt, starring Shabana Azmi –
• Aphrodite, starring Horst Buchholz, Valérie Kaprisky, Capucine –
• The Atomic Cafe, a documentary film on the era of nuclear warfare
• Author! Author!, directed by Arthur Hiller, starring Al Pacino, Dyan Cannon, Tuesday Weld, Alan King

  B

• La Balance, starring Nathalie Baye and Philippe Léotard –
• Barbarosa, directed by Fred Schepisi, starring Willie Nelson and Gary Busey
• Basket Case, directed by Frank Henenlotter
• The Beastmaster, starring Marc Singer –
• The Beast Within, directed by Philippe Mora, starring Ronny Cox
• Le Beau Mariage, directed by Éric Rohmer –
• Best Friends, starring Burt Reynolds, Goldie Hawn, Ron Silver, Jessica Tandy, Barnard Hughes, Keenan Wynn, Audra Lindley
• The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, starring Burt Reynolds, Dolly Parton, Jim Nabors, Dom DeLuise, Charles Durning
• La bête lumineuse –
• Blade Runner, directed by Ridley Scott, starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos, Joanna Cassidy, Daryl Hannah
• Blue Island –
• Boat People, directed by Ann Hui –
• The Border, directed by Tony Richardson, starring Jack Nicholson, Harvey Keitel, Warren Oates, Valerie Perrine
• Brimstone and Treacle, starring Denholm Elliott, Joan Plowright, Sting –
• Britannia Hospital, directed by Lindsay Anderson, starring Leonard Rossiter –
• Burden of Dreams, a documentary film featuring Werner Herzog, Claudia Cardinale, Klaus Kinski
• Butterfly, starring Pia Zadora, Stacy Keach, Orson Welles, Lois Nettleton

  C

• Cannery Row, directed by David S. Ward, starring Nick Nolte and Debra Winger
• Cat People, directed by Paul Schrader, starring Nastassja Kinski, Malcolm McDowell, John Heard, Annette O'Toole
• Cecilia –
• Chan Is Missing, directed by Wayne Wang
• Charodei –
• Class of 1984, starring Perry King and Timothy Van Patten
• La colmena – Golden Bear winner 1982
• Come Back to the Five and Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, directed by Robert Altman, starring Sandy Dennis, Cher, Karen Black
• Comeback, starring Eric Burdon, Julie Carmen –
• Conan the Barbarian, directed by John Milius, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Earl Jones
• The Concrete Jungle, directed by Tom DeSimone, starring Jill St. John and Tracey E. Bregman
• Countryman –
• Creepshow, directed by George A. Romero, starring Ted Danson, Leslie Nielsen, Hal Holbrook, E. G. Marshall, Adrienne Barbeau, Stephen King

  D

• The Dark Crystal, directed by Jim Henson and Frank Oz –
• Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, directed by Carl Reiner, starring Steve Martin and Rachel Ward
• Death Wish II, starring Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, Vincent Gardenia
• Deathtrap, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Michael Caine, Christopher Reeve, Dyan Cannon
• Death Valley, starring Catherine Hicks and Edward Herrmann
• Diner, directed by Barry Levinson, starring Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon, Tim Daly, Ellen Barkin, Paul Reiser
• A Dog in a Drawer –
• Dögkeselyű –
• The Draughtsman's Contract, directed by Peter Greenaway, starring Anthony Higgins and Janet Suzman –

  E

• E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Peter Coyote, Robert MacNaughton, Drew Barrymore
• Eating Raoul, directed by and starring Paul Bartel
• Endangered Species, starring Robert Urich and JoBeth Williams
• The Escape Artist, starring Raúl Juliá, Griffin O'Neal, Desi Arnaz
• Evil Under the Sun, starring Peter Ustinov, Diana Rigg, Maggie Smith, James Mason, Jane Birkin, Nicholas Clay, Sylvia Miles, Roddy McDowall –
• Eye of the Evil Dead aka Manhattan Baby, starring Christopher Connelly, Martha Taylor

  F

• Fall Guy –
• Fanny and Alexander, directed by Ingmar Bergman –
• Fast Times at Ridgemont High, directed by Amy Heckerling, starring Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judge Reinhold, Phoebe Cates, Ray Walston
• Fast-Walking, starring James Woods
• Fighting Back, starring Tom Skerritt
• Firefox, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood
• First Blood, directed by Ted Kotcheff, starring Sylvester Stallone, Richard Crenna, Brian Dennehy
• Fitzcarraldo, directed by Werner Herzog, starring Klaus Kinski –
• The Flight of Dragons –
• Forced Vengeance, starring Chuck Norris
• Frances, starring Jessica Lange, Sam Shepard, Kim Stanley
• Friday the 13th Part III, directed by Steve Miner, starring Dana Kimmell and Richard Brooker

  G

• Gandhi, directed by Richard Attenborough, starring Ben Kingsley – – Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA for best film
• Grease 2, starring Maxwell Caulfield and Michelle Pfeiffer
• The Grey Fox, starring Richard Farnsworth –

  H

• , starring Tom Atkins, Stacey Nelkin
• Hammett, directed by Wim Wenders, starring Frederic Forrest, Marilu Henner, Peter Boyle
• Hanky Panky, directed by Sidney Poitier, starring Gene Wilder, Gilda Radner, Richard Widmark, Kathleen Quinlan
• Harry Tracy, Desperado, starring Bruce Dern and Helen Shaver –
• Heart and Guts –
• Heatwave, directed by Phillip Noyce, starring Judy Davis –
• Heidi's Song, an animated film featuring Lorne Greene and Sammy Davis Jr.
• The Herdsman –
• Hey Good Lookin, an animated film directed by Ralph Bakshi
• Himala –
• Honkytonk Man, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood
• How the World Is Losing Poets –
• The Hunchback of Notre Dame, starring Anthony Hopkins, Derek Jacobi and Lesley-Anne Down –

  I-J

• I Ought to Be in Pictures, directed by Herbert Ross, starring Walter Matthau, Ann-Margret, Dinah Manoff
• I, the Jury, starring Armand Assante, Barbara Carrera, Laurene Landon, Alan King
• Identification of a Woman, directed by Michelangelo Antonioni –
• If You Could See What I Hear, starring Marc Singer, R.H. Thomas, Shari Belafonte, Sarah Torgov, Douglas Campbell
• If You Love This Planet –
• I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can, starring Jill Clayburgh, Nicol Williamson, Daniel Stern, Joe Pesci, Dianne Wiest, Geraldine Page
• Inchon!, directed by Terence Young, starring Laurence Olivier, Jacqueline Bisset, Ben Gazzara, Toshiro Mifune
• Interrogation –
• Jinxed!, starring Bette Midler, Ken Wahl, Rip Torn

  K

• Kiss Me Goodbye, directed by Robert Mulligan, starring Sally Field, Jeff Bridges, James Caan, Mildred Natwick
• Koyaanisqatsi, directed by Godfrey Reggio

  L

• The Last Unicorn, an animated film featuring Mia Farrow, Angela Lansbury, Alan Arkin
• Legendary Weapons of China
• Legend of a Fighter,starring Bryan Leung –
• L'Étoile du Nord, starring Simone Signoret and Philippe Noiret –
• Let's Spend the Night Together
• Liquid Sky
• Look Isan –
• Lonely Hearts –
• Lookin' to Get Out, directed by Hal Ashby, starring Ann-Margret, Jon Voight and Burt Young
• Love and Money, starring Ray Sharkey, Ornella Muti, Armand Assante
• Love Child, starring Amy Madigan and Beau Bridges

  M

• Macbeth –
• Les Maîtres du temps –
• Making Love, directed by Arthur Hiller, starring Harry Hamlin, Michael Ontkean, Kate Jackson
• The Man from Snowy River, starring Tom Burlinson and Kirk Douglas –
• The Marathon Family –
• Megaforce, directed by Hal Needham, starring Barry Bostwick and Persis Khambatta
• A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy, directed by and starring Woody Allen, with Mia Farrow, Julie Hagerty, Mary Steenburgen, José Ferrer
• Les Misérables, starring Lino Ventura –
• Missing, directed by Costa-Gavras, starring Jack Lemmon and Sissy Spacek – Palme d'Or winner
• The Missionary, directed by Richard Loncraine, starring Michael Palin, Maggie Smith, Trevor Howard –
• Mitahat La'af –
• Monkey Grip –
• Monsignor, directed by Frank Perry, starring Christopher Reeve, Geneviève Bujold, Fernando Rey, Jason Miller
• Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl –
• Moonlighting, directed by Jerzy Skolimowski, starring Jeremy Irons –
• La Morte Vivante, directed by Jean Rollin –
• Mother Lode, directed by and starring Charlton Heston
• My Favorite Year, directed by Richard Benjamin, starring Peter O'Toole, Mark Linn-Baker, Joseph Bologna, Jessica Harper, Bill Macy, Lainie Kazan

  N

• Namak Halaal, starring Amitabh Bachchan –
• The Night of the Shooting Stars, by Paolo Emilio Taviani –
• Night Shift, directed by Ron Howard, starring Henry Winkler, Michael Keaton, Shelley Long
• Nomad, starring Leslie Cheung –

  O

• An Officer and a Gentleman, directed by Taylor Hackford, starring Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Louis Gossett Jr., David Keith, Lisa Blount, Lisa Eilbacher, Robert Loggia
• On Top –
• On Top of the Whale –
• One from the Heart, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, starring Teri Garr, Frederic Forrest, Nastassja Kinski, Raúl Juliá
• Orkestar bez ime –
• Oro, Plata, Mata, directed by Peque Gallaga –

  P

• Pagliacci, directed by Franco Zeffirelli, starring Plácido Domingo –
• Pandemonium, starring Tom Smothers, Eve Arden, Eileen Brennan, Candice Azzara, Carol Kane
• Paradise, starring Phoebe Cates and Willie Aames –
• Partners, starring Ryan O'Neal and John Hurt
• The Passerby, starring Romy Schneider and Michel Piccoli –
• Personal Best, directed by Robert Towne, starring Mariel Hemingway, Patrice Donnelly, Scott Glenn
• Pieces, directed by Juan Piquer Simón
• Pink Floyd – The Wall, directed by Alan Parker, starring Bob Geldof –
• The Pirate Movie, starring Christopher Atkins and Kristy McNichol –
• The Plague Dogs, an animated film featuring John Hurt, James Bolam and Nigel Hawthorne –
• The Pokrovsky Gate –
• Poltergeist, directed by Tobe Hooper, starring Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams, Dominique Dunne, Heather O'Rourke, Oliver Robins, Zelda Rubinstein, Beatrice Straight
• The Pool Hustlers –
• Pra Frente, Brasil –
• Private Life –

  Q

• Q, starring Michael Moriarty, Richard Roundtree, Candy Clark
• The Queen of Spades –
• Querelle, directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Brad Davis, Franco Nero, Jeanne Moreau –
• A Question of Silence –

  R

• The Return of Martin Guerre, starring Gérard Depardieu –
• The Return of the Soldier, starring Alan Bates, Julie Christie, Glenda Jackson –
• Rickshaw Boy, starring Zhang Fengyi –
• Rocky III, directed by and starring Sylvester Stallone, with Mr. T, Talia Shire, Carl Weathers, Burt Young, Burgess Meredith

  S

• The Scarlet Pimpernel, starring Anthony Andrews, Ian McKellen, Jane Seymour –
• Scusate il ritardo –
• The Secret of NIMH, an animated film directed by Don Bluth
• The Seduction, starring Morgan Fairchild, Michael Sarrazin, Andrew Stevens and Colleen Camp
• The Sender, starring Kathryn Harrold, Željko Ivanek, Shirley Knight
• The Shadow Riders, starring Tom Selleck and Sam Elliott
• Shakti, starring Dilip Kumar –
• The Shaolin Temple, starring Jet Li –
• She Grazed Horses on Concrete –
• Shoot the Moon, directed by Alan Parker, starring Albert Finney, Diane Keaton, Peter Weller, Karen Allen
• Six Pack, starring Kenny Rogers and Diane Lane
• Six Weeks, directed by Tony Bill, starring Mary Tyler Moore and Dudley Moore
• Smithereens, directed by Susan Seidelman
• Sophie's Choice, directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Peter MacNicol
• Soup for One, starring Saul Rubinek
• Split Image, directed by Ted Kotcheff, starring Michael O'Keefe, Karen Allen, James Woods, Brian Dennehy, Peter Fonda
• Sportloto-82 –
• , directed by Nicholas Meyer, starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Ricardo Montalbán
• Starstruck, directed by Gillian Armstrong –
• The State of Things, directed by Wim Wenders – – Golden Lion winner
• Station for Two –
• Summer Lovers, directed by Randal Kleiser, starring Peter Gallagher, Daryl Hannah, Valérie Quennessen
• Swamp Thing, directed by Wes Craven, starring Louis Jourdan and Adrienne Barbeau
• The Sword and the Sorcerer, starring Lee Horsley
• Sword Stained with Royal Blood, directed by Chang Cheh –

  T

• Tempest, directed by Paul Mazursky, starring John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands, Molly Ringwald, Susan Sarandon
• Tenebrae, directed by Dario Argento, starring Anthony Franciosa –
• Tenkōsei –
• Tex, starring Matt Dillon
• That Championship Season, starring Robert Mitchum, Bruce Dern, Stacy Keach, Paul Sorvino, Martin Sheen
• That Night in Varennes, starring Jean-Louis Barrault, Marcello Mastroianni, Hanna Schygulla and Harvey Keitel –
• The Thing, directed by John Carpenter, starring Kurt Russell, Keith David, David Clennon, Donald Moffat, Richard Dysart, Wilford Brimley
• Things Are Tough All Over, starring Cheech & Chong
• , starring Fred Ward, Belinda Bauer, Peter Coyote
• Time Stands Still –
• Tootsie, directed by Sydney Pollack, starring Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman, Charles Durning, Bill Murray
• Trail of the Pink Panther, starring Peter Sellers –
• La Traviata, directed by Franco Zeffirelli, starring Plácido Domingo –
• Trick or Treats
• Tron, directed by Steven Lisberger, starring Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner, Cindy Morgan
• The Trout, directed by Joseph Losey, starring Isabelle Huppert, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Jeanne Moreau –
• Turkey Shoot, starring Steve Railsback and Olivia Hussey –

  U-V

• The Verdict, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Paul Newman, Charlotte Rampling, James Mason, Jack Warden, Milo O'Shea
• Veronika Voss, directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Rosel Zech – – Golden Bear award winner
• Vice Squad, starring Season Hubley and Wings Hauser
• Victor/Victoria, directed by Blake Edwards, starring Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston, Lesley Ann Warren, Alex Karras –
• Vidhaata, starring Dilip Kumar –
• Visiting Hours, starring Lee Grant and William Shatner –
• Volver a empezar – – Academy Award for Foreign language film

  W

• War and Peace, starring Jürgen Prochnow –
• , directed by Jim Brown
• We of the Never Never, starring Angela Punch McGregor –
• Die Weiße Rose –
• White Dog, directed by Samuel Fuller, starring Kristy McNichol, Paul Winfield, Jameson Parker, Burl Ives
• The Wind, directed by Souleymane Cissé –
• The Wizard of Oz –
• Woman of Fire '82 –
• The World According to Garp, directed by George Roy Hill, starring Robin Williams, Glenn Close, John Lithgow, Mary Beth Hurt
• The Worthless, directed by Mika Kaurismäki –
• Wrong Is Right, directed by Richard Brooks, starring Sean Connery, Katharine Ross, George Grizzard

  Y

• The Year of Living Dangerously, directed by Peter Weir, starring Mel Gibson, Sigourney Weaver, Linda Hunt –
• Yes, Giorgio, directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, starring Luciano Pavarotti and Kathryn Harrold
• Yol, directed by Yılmaz Güney – – Palme d'Or winner
• Young Doctors in Love, directed by Garry Marshall, starring Michael McKean and Sean Young

  Z

• Zapped!, starring Scott Baio, Willie Aames, Heather Thomas

  1982 Wide-release movies

January–March

• January 1982
• * January 1
• ** Madman
• * January 22
• ** Death Valley
• ** The Seduction
• ** Shoot the Moon
• ** Vice Squad
• * January 29
• ** The Border
• February 1982
• * February 5
• ** Butterfly
• ** Night Crossing
• ** Personal Best
• * February 12
• ** The Beast Within
• ** Cannery Row
• ** Love and Money
• ** Making Love
• ** Missing
• ** One from the Heart
• ** Quest for Fire
• * February 19
• ** Barbarosa
• ** Swamp Thing
• * February 20
• ** Death Wish II
• * February 26
• ** Evilspeak
• March 1982
• * March 5
• ** I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can
• * March 12
• ** Parasite
• * March 19
• ** Deathtrap
• ** Victor/Victoria
• * March 24
• ** Eating Raoul
• * March 26
• ** I Ought to Be in Pictures

  April–June

• April 1982
• * April 2
• ** A Little Sex
• ** Cat People
• ** Penitentiary II
• ** Silent Rage
• ** Some Kind of Hero
• * April 7
• ** Basket Case
• * April 16
• ** Wrong Is Right
• * April 23
• ** If You Could See What I Hear
• ** '
• * April 30
• ** Partners
• ** Soup for One
• May 1982
• * May 7
• ** Diner
• ** Forbidden World
• ** Paradise
• * May 14
• ** Conan the Barbarian
• ** The House Where Evil Dwells
• * May 21
• ** Annie
• ** Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid
• ** Fighting Back
• * May 28
• ** The Escape Artist
• ** Rocky III
• June 1982
• * June 4
• ** Hanky Panky
• ** Poltergeist
• ** '
• * June 11
• ** E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
• ** Grease 2
• * June 18
• ** Author! Author!
• ** Firefox
• * June 25
• ** Blade Runner
• ** Megaforce
• ** The Thing

  July–September

• July 1982
• * July 2
• ** The Secret of NIMH
• * July 9
• ** Tron
• * July 16
• ** A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy
• ** Six Pack
• ** Summer Lovers
• ** Young Doctors in Love
• * July 23
• ** The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas
• ** The Challenge
• ** The World According to Garp
• ** Zapped!
• * July 30
• ** Forced Vengeance
• ** The Last American Virgin
• ** Night Shift
• ** Tex
• August 1982
• * August 4
• ** Things Are Tough All Over
• * August 13
• ** Fast Times at Ridgemont High
• ** Friday the 13th Part III
• ** An Officer and a Gentleman
• ** Tempest
• * August 20
• ** The Beastmaster
• * August 28
• ** The Junkman
• September 1982
• * September 3
• ** The Concrete Jungle
• * September 10
• ** Endangered Species
• * September 17
• ** Hammett
• ** Pink Floyd – The Wall
• * September 24
• **
• ** Yes, Giorgio

  October–December

• October 1982
• * October 1
• ** Hey Good Lookin
• ** My Favorite Year
• * October 3
• ** Split Image
• * October 6
• ** The Wizard of Oz
• * October 15
• ** Love Child
• * October 22
• ** First Blood
• ** '
• ** Jinxed!
• ** Monsignor
• * October 29
• ** Class Reunion
• ** Q
• November 1982
• * November 5
• ** The Man from Snowy River
• ** '
• * November 10
• ** Creepshow
• * November 12
• ** Alone in the Dark
• ** Jimmy the Kid
• ** The Slumber Party Massacre
• ** They Call Me Bruce?
• ** White Dog
• * November 19
• ** '
• ** Heidi's Song
• ** The Last Unicorn
• ** Still of the Night
• December 1982
• * December 8
• ** 48 Hrs.
• ** The Verdict
• * December 10
• ** '
• ** Mighty Mouse in the Great Space Chase
• ** Sophie's Choice
• ** The Toy
• * December 11
• ** '
• * December 15
• ** Honkytonk Man
• * December 17
• ** Best Friends
• ** The Dark Crystal
• ** Six Weeks
• ** Tootsie
• ** Trail of the Pink Panther
• * December 22
• ** Kiss Me Goodbye''

  Births

• January 6
• * Misha Omar, Malaysian actress and singer
• * Eddie Redmayne, English actor
• January 8 – Gaby Hoffmann, American actress
• January 19 – Jodie Sweetin, American actress
• January 28 – Mirtel Pohla, Estonian actress
• February 6 – Alice Eve, English actress
• February 8 – Danny Tamberelli, American actor
• February 11 – Natalie Dormer, English actress
• March 1 – Kim Min-hee, South Korean actress
• March 3 – Jessica Biel, American actress
• March 7 – Nora Danish, Malaysian actress
• March 10 – Thomas Middleditch, Canadian actor, voice actor, comedian and screenwriter
• March 11 – Thora Birch, American actress
• March 16 – Dian Sastrowardoyo, Indonesian actress
• March 22 – Constance Wu, American actress
• March 24 – Vino Bastian, Indonesian actor
• March 25 – Jenny Slate, American actress-comedian
• April 3 – Cobie Smulders, Canadian actress
• April 4 – Justin Cook, American voice actor
• April 5 – Hayley Atwell, English-American actress
• April 9 – Jay Baruchel, Canadian actor-comedian
• April 10 – Chyler Leigh, American actress
• April 11 – Remy Ishak, Malaysian actor
• April 15 – Seth Rogen, Canadian actor-comedian
• April 19 – Ignacio Serricchio, Argentine-born American actor
• April 30 – Kirsten Dunst, American actress
• May 3 – Rebecca Hall, English-American actress
• May 11 – Jonathan Jackson, American actor
• June 17 – Ursula Ratasepp, Estonian actress
• June 21 – Jussie Smollett, American actor
• June 29
• * Matthew Mercer, American voice actor
• * Ott Sepp, Estonian actor
• June 30 – Lizzy Caplan, American actress
• July 1 – Hilarie Burton, American actress
• July 8
• * Sophia Bush, American actress
• * Schuyler Fisk, American singer-songwriter and actress
• July 9 – Toby Kebbell, English actor
• July 18 – Priyanka Chopra, Indian actress
• July 19 – Jared Padalecki, American actor
• July 24
• * Elisabeth Moss, American actress
• * Anna Paquin, New Zealand actress
• July 25 – Brad Renfro, American actor
• August 6 – Romola Garai, English actress
• August 7 – Abbie Cornish, Australian actress
• August 10 – Devon Aoki, American actress and model
• August 13 – Sebastian Stan, Romanian-American actor
• August 16
• * Cam Gigandet, American actor
• * Todd Haberkorn, American voice actor
• August 19 – Erika Christensen, American actress
• August 20 – Jamil Walker Smith, American actor
• August 25 – Benjamin Diskin, American voice actor
• September 4 – Shaheizy Sam, Malaysian actor
• September 10 – Bret Iwan, American voice actor
• September 13 – J. G. Quintel, American animator, television writer, and voice actor
• September 19 – Columbus Short, American actor and dancer
• September 22 – Billie Piper, English singer and actress
• September 27 – Anna Camp, American actress and singer
• September 28 – Ranbir Kapoor, Indian actor
• September 30
• * Lacey Chabert, American actress
• * Kieran Culkin, American actor
• October 3
• *Eric von Detten, former American actor
• *Clémence Poésy, French actress and model
• October 15 – Lane Toran, American actor
• October 23 – Bradley Pierce, American actor
• October 27 – Patrick Fugit, American actor
• October 31 – Justin Chatwin, Canadian actor
• November 10 – Heather Matarazzo, American actress
• November 12 – Anne Hathaway, American actress
• November 18 - Damon Wayans Jr., American actor, comedian and writer
• November 29 – Lucas Black, American actor
• November 30 – Elisha Cuthbert, Canadian actress
• December 8 - Nicki Minaj, Trinidadian-born rapper, singer, songwriter, actress and model
• December 29 – Alison Brie, American actress
• December 30 – Kristin Kreuk, Canadian actress

  Notable deaths

Film debuts

• Kirstie Alley – '
• Antonio Banderas – Labyrinth of Passion
• Christine Baranski – Soup for One
• Ellen Barkin – Diner
• Nicolas Cage – Fast Times at Ridgemont High
• Glenn Close – The World According to Garp
• Geena Davis – Tootsie
• Shannen Doherty – Night Shift
• Christine Ebersole – Tootsie
• Erika Eleniak – E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
• Miguel Ferrer – Truckin' Buddy McCoy
• Hugh Grant – Privileged
• Anthony Michael Hall – Six Pack
• Linda Hamilton – '
• Dana Hill - Shoot the Moon
• C. Thomas Howell – E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
• Hulk Hogan – Rocky III
• Jet Li – Shaolin Temple
• Angelina Jolie – Lookin' to Get Out
• Kevin Kline – Sophie's Choice
• Amy Madigan – Love Child
• Michael Madsen – Against All Hope
• Rebecca De Mornay – One from the Heart
• Eddie Murphy – 48 Hrs.
• Gary Oldman – Remembrance
• Molly Ringwald – Tempest
• Meredith Salenger – Annie
• Eric Stoltz – Fast Times at Ridgemont High
• Imogen Stubbs – Privileged
• Mr. T – Rocky III
• Forest Whitaker – Tag: The Assassination Game
• James Wilby – Privileged
• Mark Williams – Privileged
• Daphne Zuniga – The Dorm That Dripped Blood