The following is an overview of events in 1980 in film, including the highest-grossing films, award ceremonies and festivals, a list of films released and notable deaths.
Highest-grossing films (U.S.)
The top ten 1980 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
Events
- May 21 - Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back is released and is the biggest grosser of the year (just as its predecessor, Star Wars, was three years prior).
- June 20 - The Blues Brothers is released and in addition to becoming one of the top grossing films of the year it also became the first feature film to be based on characters created on Saturday Night Live.
- November 19 - Heaven's Gate becomes one of the biggest box office bombs of all-time and its colossal failure bankrupted United Artists. >
Awards
Academy Awards:
- Best Picture: Ordinary People
- Best Director: Robert Redford - Ordinary People
- Best Actor: Robert De Niro - Raging Bull
- Best Actress: Sissy Spacek - Coal Miner's Daughter
- Best Supporting Actor: Timothy Hutton - Ordinary People
- Best Supporting Actress: Mary Steenburgen - Melvin and Howard
- Best Foreign Language Film: Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears (ÐоÑква Слезам Ðе Ð'еÑиÑ), directed by Vladimir Menshov, USSR
Golden Globe Awards:
- Drama:
- Best Picture: Ordinary People
- Best Actor: Robert De Niro â" Raging Bull
- Best Actress: Mary Tyler Moore â" Ordinary People
- Musical or comedy:
- Best Picture: Coal Miner's Daughter
- Best Actor: Ray Sharkey â" The Idolmaker
- Best Actress: Sissy Spacek â" Coal Miner's Daughter
- Other
- Best Director: Robert Redford â" Ordinary People
- Best Foreign Language Film: Tess, United Kingdom
- Golden Globe Award for World film favourite male: Roger Moore -
- Golden Globe Award for World film favourite female: Jane Fonda -
Golden Raspberry Awards:
- Worst Picture: Can't Stop the Music
- Worst Director: Robert Greenwald - Xanadu
- Worst Actor: Neil Diamond - The Jazz Singer
- Worst Actress: Brooke Shields - The Blue Lagoon
- Worst Supporting Actor: John Adames - Gloria; Laurence Olivier - The Jazz Singer
- Worst Supporting Actress: Amy Irving - Honeysuckle Rose
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
- All That Jazz, directed by Bob Fosse, United States
- Kagemusha, å½±æ¦è (Shadow Warrior), directed by Akira Kurosawa, Japan
Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival):
- Atlantic City, directed by Louis Malle, USA / Canada / France
- Gloria, directed by John Cassavetes, United States
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
- Heartland, directed by Richard Pearce, United States
- Palermo or Wolfsburg (Palermo oder Wolfsburg), directed by Werner Schroeter, West Germany
Notable films released in 1980
U.S.A. unless stated
#
- 9 to 5, directed by Colin Higgins, starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton, Dabney Coleman
A
- The Agency, starring Robert Mitchum, Lee Majors, Valerie Perrine - (Canada)
- Airplane!, starring Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Peter Graves, Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
- Alligator, starring Robert Forster
- Altered States, directed by Ken Russell, starring William Hurt and Blair Brown
- American Gigolo, directed by Paul Schrader, starring Richard Gere, Lauren Hutton and Héctor Elizondo
- Any Which Way You Can, starring Clint Eastwood, Geoffrey Lewis, William Smith, Barry Corbin, Ruth Gordon
- Arrebato (Rapture), cult film - (Spain)
- Atlantic City, directed by Louis Malle, starring Burt Lancaster and Susan Sarandon - (Canada/France) - Golden Lion winner
- The Awakening, starring Charlton Heston, Susannah York and Stephanie Zimbalist - (U.K.)
B
- Babylon, starring Brinsley Forde - (U.K.)
- Bad Timing, directed by Nicolas Roeg, starring Art Garfunkel, Theresa Russell, Harvey Keitel - (U.K.)
- The Baltimore Bullet, starring James Coburn
- Berlin Alexanderplatz, a TV mini-series directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Gunther Lamprecht, Hanna Schygulla, Barbara Sukowa - (West Germany)
- The Big Brawl, starring Jackie Chan - (Hong Kong/U.S.A.)
- The Big Red One, directed by Samuel Fuller, starring Lee Marvin, Mark Hamill, Robert Carradine
- Bizalom (Confidence), directed by István Szabó - (Hungary)
- The Black Marble, directed by Harold Becker, starring Robert Foxworth, Paula Prentiss, Harry Dean Stanton
- The Blood of Hussain, directed by Jamil Dehlavi - (Pakistan)
- The Blue Lagoon, starring Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins
- The Blues Brothers, directed by John Landis, starring John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Cab Calloway, Carrie Fisher, John Candy, Henry Gibson
- Breaker Morant, directed by Bruce Beresford, starring Edward Woodward - (Australia)
- Bronco Billy, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, with Sondra Locke, Geoffrey Lewis, Sam Bottoms, Scatman Crothers
- Brubaker, directed by Stuart Rosenberg, starring Robert Redford, David Keith, Jane Alexander, Yaphet Kotto
C
- Caboblanco, directed by J. Lee Thompson, starring Charles Bronson, Jason Robards, Dominique Sanda
- Caddyshack, directed by Harold Ramis, starring Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Ted Knight, Michael O'Keefe, Cindy Morgan, Bill Murray
- The Candidate (Der Kandidat), directed by Volker Schlöndorff - (West Germany)
- Cannibal Holocaust, directed by Ruggero Deodato, starring Robert Kerman - (Italy)
- Can't Stop the Music, directed by Nancy Walker, starring Valerie Perrine, Bruce Jenner, Village People
- Carny, starring Jodie Foster and Gary Busey
- Chann Pardesi, starring Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Om Puri - (India)
- A Change of Seasons, starring Shirley MacLaine, Anthony Hopkins, Bo Derek
- The Changeling, starring George C. Scott - (Canada)
- Children's Island (Barnens ö) - (Sweden)
- La Cicala (The Cicada), starring Anthony Franciosa and Virna Lisi - (Italy)
- City of Women (La città delle donne), directed by Federico Fellini, starring Marcello Mastroianni - (Italy)
- The Club, starring Jack Thompson - (Australia)
- Coal Miner's Daughter, starring Sissy Spacek and Tommy Lee Jones
- The Competition, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Amy Irving, Lee Remick, Sam Wanamaker
- The Constant Factor (Constans) - (Poland)
- The Crime of Cuenca (El crimen de Cuenca) - (Spain)
- Cruising, directed by William Friedkin, starring Al Pacino
- Cutting It Short (PostÅižiny), directed by JiÅà Menzel - (Czechoslovakia)
D
- Dadar Kirti (Deeds of My Elder Brother) - (India)
- Death Watch (La Mort en direct), directed by Bertrand Tavernier, starring Romy Schneider and Harvey Keitel - (France)
- Delusion directed by Alan Beattie, starring Patricia Pearcy and Joseph Cotten
- Die Laughing, starring Robby Benson and Bud Cort
- The Dogs of War, starring Christopher Walken - (U.S.A./U.K.)
- Dostana (Friendship), starring Amitabh Bachchan - (India)
- Dressed to Kill, directed by Brian De Palma, starring Michael Caine, Nancy Allen, Keith Gordon, Angie Dickinson
E
- Elisita - (Spain)
- The Elephant Man, directed by David Lynch, starring John Hurt and Anthony Hopkins - (U.S.A./U.K.)
- Encounters of the Spooky Kind (Gui da gui), directed by and starring Sammo Hung - (Hong Kong)
- Every Man for Himself (Sauve qui peut (la vie)), directed by Jean-Luc Godard, starring Jacques Dutronc and Isabelle Huppert - (France)
- The Exterminator, starring Robert Ginty and Samantha Eggar
F
- Fade to Black, starring Dennis Christopher
- The Falls, directed by Peter Greenaway - (U.K.)
- Fame, directed by Alan Parker, starring Irene Cara
- Fatso, directed by and starring Anne Bancroft, with Dom DeLuise
- The Final Countdown, starring Kirk Douglas, Katharine Ross, Martin Sheen
- The First Deadly Sin, starring Frank Sinatra, David Dukes, Martin Gabel, Brenda Vaccaro, Faye Dunaway
- First Family, directed by Buck Henry, starring Bob Newhart, Madeline Kahn, Gilda Radner
- Flash Gordon, directed by Mike Hodges, starring Sam J. Jones, Melody Anderson, Chaim Topol - (U.S.A./U.K.)
- The Fog, directed by John Carpenter, starring Adrienne Barbeau and Jamie Lee Curtis
- Foolin' Around, starring Gary Busey, Annette O'Toole, Eddie Albert, Cloris Leachman
- The Formula, starring George C. Scott and Marlon Brando
- Foxes, directed by Adrian Lyne, starring Jodie Foster, Cherie Currie, Scott Baio and Adam Faith
- Friday the 13th, starring Betsy Palmer
G
- The Gamekeeper, directed by Ken Loach - (U.K.)
- Gamera: Super Monster (Uchu Kaijū Gamera) - (Japan)
- Germany, Pale Mother (Deutschland bleiche Mutter), starring Eva Mattes - (West Germany)
- Gilda Live, starring Gilda Radner, Father Guido Sarducci
- Gloria, directed by John Cassavetes, starring Gena Rowlands - Golden Lion winner
- The Gods Must Be Crazy, directed by Jamie Uys, starring N!xau, Sandra Prinsloo and Marius Weyers - (South Africa)
- Good Riddance (Les Bons débarras) - (Canada)
- The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, a mockumentary directed by Julien Temple, featuring The Sex Pistols and Malcolm McLaren - (U.K.)
H
- Hangar 18, starring Darren McGavin and Robert Vaughn
- Health, aka H.E.A.L.T.H., directed by Robert Altman, starring Carol Burnett, Lauren Bacall, Glenda Jackson, James Garner
- Heart Beat, starring Nick Nolte, Sissy Spacek, John Heard
- He Knows You're Alone, starring Don Scardino and Caitlin O'Heaney
- Heaven's Gate, directed by Michael Cimino, starring Kris Kristofferson, Christopher Walken, Isabelle Huppert, John Hurt, Sam Waterston, Jeff Bridges
- Herbie Goes Bananas, starring Cloris Leachman and Charles Martin Smith
- Hero at Large, starring John Ritter and Anne Archer
- Hey Babe!, starring Yasmine Bleeth and Buddy Hackett - (Canada)
- Hirak Rajar Deshe (Kingdom of Diamonds), directed by Satyajit Ray - (India)
- The Hit (Trhák) - (Czechoslovakia)
- Home Movies, directed by Brian De Palma, starring Kirk Douglas, Vincent Gardenia, Gerrit Graham, Nancy Allen
- Hopscotch, directed by Ronald Neame, starring Walter Matthau and Glenda Jackson
- How to Beat the High Cost of Living, starring Susan Saint James, Jessica Lange, Jane Curtin, Dabney Coleman, Richard Benjamin
- Humanoids from the Deep, starring Vic Morrow, Doug McClure, Ann Turkel
- The Hunter, starring Steve McQueen (in his final film), Kathryn Harrold, LeVar Burton, Ben Johnson, Eli Wallach
I
- The Idolmaker, directed by Taylor Hackford, starring Ray Sharkey and Peter Gallagher
- Inferno, directed by Dario Argento - (Italy)
- Inside Moves, directed by Richard Donner, starring John Savage, David Morse, Diana Scarwid
- The Island, directed by Michael Ritchie, starring Michael Caine
- It's My Turn, directed by Claudia Weill, starring Jill Clayburgh, Michael Douglas, Charles Grodin
JK
- The Jazz Singer, starring Neil Diamond, Lucie Arnaz, Laurence Olivier
- Just Tell Me What You Want, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Ali MacGraw, Alan King, Peter Weller, Myrna Loy
- Karz (In Debt), starring Rishi Kapoor - (India)
- Kagemusha, directed by Akira Kurosawa, starring Tatsuya Nakadai, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Kenichi Hagiwara - (Japan) - Palme d'Or winner
- Khubsoorat, starring Ashok Kumar and Rekha - (India)
- Klondike Fever, starring Jeff East, Rod Steiger, Angie Dickinson, Gordon Pinsent - (Canada)
L
- Ladies' Choice (Dami Kanyat), directed by Ivan Andonov, starring Stefan Danailov - (Bulgaria)
- The Last Flight of Noah's Ark, starring Elliott Gould, Geneviève Bujold, Ricky Schroder
- The Last Married Couple in America, starring Natalie Wood, George Segal, Valerie Harper, Richard Benjamin
- The Last Metro (Le dernier metro), directed by François Truffaut, starring Catherine Deneuve and Gérard Depardieu - (France)
- The Last Witness (Choehuui jeungin) - (South Korea)
- The Lathe of Heaven, starring Bruce Davison
- Legend of Tianyun Mountain (TiÄn yún shÄn chuán qÃ) - (China)
- The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter, a documentary film
- Little Darlings, starring Tatum O'Neal and Kristy McNichol
- Little Miss Marker, starring Walter Matthau, Julie Andrews, Tony Curtis, Bob Newhart
- The Long Good Friday, directed by John Mackenzie, starring Bob Hoskins and Helen Mirren - (U.K.)
- The Long Riders, directed by Walter Hill, starring the Keach brothers, Carradine brothers and Quaid brothers
- Loulou, starring Isabelle Huppert and Gérard Depardieu - (France)
- Loving Couples, directed by Jack Smight, starring Shirley MacLaine, James Coburn, Stephen Collins, Susan Sarandon
- Lulu (1980 film) (not same as above) - (France/Italy/West Germany)
M
- The Magician of Lublin, starring Alan Arkin, Valerie Perrine, Louise Fletcher
- The Man with Bogart's Face, starring Robert Sacchi, Misty Rowe, Victor Buono, Yvonne De Carlo, Herbert Lom
- Manila by Night - (Philippines)
- McVicar, directed by Tom Clegg, starring Roger Daltrey, Adam Faith, Cheryl Campbell - (U.K.)
- Melvin and Howard, directed by Jonathan Demme, starring Paul Le Mat, Jason Robards, Mary Steenburgen
- The Mirror Crack'd, directed by Guy Hamilton, starring Angela Lansbury, Elizabeth Taylor, Kim Novak, Tony Curtis, Rock Hudson - (U.K.)
- Mon oncle d'Amérique, directed by Alain Resnais, starring Gérard Depardieu - (France) - Cannes Special Jury Prize
- Motel Hell, starring Rory Calhoun
- Mother's Day, starring Nancy Hendrickson
- The Mountain Men, starring Charlton Heston and Brian Keith
- My Bodyguard, directed by Tony Bill, starring Matt Dillon, Adam Baldwin, Chris Makepeace, Martin Mull
N
- The Nest (El Nido) - (Spain)
- Nightkill, starring Robert Mitchum
- Nijinsky, starring George de la Peña and Alan Bates
- The Ninth Configuration, directed by William Peter Blatty, starring Stacy Keach, Scott Wilson, Jason Miller
O
- O Megalexandros (Alexander the Great), directed by Theodoros Angelopoulos - (Greece)
- Oh, God! Book II, starring George Burns
- One Trick Pony, written by and starring Paul Simon, with Blair Brown, Joan Hackett, Rip Torn
- The Orchestra Conductor (Dyrygent), directed by Andrzej Wajda, starring John Gielgud - (Poland)
- Ordinary People, directed by Robert Redford, starring Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, Timothy Hutton, Judd Hirsch, Elizabeth McGovern
- Out of the Blue, directed by and starring Dennis Hopper, with Linda Manz, Raymond Burr - (Canada)
PQ
- Pepi, Luci, Bom, directed by Pedro Almodóvar
- Palermo or Wolfsburg - (West Germany) - Golden Bear winner
- Permanent Vacation, directed by Jim Jarmusch
- The Pilot, directed by and starring Cliff Robertson, with Diane Baker and Gordon MacRae
- Playing for Time, directed by Daniel Mann, starring Vanessa Redgrave and Jane Alexander
- Popeye, directed by Robert Altman, starring Robin Williams and Shelley Duvall
- Pray TV, starring Dabney Coleman
- Private Benjamin, directed by Howard Zieff, starring Goldie Hawn, Eileen Brennan, Armand Assante, Robert Webber, Harry Dean Stanton
- The Private Eyes, starring Tim Conway and Don Knotts
- Qurbani (Sacrifice), directed by and starring Feroz Khan - (India)
R
- Raging Bull, directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Cathy Moriarty
- Resurrection, starring Ellen Burstyn and Eva Le Gallienne
- The Return of the King, animated film, voices of Orson Bean, John Huston, William Conrad
- Return of the Secaucus 7, directed by John Sayles
- El Retorno del Hombre Lobo (Return of the Werewolf) - (Spain)
- Roadie, directed by Alan Rudolph, starring Meat Loaf and Kaki Hunter
- Le Roi et l'oiseau (The King and the Mocking Bird), animated film - (France)
- Rockshow, concert film featuring Paul McCartney and Wings - (U.K.)
- Rough Cut, directed by Don Siegel, starring Burt Reynolds, Lesley-Anne Down, David Niven
- Rude Boy, a rockumentary featuring The Clash - (U.K.)
S
- Sällskapsresan (The Charter Trip), directed by and starring Lasse à berg - (Sweden)
- The Sea Wolves, starring Gregory Peck, David Niven, Roger Moore - (U.K./U.S.A./Switzerland)
- See You in the Next War (enja u sledeÄem ratu) - (Yugoslavia)
- Seems Like Old Times, starring Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase
- Serial, starring Martin Mull, Tuesday Weld, Christopher Lee, Bill Macy, Sally Kellerman, Tom Smothers
- The Shining, directed by Stanley Kubrick, starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers
- Simon, starring Alan Arkin
- A Small Circle of Friends, starring Brad Davis and Karen Allen
- Solo Sunny - (East Germany)
- Somewhere in Time, starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour
- Special Treatment (Poseban tretman) - (Yugoslavia)
- Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, directed by Irvin Kershner, starring Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher
- Stardust Memories, directed by and starring Woody Allen, with Charlotte Rampling and Jessica Harper
- Stir Crazy, directed by Sidney Poitier, starring Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder
- The Stunt Man, directed by Richard Rush, starring Peter O'Toole, Barbara Hershey, Steve Railsback
- Sunday Lovers, starring Gene Wilder, Roger Moore, Lino Ventura
- Superman II, starring Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Terence Stamp
T
- La terrazza (The Terrace), starring Marcello Mastroianni, Vittorio Gassman, Ugo Tognazzi - (Italy)
- That Sinking Feeling, directed by Bill Forsyth, starring John Gordon Sinclair - (U.K.)
- Those Lips, Those Eyes, starring Frank Langella, Glynnis O'Connor, Tom Hulce
- Times Square, directed by Allen Moyle, starring Robin Johnson, Trini Alvarado, Tim Curry
- To Love the Damned (Maledetti vi amerò) - (Italy)
- Tom Horn, starring Steve McQueen, Richard Farnsworth, Linda Evans
- Tribute, starring Jack Lemmon - (Canada)
- Twelve Months (Sekai Meisaku Douwa Mori wa Ikiteiru / Dvenadtsat mesyatsev) - (Japan/U.S.S.R.)
UV
- The Unseen, starring Barbara Bach and Stephen Furst
- Up the Academy, directed by Robert Downey, Sr.
- Urban Cowboy, directed by James Bridges, starring John Travolta, Debra Winger, Scott Glenn, Madolyn Smith, Barry Corbin
- Used Cars, directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Kurt Russell, Deborah Harmon, Jack Warden, Gerrit Graham
- Virus (Fukkatsu no hi), starring Sonny Chiba and Glenn Ford - (Japan)
- Le Voyage en douce, starring Dominique Sanda and Geraldine Chaplin - (France)
W
- Waiter, Scarper! (VrchnÃ, prchni!) - (Czechoslovakia)
- The Watcher in the Woods, starring Bette Davis - (U.K./U.S.A.)
- When Time Ran Out, starring Paul Newman, Jacqueline Bisset, William Holden, Burgess Meredith, Ernest Borgnine, Red Buttons
- Where the Buffalo Roam, directed by Art Linson, starring Bill Murray
- Wholly Moses!, starring Dudley Moore, Laraine Newman, Paul Sand, Dom DeLuise
- Who's Singin' Over There? (Ko to tamo peva) - (Yugoslavia)
- Why Would I Lie?, starring Treat Williams, Lisa Eichhorn, Valerie Curtin
- Willie & Phil, directed by Paul Mazursky, starring Margot Kidder, Ray Sharkey, Michael Ontkean
- Windows, starring Talia Shire and Elizabeth Ashley
- Witches' Brew, starring Teri Garr and Richard Benjamin
X
- Xanadu, starring Olivia Newton-John, Michael Beck, Gene Kelly
Y
- The Young Master (Shi di chu ma), directed by and starring Jackie Chan - (Hong Kong)
- YÅ«gure made - (Japan)
Z
- Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), directed by Seijun Suzuki - (Japan)
1980 Wide-release movies
Januaryâ"March
- January 1980
- January 18
- Just Tell Me What You Want
- Windows
- January 30
- To All a Goodnight
- January 18
- February 1980
- February 1
- Fatso
- February 8
- American Gigolo
- The Fog
- Midnight Madness
- February 15
- Caligula
- Cruising
- February 29
- Don't Answer the Phone
- Foxes
- The Ninth Configuration
- February 1
- March 1980
- March 7
- Coal Miner's Daughter
- March 14
- Defiance
- March 21
- Forbidden Zone
- Little Miss Marker
- March 28
- Serial
- Tom Horn
- When Time Ran Out
- March 7
Aprilâ"June
- April 1980
- April 1
- The Baltimore Bullet
- April 17
- The Private Eyes
- April 25
- Where the Buffalo Roam
- April 1
- May 1980
- May 9
- Friday the 13th
- The Nude Bomb
- May 16
- Fame
- The Long Riders
- May 21
- The Empire Strikes Back
- May 23
- Carny
- The Gong Show Movie
- The Shining
- May 30
- Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown (and Don't Come Back!!)
- The Hollywood Knights
- May 9
- June 1980
- June 1
- The Alien Dead
- The Mountain Men
- June 4
- The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood
- June 6
- Galaxina
- Up the Academy
- Urban Cowboy
- June 11
- Bronco Billy
- June 13
- The Children
- The Island
- Roadie
- Wholly Moses!
- June 19
- Rough Cut
- June 20
- The Blues Brothers
- Brubaker
- Can't Stop the Music
- June 25
- Herbie Goes Bananas
- The Last Flight of Noah's Ark
- June 1
Julyâ"September
- July 1980
- July 2
- Airplane!
- Alligator
- July 5
- The Blue Lagoon
- July 11
- Oh! Heavenly Dog
- Used Cars
- July 18
- Cheech & Chong's Next Movie
- Honeysuckle Rose
- The Little Dragons
- July 24
- The Earthling
- July 25
- Caddyshack
- Dressed to Kill
- July 2
- August 1980
- August 1
- The Final Countdown
- The Hunter
- Loose Shoes
- Raise the Titanic
- August 8
- The Fiendish Plot of Dr. Fu Manchu
- Xanadu
- August 14
- The Octagon
- August 15
- The Kidnapping of the President
- Smokey and the Bandit II
- Those Lips, Those Eyes
- August 1
- September 1980
- September 9
- Phobia
- September 12
- He Knows You're Alone
- September 19
- The Exterminator
- Melvin and Howard
- September 26
- In God We Tru$t
- My Bodyguard
- Resurrection
- Stardust Memories
- September 9
Octoberâ"December
- October 1980
- October 3
- Coast to Coast
- The First Deadly Sin
- Oh, God! Book II
- One-Trick Pony
- Somewhere in Time
- Terror Train
- October 6
- Kagemusha
- October 10
- The Elephant Man
- Private Benjamin
- October 14
- Fade to Black
- October 18
- Motel Hell
- October 31
- Touched by Love
- October 3
- November 1980
- November 7
- The Boogeyman
- November 11
- Shogun Assassin
- November 14
- The Idolmaker
- November 21
- The Apple
- The Visitor
- November 7
- December 1980
- December 1
- A Change of Seasons
- December 3
- The Competition
- December 5
- Flash Gordon
- December 12
- Popeye
- Stir Crazy
- December 17
- Any Which Way You Can
- December 19
- The Formula
- Heaven's Gate
- The Jazz Singer
- Nine to Five
- Raging Bull
- Seems Like Old Times
- December 25
- Altered States
- First Family
- December 1
Births
- January 17 - Zooey Deschanel, actress
- February 12 - Christina Ricci, actress
- April 8 - Carrie Savage, voice actress
- April 13 - Colleen Clinkenbeard, voice actress
- April 26 - Channing Tatum, actor
- June 23 - Melissa Rauch, actress and comedienne
- June 24 - Minka Kelly, actress
- July 6 - Eva Green, actress
- July 18 - Kristen Bell, actress
- August 26
- Chris Pine, actor
- Macaulay Culkin, actor
- September 9 - Michelle Williams, actress
- October 14 - Ben Whishaw, English actor
- November 12 - Ryan Gosling, Canadian actor
- December 3 - Anna Chlumsky, actress
- December 19
- Jake Gyllenhaal, actor
- Marla Sokoloff, actress
- December 30 - Eliza Dushku, actress
Notable deaths
Film debuts
- Adam Baldwin - My Bodyguard
- Drew Barrymore - Altered States
- Jennifer Beals - My Bodyguard
- Pierce Brosnan - The Long Good Friday
- Robbie Coltrane - Flash Gordon
- Joan Cusack - My Bodyguard
- Willem Dafoe - Heaven's Gate
- Tony Danza - The Hollywood Knights
- Neil Diamond - The Jazz Singer
- Charles Fleischer - Die Laughing
- Michael J. Fox - Midnight Madness
- Peter Gallagher - The Idolmaker
- Tom Hanks - He Knows You're Alone
- Linda Hunt - Popeye
- William Hurt - Altered States
- Timothy Hutton - Ordinary People
- Jeremy Irons - Nijinsky
- Ralph Macchio - Up the Academy
- William H. Macy - Somewhere in Time
- Christopher McDonald - The Hearse
- Cathy Moriarty - Raging Bull
- David Morse - Inside Moves
- Cynthia Nixon - Little Darlings
- Catherine O'Hara - Deadly Companion
- Terry O'Quinn - Heaven's Gate
- Joe Pantoliano - The Idolmaker
- Dolly Parton - 9 to 5
- Michelle Pfeiffer - The Hollywood Knights
- Paul Reubens - Pray TV
- Sharon Stone - Stardust Memories
- David Strathairn - Return of the Secaucus 7
- John Turturro - Raging Bull
- Dianne Wiest - It's My Turn
- Robin Williams - Popeye
- Bruce Willis - The First Deadly Sin
- Sean Young - Jane Austen in Manhattan
See also
- List of American films of 1980
- List of British films of 1980
- List of French films of 1980
- List of German films of the 1980s
- List of Bollywood films of 1980
- List of Italian films of 1980
- List of Japanese films of 1980
- List of Swedish films of the 1980s