1976 in film

Highest-grossing films (U.S.)

The top ten 1976 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:

Events

March 22 - Filming begins on George Lucas' Star Wars science fiction film. In one of the most lucrative business decisions in film history, Lucas declines his directing fee of $500,000 in exchange for complete ownership of merchandising and sequel rights.

April 1 - The Rocky Horror Picture Show is officially re-released as a midnight movie at the Waverly Theater (Now the IFC Center) in Greenwich Village in New York City, starting through the run and still being shown in there as of 2013 all around the world.

Awards

Academy Awards:

Best Picture: Rocky - Chartoff-Winkler, United Artists Best Director: John G. Avildsen - Rocky Best Actor: Peter Finch - Network (first actor to win posthumously) Best Actress: Faye Dunaway - Network Best Supporting Actor: Jason Robards - All the President's Men Best Supporting Actress: Beatrice Straight - Network Best Foreign Language Film: Noirs et blancs en couleur (Black and White in Color), directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud, Ivory Coast / France / W. Germany / Switzerland

Golden Globe Awards:

Drama: Best Picture: Rocky Best Actor: Peter Finch - Network Best Actress: Faye Dunaway - Network Musical or comedy: Best Picture: A Star Is Born Best Actor: Kris Kristofferson - A Star Is Born Best Actress: Barbra Streisand - A Star Is Born Other Best Director: Sidney Lumet - Network Best Foreign Language Film: Face to Face, Sweden

Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):

Taxi Driver, directed by Martin Scorsese, United States

Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):

Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson, directed by Robert Altman, United States

Notable films released in 1976

U.S.A. unless stated #

7 Man Army (Ba dao lou zi), directed by Chang Cheh - (Hong Kong)

1900, directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, starring Robert De Niro, Gérard Depardieu, Dominique Sanda, Donald Sutherland - (Italy/France)

A

A Queda (The Fall) - (Brazil)

All the President's Men, directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford, Jason Robards, Martin Balsam, Hal Holbrook

The Anchorite (El anacoreta) - (Spain)

Any Day Now (Vandaag of morgen) - (Netherlands)

The Ascent (Voskhozhdeniye) - (U.S.S.R.) - Golden Bear winner

Assault on Precinct 13, directed by John Carpenter, starring Austin Stoker

The Astral Factor, starring Stefanie Powers

At the Earth's Core, starring Peter Cushing and Doug McClure - (U.K.)

B

Baby Blue Marine, starring Jan-Michael Vincent

The Bad News Bears, directed by Michael Ritchie, starring Walter Matthau, Tatum O'Neal, Vic Morrow, Jackie Earle Haley

Beach Guard in Winter (Čuvar plaže u zimskom periodu) - (Yugoslavia)

The Best Way to Walk (La meilleure façon de marcher) - (France)

The Big Bus, starring Joseph Bologna, Stockard Channing, John Beck

The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings, starring Billy Dee Williams, James Earl Jones, Richard Pryor

Black and White in Color (La Victoire en chantant), directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud - (France) - Academy Award for Best Foreign Language film

The Blank Generation, with Patti Smith Group, Television, Ramones and Talking Heads

Blue Puppy (Goluboy shchenok) - (U.S.S.R.)

Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw, starring Marjoe Gortner and Lynda Carter

Bound for Glory, a biopic of Woody Guthrie directed by Hal Ashby, starring David Carradine

Breaking Point, starring Bo Svenson, Robert Culp, John Colicos

The Bricklayers (Los albañiles) - (Mexico)

Brother and Sister (Ani Imouto) - (Japan)

Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson, directed by Robert Altman, starring Paul Newman, Geraldine Chaplin, Burt Lancaster - Golden Bear winner

Bugsy Malone, directed by Alan Parker, starring Scott Baio and Jodie Foster - (U.K.)

Burnt Offerings, starring Karen Black, Oliver Reed, Bette Davis

C

Caddie, starring Helen Morse - (Australia)

Canoa (Canoe) - (Mexico)

Car Wash, starring Franklyn Ajaye and Richard Pryor

The Career of a Chambermaid (Telefoni bianchi), directed by Dino Risi - (Italy)

Caro Michele, directed by Mario Monicelli - (Italy)

Carrie, directed by Brian De Palma, starring Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, Amy Irving

The Cassandra Crossing, starring Sophia Loren, Richard Harris, Burt Lancaster, Ava Gardner, Lee Strasberg, Martin Sheen, O. J. Simpson - (U.K.)

A Child in the Crowd (Un enfant dans la foule) - (France)

Chinese Roulette (Chinesisches Roulette), directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder - (West Germany)

Chitchor (Heart Stealer) - (India)

The Clown Murders

Cop (Strømer) - (Denmark)

Coup de Grâce (Der Fangschuß), directed by Volker Schlöndorff - (West Germany/France)

A Cricket in the Ear (Shturets v uhoto), directed by Georgi K. Stoyanov, starring Pavel Popandov, Tatyana Lolova, Itzhak Fintzi - (Bulgaria)

D

Deadly Hero, starring Don Murray and James Earl Jones

The Desert of the Tartars (Il deserto dei Tartari), starring Vittorio Gassman - (Italy/France/West Germany)

The Devil's Playground, directed by Fred Schepisi - (Australia)

Diary of the Dead, starring Geraldine Fitzgerald and Héctor Elizondo

The Divine Nymph (Divina creatura), starring Marcello Mastroianni and Terence Stamp - (Italy)

Dixie Dynamite, starring Warren Oates

Dogs, starring David McCallum, George Wyner and Linda Gray

Don's Party, directed by Bruce Beresford, starring Ray Barrett, John Hargreaves and Pat Bishop - (Australia)

Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands (Dona Flor e Seus Dois Maridos), starring Sônia Braga - (Brazil)

Les douze travaux d'Asterix (The Twelve Trials of Asterix) - (France)

Drum , starring Warren Oates and Yaphet Kotto

E-F

The Eagle Has Landed, starring Michael Caine and Donald Sutherland - (U.K./U.S.A.)

Eat My Dust, starring Ron Howard and Christopher Norris

Embryo, directed by Ralph Nelson, starring Rock Hudson and Barbara Carrera

The Enforcer, starring Clint Eastwood, Harry Guardino, Tyne Daly

Escape from the Dark, starring Alastair Sim - (U.K.)

F comme Fairbanks (F Like Fairbanks), starring Patrick Dewaere and Miou-Miou - (France)

Face to Face (Ansikte mot ansikte), directed by Ingmar Bergman, starring Liv Ullmann and Erland Josephson - (Sweden)

Family Plot, directed by Alfred Hitchcock (his final film), starring Barbara Harris, Bruce Dern, Karen Black, William Devane

Farsighted for Two Diopters (Dva Dioptara Dalekogledstvo), directed by Petar B. Vasilev, starring Georgi Partsalev - (Bulgaria)

Fellini's Casanova, directed by Federico Fellini, starring Donald Sutherland - (Italy)

The Fifth Seal (Az ötödik pecsét), directed by Zoltán Fábri - (Hungary)

The First Nudie Musical, directed by Bruce Kimmel, starring Cindy Williams, Stephen Nathan, Diana Canova

The Food of the Gods, starring Marjoe Gortner, Pamela Franklin, Ralph Meeker, Ida Lupino

Freaky Friday, directed by Gary Nelson, starring Barbara Harris and Jodie Foster

From Noon till Three, starring Charles Bronson and Jill Ireland

The Front, directed by Martin Ritt, starring Woody Allen, Zero Mostel, Andrea Marcovicci, Herschel Bernardi, Michael Murphy

Fumō Chitai (Wasted Land) - (Japan)

Futureworld, starring Peter Fonda and Blythe Danner

G-H

Gable and Lombard, starring James Brolin and Jill Clayburgh

Gator, starring Burt Reynolds and Jerry Reed

Giv'at Halfon Eina Ona (Halfon Hill Doesn't Answer) - (Israel)

God Told Me To, starring Tony Lo Bianco, Deborah Raffin, Sandy Dennis

Griffin and Phoenix, starring Peter Falk and Jill Clayburgh

Grizzly, starring Christopher George

The Gumball Rally, starring Michael Sarrazin

Gus, starring Don Knotts and Ed Asner

Harlan County, USA - a documentary film

Harry and Walter Go to New York, starring James Caan, Elliott Gould, Diane Keaton, Michael Caine

Heart of Glass (Herz aus Glas), directed by Werner Herzog - (West Germany)

The House with Laughing Windows (La casa dalle finestre che ridono) - (Italy)

I-K

Illustrious Corpses (Cadaveri eccellenti), directed by Francesco Rosi, starring Lino Ventura - (Italy)

The Inheritance (L'eredità Ferramonti), starring Anthony Quinn and Dominique Sanda - (Italy)

In the Realm of the Senses (Ai no Korīda), directed by Nagisa Oshima - (Japan)

L'innocente, directed by Luchino Visconti - (Italy)

The Inugamis (Inugami-ke no ichizoku), directed by Kon Ichikawa - (Japan)

I Will, I Will... for Now, directed by Norman Panama, starring Elliott Gould, Diane Keaton, Victoria Principal

Jackson County Jail, starring Tommy Lee Jones and Yvette Mimieux

J. D.'s Revenge, starring Glynn Turman and Louis Gossett Jr.

Je t'aime moi non plus (I Love You...Me Neither), directed by Serge Gainsbourg, starring Jane Birkin and Joe Dallesandro - (France)

Jonah Who Will Be 25 in the Year 2000 (Jonas qui aura 25 ans en l'an 2000) - (Switzerland/France)

The Judge and the Assassin (Le Juge et l'assassin), directed by Bertrand Tavernier, starring Philippe Noiret and Isabelle Huppert - (France)

Kabhie Kabhie (Sometimes), starring Shashi Kapoor - (India)

Kalicharan - (India)

The Killer Inside Me, starring Stacy Keach

The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, directed by John Cassavetes, starring Ben Gazzara, Timothy Carey, Seymour Cassel

King Kong, directed by John Guillermin, starring Jessica Lange, Jeff Bridges, Charles Grodin

King Kung Fu, directed by and starring Lance D. Hayes

Kings of the Road (Im Lauf der Zeit), directed by Wim Wenders - (West Germany)

L

The Last Hard Men, starring Charlton Heston and James Coburn

The Last Supper (La Última Cena) - (Cuba)

The Last Tycoon, directed by Elia Kazan, starring Robert De Niro, Tony Curtis, Robert Mitchum, Ray Milland, Jeanne Moreau, Jack Nicholson

Leadbelly, a biopic directed by Gordon Parks

Lipstick, starring Margaux Hemingway, Mariel Hemingway, Chris Sarandon

The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane, starring Jodie Foster and Martin Sheen

Logan's Run, directed by Michael Anderson, starring Michael York, Richard Jordan, Jenny Agutter

M

Mako: The Jaws of Death, directed by William Grefe, starring Richard Jaeckel

The Man on the Roof (Mannen på taket), directed by Bo Widerberg - (Sweden)

The Man Who Fell to Earth, directed by Nicolas Roeg, starring David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clark - (U.K.)

Marecek, Pass Me the Pen! (Marečku, podejte mi pero!) - (Czechoslovakia)

Marathon Man, directed by John Schlesinger, starring Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier, Roy Scheider, Marthe Keller, William Devane

Mark of Zorro

The Marquise of O, directed by Éric Rohmer - (West Germany/France)

Master of the Flying Guillotine (a.k.a. One-Armed Boxer 2), starring Jimmy Wang - (Taiwan/Hong Kong)

A Matter of Time, directed by Vincente Minnelli, starring Ingrid Bergman, Liza Minnelli, Charles Boyer, Isabella Rossellini - (U.S.A./Italy)

Max Havelaar, directed by Fons Rademakers - (Netherlands)

The Memory of Justice, a documentary film by Marcel Ophüls - (France/West Germany/U.K./U.S.A.)

Midway, starring Charlton Heston, Henry Fonda, Toshiro Mifune, Glenn Ford, Robert Mitchum, Hal Holbrook

Mikey and Nicky, directed by Elaine May, starring John Cassavetes and Peter Falk

The Missouri Breaks, directed by Arthur Penn, starring Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson

Mohammad, Messenger of God, directed by Moustapha Akkad, starring Anthony Quinn - (Morocco/Libya)

Mother, Jugs & Speed, directed by Peter Yates, starring Bill Cosby, Raquel Welch, Harvey Keitel

Mr. Klein, directed by Joseph Losey, starring Alain Delon and Jeanne Moreau - (France)

Murder by Death, starring Peter Sellers, David Niven, Maggie Smith, Alec Guinness, Peter Falk, Eileen Brennan, Elsa Lanchester, James Coco, Truman Capote

The Mysterious Monsters, starring Peter Graves and Peter Hurkos

N

Network, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Peter Finch, William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Robert Duvall

The Next Man, starring Sean Connery

Next Stop, Greenwich Village, starring Shelley Winters, Lenny Baker, Ellen Greene

Nickelodeon, directed by Peter Bogdanovich, starring Ryan O'Neal, Burt Reynolds, Tatum O'Neal, John Ritter, Stella Stevens

Nightmare in Badham County, starring Deborah Raffin and Chuck Connors

No Deposit, No Return, starring David Niven, Darren McGavin, Don Knotts, Barbara Feldon, Kim Richards

O-P-Q

Obsession, directed by Brian De Palma, starring Cliff Robertson, Geneviève Bujold, John Lithgow

Ode to Billy Joe, directed by Max Baer Jr., starring Robby Benson, Glynnis O'Connor, James Best

The Omen, directed by Richard Donner, starring Gregory Peck, Lee Remick, David Warner, Billie Whitelaw, Leo McKern - (U.K./U.S.A.)

One Summer Love, aka Dragonfly, directed by Gilbert Cates, starring Susan Sarandon and Beau Bridges

The Outlaw Josey Wales, directed by and starring Clint Eastwood, with Chief Dan George, Sam Bottoms, Sondra Locke, John Vernon

Oz or 20th Century Oz, a Rock 'N' Roll Road Movie, starring Bruce Spence, Joy Dunstan - (Australia)

The Pink Panther Strikes Again, starring Peter Sellers, Herbert Lom, Lesley-Anne Down - (U.K.)

R

Raise Ravens (Cria Cuervos), directed by Carlos Saura, starring Geraldine Chaplin - (Spain)

The Rat Savior (Izbavitelj) - (Yugoslavia)

Rich Man, Poor Man, television mini-series, starring Nick Nolte and Peter Strauss

The Ritz, directed by Richard Lester, starring Rita Moreno, Jerry Stiller, Jack Weston

Robin and Marian, directed by Richard Lester, starring Sean Connery, Audrey Hepburn, Robert Shaw - (U.K./U.S.A.)

Rocky, directed by John G. Avildsen, starring Sylvester Stallone, Burgess Meredith, Carl Weathers, Talia Shire, Burt Young

Rogue Male, starring Peter O'Toole - (U.K.)

S

The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea, starring Kris Kristofferson and Sarah Miles

Salon Kitty, directed by Tinto Brass, starring Helmut Berger and Ingrid Thulin - (Italy/West Germany/France)

The Scar (film), directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski

Sebastiane, directed by Derek Jarman - (U.K.)

Seclusion Near a Forest (Na samotě u lesa), directed by Jiří Menzel - (Czechoslovakia)

The Sell Out, starring Richard Widmark

Seven Beauties (Pasqualino Settebellezze), starring Fernando Rey - (Italy)

The Seven-Per-Cent Solution, directed by Herbert Ross, starring Nicol Williamson, Robert Duvall, Alan Arkin, Laurence Olivier - (U.K./U.S.A.)

Shadow of Angels (Schatten der Engel), starring Ingrid Caven and Rainer Werner Fassbinder - (Switzerland)

The Shaggy D.A., starring Dean Jones and Suzanne Pleshette

The Shootist, directed by Don Siegel, starring John Wayne (his final film), Lauren Bacall, Ron Howard, Richard Boone, Harry Morgan, James Stewart

Shout at the Devil, starring Lee Marvin, Roger Moore - (U.K.)

Silent Movie, directed by and starring Mel Brooks, with Marty Feldman, Dom DeLuise, Bernadette Peters

Silver Streak, directed by Arthur Hiller, starring Gene Wilder, Richard Pryor, Jill Clayburgh, Ned Beatty, Ray Walston, Patrick McGoohan

Sister Street Fighter – Fifth Level Fist (Onna hissatsu godan ken) - (Japan)

Sky Riders, starring James Coburn, Susannah York, Robert Culp

The Slipper and the Rose, directed by Bryan Forbes, starring Gemma Craven and Richard Chamberlain - (U.K.)

Small Change (L'Argent de poche), directed by François Truffaut - (France)

The Smurfs and the Magic Flute (La Flûte à six schtroumpfs) - (Belgium)

Snuff - (Argentina/U.S.A.)

The Song Remains the Same, featuring Led Zeppelin - (U.K./U.S.A.)

Soy un delincuente (I Am a Criminal) - (Venezuela)

Sparkle, starring Irene Cara

A Star Is Born, starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson

Stay Hungry, directed by Bob Rafelson, starring Jeff Bridges, Sally Field, Arnold Schwarzenegger

St. Ives, directed by J. Lee Thompson, starring Charles Bronson

Storm Boy, starring David Gulpilil - (Australia)

Swashbuckler, starring Robert Shaw

The Swiss Conspiracy, starring David Janssen and Elke Sommer

Sybil, starring Joanne Woodward and Sally Field

T

Taxi Driver, directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Albert Brooks, Peter Boyle, Jodie Foster

The Tenant (Le Locataire), directed by and starring Roman Polanski, with Isabelle Adjani and Melvyn Douglas - (France)

That's Entertainment, Part II, documentary featuring Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly

Tatlong taong walang Diyos (Three Godless Years) - (Philippines)

To Fly!, a documentary film

To the Devil a Daughter, starring Richard Widmark, Christopher Lee, Honor Blackman, Nastassja Kinski - (U.K.)

Todo modo, starring Gian Maria Volontè and Marcello Mastroianni - (Italy)

Tosun Paşa - (Turkey)

The Town That Dreaded Sundown, starring Ben Johnson and Dawn Wells

Trackdown, starring James Mitchum

Tracks, directed by Henry Jaglom, starring Dennis Hopper

Treasure of Matecumbe, starring Joan Hackett, Robert Foxworth, Peter Ustinov

The Twist, directed by Claude Chabrol, starring Bruce Dern, Stéphane Audran, Charles Aznavour, Ann-Margret - (France)

Two-Minute Warning, starring Charlton Heston, John Cassavetes, David Janssen, Jack Klugman, Gena Rowlands, Walter Pidgeon, Beau Bridges

U-V

Ugly, Dirty and Bad (Brutti, sporchi e cattivi), directed by Ettore Scola, starring Nino Manfredi - (Italy)

Up!, directed by Russ Meyer, featuring Raven De La Croix

Vigilante Force, starring Kris Kristofferson and Victoria Principal

Voyage of the Damned, starring Faye Dunaway, Lee Grant, James Mason, Katharine Ross, Max von Sydow, Orson Welles, Oskar Werner - (U.K.)

W-Z

W.C. Fields and Me, starring Rod Steiger, Valerie Perrine, Jack Cassidy

Wan Pipel (One People) - (Suriname/Netherlands)

Welcome to L.A., directed by Alan Rudolph, starring Keith Carradine, Geraldine Chaplin, Sally Kellerman, Harvey Keitel

The White Ship (Belyy parokhod) - (U.S.S.R.)

Who Can Kill a Child? (¿Quién puede matar a un niño?) - (Spain)

Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood, starring Madeline Kahn, Teri Garr, Bruce Dern, Art Carney

January–March

February 1976

4 February

Next Stop, Greenwich Village

March 1976

11 March

Robin and Marian

18 March

The Man Who Fell to Earth

26 March

Dumbo (re-release)

Ride a Wild Pony

Sky Riders

31 March

W.C. Fields and Me

April–June

April 1976

1 April

The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox

5 April

The Blue Bird

7 April

Sparkle

9 April

All the President's Men

Family Plot

May 1976

21 May

1900

June 1976

1 June

The Last Hard Men

11 June

The Tenant

17 June

Silent Movie

23 June

Murder by Death

Logan's Run

24 June

Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson

25 June

The Omen

30 June

The Outlaw Josey Wales

July–September

July 1976

Moving Violation

1 July

Treasure of Matecumbe

7 July

Gus

16 July

The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings

28 July

Futureworld

29 July

Swashbuckler

August 1976

1 August

Obsession

25 August

Gator

26 August

The Last Tycoon

September 1976

High Velocity

15 September

In the Realm of the Senses

17 September

The Front

October–December

October 1976

18 October

Burnt Offerings

22 October

Car Wash

November 1976

3 November

Carrie

13 November

Alice, Sweet Alice

27 November

Network

December 1976

3 December

Rocky

5 December

Bound for Glory

8 December

A Star Is Born

Silver Streak

15 December

The Pink Panther Strikes Again

17 December

The Shaggy D.A.

Freaky Friday

King Kong

21 December

Nickelodeon

22 December

The Enforcer

24 December

The Town That Dreaded Sundown

25 December

The Eagle Has Landed

Births

January 6

Danny Pintauro, American actor.

Johnny Yong Bosch, American actor, voice actor.

February 11 - Brice Beckham, American actor.

February 23

Aaron Aziz, Singaporean actor.

Kelly Macdonald, Scottish actress.

February 25 - Rashida Jones, American actress.

March 16 - Paul Schneider, American actor.

March 22 - Reese Witherspoon, American actress.

March 23 - Michelle Monaghan, American actress.

April 1

David Oyelowo, British actor, producer, director.

Troy Baker, American voice actor, voice actor.

April 13 - Jonathan Brandis, American actor. (d.2003)

April 15 - Susan Ward, American actress.

April 23 - Gabriel Damon, American actor.

April 26 - Elisabet Reinsalu, Estonian actress.

April 27 - Sally Hawkins, English actress.

May 22 - Külli Teetamm, Estonian actress.

May 25

Cillian Murphy, Irish actor

Ethan Suplee, American film and television actor.

J. Michael Tatum, American voice actor.

July 15 - Diane Kruger, German actress.

July 19 - Benedict Cumberbatch, English actor.

July 31 - Mela Lee, American voice actress.

August 6 - Andero Ermel, Estonian actor.

August 9 - Audrey Tautou, French actress.

September 6 - Naomie Harris, British actress.

September 7 - Shannon Elizabeth, American actress.

September 20 - Enuka Okuma, Canadian actress.

September 26 - Kersti Heinloo, Estonian actress.

October 4 - Alicia Silverstone, American actress.

October 21 - Andrew Scott, Irish actor.

October 23 - Ryan Reynolds, Canadian actor.

October 31 - Piper Perabo, American actress.

November 29 - Chadwick Boseman, American actor.

December 8 - Dominic Monaghan, English actor.

Film debuts

Albert Brooks - Taxi Driver

Chow Yun-fat - Tou tai ren

Ernie Hudson - Leadbelly

Amy Irving - Carrie

Jessica Lange - King Kong

Delroy Lindo - Find the Lady

Brooke Shields - Alice, Sweet Alice