The following is an overview of events in 1981 in film, including the highest-grossing films, award ceremonies and festivals, a list of films released and notable deaths.
The top ten 1981 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:
January 19 – Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer acquires beleaguered concurrent United Artists. UA was humiliated by the astronomical losses on the $40,000,000 movie Heaven's Gate, a major factor in the decision of owner Transamerica to sell it.
November 29 – Off Santa Catalina Island, 43-year-old actress Natalie Wood drowns during a boating accident.
Kathleen Turner and Tom Cruise make their acting debuts.
June 12 – Raiders of the Lost Ark is released. It set a major standard for many action-adventure films to date.
Academy Awards:
Best Picture:
Chariots of Fire – Enigma, The Ladd Company/Warner Bros.
Best Director:
Warren Beatty –
Reds
Best Actor:
Henry Fonda –
On Golden Pond
Best Actress:
Katharine Hepburn –
On Golden Pond
Best Supporting Actor:
John Gielgud –
Arthur
Best Supporting Actress:
Maureen Stapleton –
Reds
Best Foreign Language Film:
Mephisto, directed by Istvan Szabo, Hungary
Golden Globe Awards:
Drama:
Best Picture:
On Golden Pond
Best Actor:
Henry Fonda –
On Golden Pond
Best Actress:
Meryl Streep –
The French Lieutenant's Woman
Musical or comedy:
Best Picture:
Arthur
Best Actor:
Dudley Moore –
Arthur
Best Actress:
Bernadette Peters –
Pennies from Heaven
Other
Best Director:
Warren Beatty –
Reds
Best Foreign Film:
Chariots of Fire, United Kingdom
Golden Raspberry Awards:
Worst Picture:
Mommie Dearest
Worst Director:
Michael Cimino –
Heaven's Gate
Worst Actor:
Klinton Spilsbury –
The Legend of the Lone Ranger
Worst Actress:
Bo Derek –
Tarzan, the Ape Man;
Faye Dunaway –
Mommie Dearest
Worst Supporting Actor:
Steve Forrest –
Mommie Dearest
Worst Supporting Actress:
Diana Scarwid –
Mommie Dearest
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
Man of Iron (Człowiek z żelaza), directed by Andrzej Wajda, Poland
Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival):
Marianne and Juliane (
Die Bleierne Zeit), directed by Margarethe von Trotta, W. Germany
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
Faster, Faster (
Deprisa, deprisa /
Vivre vite), directed by Carlos Saura, Spain / France
U.S.A. unless stated
A
Absence of Malice, directed by Sydney Pollack, starring Paul Newman, Sally Field, Bob Balaban, Melinda Dillon
All Night Long, starring Barbra Streisand, Gene Hackman, Diane Ladd, Dennis Quaid
...All the Marbles, starring Peter Falk, Vicki Frederick and Laurene Landon
The Amateur, starring John Savage, Christopher Plummer, Marthe Keller
American Pop, an animated rotoscope musical by Ralph Bakshi and starring Ron Thompson
An American Werewolf in London, directed by John Landis, starring David Naughton, Griffin Dunne, Jenny Agutter – (U.S.A./U.K.)
Amy, starring Jenny Agutter and Barry Newman
Arthur, starring Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, John Gielgud, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Stephen Elliott, Jill Eikenberry
The Aviator's Wife (La femme de l'aviateur), directed by Éric Rohmer – (France)
B
Back Roads, directed by Martin Ritt, starring Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones
Beau-père, directed by Bertrand Blier – (France)
Berlin Tunnel 21, starring Richard Thomas and Horst Buchholz
Die Berührte, directed by Helma Sanders-Brahms – (West Germany)
Betrayal (Løperjenten) – (Norway)
Bianco, rosso e Verdone – (Italy)
Blind Chance (Przypadek) – (Poland)
The Blood of Hussain – (Pakistan)
Blood Wedding (Bodas de sangre), directed by Carlos Saura – (Spain)
Blow Out, directed by Brian De Palma, starring John Travolta, Nancy Allen, Dennis Franz, John Lithgow
The Boat Is Full (Das Boot ist voll) – (Switzerland)
Body Heat, directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring William Hurt, Kathleen Turner, Ted Danson, Richard Crenna, J. A. Preston, Mickey Rourke
Body and Soul, starring Jayne Kennedy, Leon Isaac Kennedy, Michael V. Gazzo
Das Boot (Released in the U.S. in 1982), directed by Wolfgang Petersen, starring Jürgen Prochnow – (West Germany)
Buriki no kunsho – (Japan)
Buddy Buddy, directed by Billy Wilder, starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau
The Burning, starring Brian Matthews – (U.S.A./Canada)
Bustin' Loose, starring Richard Pryor and Cicely Tyson
C
The Cannonball Run, directed by Hal Needham, starring Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Roger Moore, Farrah Fawcett
Carbon Copy, starring George Segal and Denzel Washington
Cattle Annie and Little Britches, starring Burt Lancaster, Rod Steiger, John Savage, Diane Lane, Amanda Plummer
Caveman, directed by Carl Gottlieb, starring Ringo Starr, Dennis Quaid, Shelley Long
Chariots of Fire, directed by Hugh Hudson, starring Ben Cross, Ian Charleson, Nigel Havers – (U.K.)
Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen, starring Peter Ustinov, Lee Grant, Angie Dickinson
Charlotte – (Netherlands)
The Chosen, starring Robby Benson, Barry Miller, Maximilian Schell, Rod Steiger
Christiane F. – We Children from Bahnhof Zoo, directed by Uli Edel, starring Natja Brunckhorst – (West Germany)
Chu Chu and the Philly Flash, directed by David Lowell Rich, starring Carol Burnett and Alan Arkin
Circle of Deceit (Die Fälschung), directed by Volker Schlöndorff, starring Bruno Ganz, Hanna Schygulla and Jerzy Skolimowski – (West Germany)
Clash of the Titans, starring Harry Hamlin, Laurence Olivier, Maggie Smith – (U.S.A./U.K.)
Condorman, starring Michael Crawford, Oliver Reed, Barbara Carrera – (U.K.)
Le confort et l'indifférence (Comfort and Indifference) – (Canada)
Continental Divide, starring John Belushi, Blair Brown, Allen Garfield
Coup de torchon, directed by Bertrand Tavernier, starring Philippe Noiret and Isabelle Huppert – (France)
Cutter's Way, starring Jeff Bridges, Lisa Eichhorn, John Heard
D
Dance Craze, concert documentary featuring Madness, The Beat, The Specials and others – (U.K.)
Dark Night of the Scarecrow
Dead & Buried, starring James Farentino
Deadly Blessing. starring Sharon Stone and Ernest Borgnine
Death Hunt, starring Charles Bronson, Lee Marvin, Andrew Stevens, Carl Weathers, Angie Dickinson
The Decline of Western Civilization, a documentary film
Deprisa, Deprisa (Hurry, Hurry!), directed by Carlos Saura – (Spain) – Golden Bear winner
The Devil and Max Devlin, starring Elliott Gould and Bill Cosby
Diva, directed by Jean-Jacques Beineix – (France)
Do You Remember Dolly Bell? (Sjecas li se Doli Bel?) – (Yugoslavia)
Dragonslayer, starring Peter MacNicol
Dreszcze (Shivers) – (Poland)
E
Eijanaika (Why Not?), directed by Shohei Imamura – (Japan)
Ek Duuje Ke Liye (Made for Each Other) – (India)
Endless Love, directed by Franco Zeffirelli, starring Brooke Shields and Martin Hewitt
The Entity, starring Barbara Hershey, Ron Silver, Margaret Blye
Escape from New York, directed by John Carpenter, starring Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Isaac Hayes, Adrienne Barbeau
Escape to Victory (aka Victory), directed by John Huston, starring Michael Caine, Sylvester Stallone, Max von Sydow, Pelé
The Evil Dead, directed by Sam Raimi, starring Bruce Campbell
Excalibur, directed by John Boorman, starring Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren, Nicol Williamson, Nicholas Clay, Liam Neeson – (U.K.)
An Eye for an Eye, starring Chuck Norris
Eye of the Needle, starring Donald Sutherland and Kate Nelligan – (U.K.)
Eyewitness, directed by Peter Yates, starring William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, Christopher Plummer, James Woods
F
The Fan, directed by Edward Bianchi, starring Lauren Bacall, James Garner, Maureen Stapleton and Michael Biehn
Fever (Gorączka), directed by Agnieszka Holland – (Poland)
First Monday in October, starring Walter Matthau and Jill Clayburgh
For Your Eyes Only, starring Roger Moore (as James Bond), with Carole Bouquet, Lynn-Holly Johnson – (U.K.)
Fort Apache, The Bronx, directed by Daniel Petrie, starring Paul Newman, Ed Asner, Ken Wahl
Four Friends, directed by Arthur Penn, starring Craig Wasson and Jodi Thelen
The Four Seasons, directed by and starring Alan Alda, with Carol Burnett, Rita Moreno, Sandy Dennis, Len Cariou, Jack Weston
The Fox and the Hound, with the voices of Mickey Rooney, Kurt Russell, Pearl Bailey
The French Lieutenant's Woman, directed by Karel Reisz, starring Meryl Streep and Jeremy Irons – (U.K.)
Friday the 13th Part II, directed by Steve Miner, starring Amy Steel, John Furey and Adrienne King
Full Moon High, starring Adam Arkin
The Funhouse, directed by Tobe Hooper
G
Gallipoli, directed by Peter Weir, starring Mel Gibson – (Australia)
Gangster Wars, starring Michael Nouri, Joe Penny, Brian Benben, Madeleine Stowe
Garde à Vue, starring Romy Schneider and Michel Serrault – (France)
Gas, starring Susan Anspach, Sterling Hayden, Helen Shaver – (Canada)
Ghost Story, starring Fred Astaire, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Melvyn Douglas, John Houseman
The Girl with the Red Hair (Het meisje met het rode haar) – (Netherlands)
Going Ape!, starring Tony Danza, Stacey Nelkin, Jessica Walter, Danny DeVito
Goodbye Pork Pie – (New Zealand)
Graduation Day, starring Christopher George
The Great Muppet Caper, directed by Jim Henson – (U.S.A./U.K.)
Gregory's Girl, directed by Bill Forsyth – (U.K.)
Grendel Grendel Grendel, starring Peter Ustinov – (Australia)
Gulliver in Lilliput
H
Halloween II, directed by Rick Rosenthal, starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Donald Pleasence
The Hand, directed by Oliver Stone, starring Michael Caine
Hands Up!, (Ręce do góry), directed by Jerzy Skolimowski – (Poland) – originally made in 1967 but withheld
Happy Birthday to Me, starring Melissa Sue Anderson and Glenn Ford – (Canada)
Hard Country, starring Jan-Michael Vincent and Kim Basinger
Hardly Working, directed by and starring Jerry Lewis
Harry's War, starring Edward Herrmann
Heartbeeps, directed by Allan Arkush, starring Andy Kaufman and Bernadette Peters
Heavy Metal, starring John Candy – (Canada)
Hell Night, starring Linda Blair
History of the World, Part I, directed by and starring Mel Brooks, with Gregory Hines, Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn, Cloris Leachman, Harvey Korman
Honky Tonk Freeway, starring William Devane, Beau Bridges, Teri Garr, Beverly D'Angelo, Howard Hesseman, Jessica Tandy
The Hound of the Baskervilles (Priklyucheniya Sherloka Kholmsa i doktora Vatsona: Sobaka Baskerviley) – (U.S.S.R.)
The Howling, directed by Joe Dante, starring Dee Wallace and Patrick Macnee
I-J
I Love You (Eu Te Amo), starring Sônia Braga – (Brazil)
The Incredible Shrinking Woman, starring Lily Tomlin and Charles Grodin
Inseminoid, starring Judy Geeson, Stephanie Beacham, Victoria Tennant – (U.K.)
The Inventor (Der Erfinder) – (Switzerland/West Germany)
Just Another Missing Kid, winner of Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature – (Canada)
K
Killing Heat (Gräset Sjunger), starring Karen Black – (Sweden/Zambia)
The Killing of Angel Street – (Australia)
Knightriders, starring Ed Harris
Kranti (Revolution), starring Dilip Kumar, Manoj Kumar, Shashi Kapoor – (India)
L
Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains, starring Diane Lane and Laura Dern
Lady Chatterley's Lover, starring Sylvia Kristel and Nicholas Clay
The Land of Hunger (Aakali Rajyam) – (India)
The Last Chase, starring Lee Majors
Lawaaris, starring Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat Aman – (India)
The Legend of the Lone Ranger, starring Klinton Spilsbury, winner of a Golden Raspberry award for Worst Actor
Light Years Away (Les Années lumière), starring Trevor Howard – (France)
Lili Marleen, directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Hanna Schygulla – (West Germany)
Lion of the Desert, starring Anthony Quinn – (Libya)
The Little Fox (Vuk) – (Hungary)
Lola, a German film directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, starring Barbara Sukowa and Armin Mueller-Stahl – (West Germany)
Looker, directed by Michael Crichton, starring Albert Finney, James Coburn, Susan Dey
Looks and Smiles, directed by Ken Loach – (U.K.)
The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie
Loophole, starring Albert Finney and Martin Sheen
M
Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, starring Mel Gibson – (Australia)
Man of Iron (Człowiek z żelaza), directed by Andrzej Wajda – (Poland) – Palme d'Or winner
Mandala – (South Korea)
Marianne and Juliane (Die bleierne Zeit), directed by Margarethe von Trotta, starring Barbara Sukowa - Golden Lion winner – (West Germany)
Il Marchese del Grillo, directed by Mario Monicelli, starring Alberto Sordi – (Italy)
Masada, TV miniseries, starring Peter O'Toole, Peter Strauss, Barbara Carrera, David Warner
The Melody Haunts My Memory (Samo jednom se ljubi) – (Yugoslavia)
Mephisto, directed by István Szabó, starring Klaus Maria Brandauer – (Hungary/West Germany/Austria)
Il minestrone, starring Roberto Benigni – (Italy)
Modern Romance, directed by and starring Albert Brooks, with Kathryn Harrold and Bruno Kirby
Mommie Dearest, starring Faye Dunaway, Diana Scarwid, Steve Forrest – winner of five Golden Raspberry Awards including Worst Picture and Worst Actress (Dunaway)
Montenegro, starring Susan Anspach and Erland Josephson – (Sweden)
Ms. 45, directed by Abel Ferrara
Muzhiki! – (U.S.S.R.)
My Bloody Valentine – (Canada)
My Dinner with Andre, starring Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory
The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians (Tajemství hradu v Karpatech) – (Czechoslovakia)
The Mystery of the Third Planet (Tayna tretyey planety) – (U.S.S.R.)
N
Naseeb (Destiny), starring Amitabh Bachchan – (India)
National Heritage (Patrimonio nacional), directed by Luis García Berlanga – (Spain)
Neighbors, starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd
The Nesting, starring Bill Rowley, Gloria Grahame
Nice Dreams, a Cheech & Chong film
Nighthawks, starring Sylvester Stallone, Rutger Hauer, Billy Dee Williams
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia, starring Kristy McNichol, Dennis Quaid, Mark Hamill
Nobody's Perfekt, starring Gabe Kaplan, Alex Karras, Robert Klein
O
The Oil, the Baby and the Transylvanians (Pruncul, petrolul şi ardelenii) – (Romania)
Omen III: The Final Conflict, starring Sam Neill, Rossano Brazzi – (U.S.A./U.K.)
On Golden Pond, directed by Mark Rydell, starring Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, Jane Fonda
On the Right Track, starring Gary Coleman
Only When I Laugh, starring Marsha Mason, Kristy McNichol, James Coco, Joan Hackett
Outland, directed by Peter Hyams, starring Sean Connery and Peter Boyle – (U.K.)
P
Passion of Love (Passione d'amore), directed by Ettore Scola – (Italy)
Paternity, directed by David Steinberg, starring Burt Reynolds and Beverly D'Angelo
La Pelle (The Skin), directed by Liliana Cavani, starring Marcello Mastroianni and Claudia Cardinale – (Italy)
Pennies from Heaven, starring Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters, Jessica Harper, Christopher Walken – based on the TV series by Dennis Potter
Pixote, directed by Héctor Babenco – (Brazil)
Polyester, directed by John Waters, starring Divine
Le Pont du Nord, directed by Jacques Rivette – (France)
Possession, starring Isabelle Adjani and Sam Neill – (France/West Germany)
The Postman Always Rings Twice, directed by Bob Rafelson, starring Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange
Priest of Love, starring Ian McKellen, Janet Suzman, Ava Gardner – (U.K.)
Prince of the City, directed by Sidney Lumet, starring Treat Williams and Jerry Orbach
Private Lessons, starring Sylvia Kristel, Howard Hesseman, Ed Begley, Jr.
The Prodigal Son (Bai ga jai), directed by and starring Sammo Hung – (Hong Kong)
The Pursuit of D. B. Cooper, starring Treat Williams, Robert Duvall, Kathryn Harrold
Q
Quartet, directed by James Ivory, starring Alan Bates, Maggie Smith, Isabelle Adjani – (U.K.)
Quest for Fire (aka La Guerre du feu), directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud – (Canada/France/U.S.A.)
R
Race for the Yankee Zephyr, starring Ken Wahl, Lesley Ann Warren, George Peppard – (New Zealand)
Raggedy Man, starring Sam Shepard and Sissy Spacek
Ragtime, directed by Miloš Forman, starring James Cagney, Howard E. Rollins, Jr., Elizabeth McGovern, Mandy Patinkin, Mary Steenburgen, Brad Dourif
Raiders of the Lost Ark, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Harrison Ford and Karen Allen
Reds, directed by and starring Warren Beatty, with Diane Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Maureen Stapleton, Gene Hackman, Paul Sorvino
Rich and Famous, directed by George Cukor, starring Jacqueline Bisset and Candice Bergen
Ritam zločina – (Yugoslavia)
Roadgames, directed by Richard Franklin, starring Stacy Keach and Jamie Lee Curtis – (Australia)
Rollover, directed by Alan J. Pakula, starring Jane Fonda and Kris Kristofferson
Ruckus, starring Dirk Benedict, Linda Blair, Richard Farnsworth
S
S.O.B., directed by Blake Edwards, starring Julie Andrews, William Holden, Robert Preston, Richard Mulligan
The Salamander, starring Anthony Quinn, Franco Nero, Eli Wallach, Claudia Cardinale
Saturday the 14th, starring Paula Prentiss and Richard Benjamin
Scanners, directed by David Cronenberg – (Canada)
Sharky's Machine, directed by and starring Burt Reynolds, with Rachel Ward, Henry Silva, Vittorio Gassman, Charles Durning, Earl Holliman
Shaukeen, starring Ashok Kumar – (India)
Shikake-nin Baian – (Japan)
Shock Treatment, starring Jessica Harper and Cliff DeYoung
Short Working Day, directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski – (Poland)
Shaolin and Wu Tang (Shao Lin yu Wu Dang), Directed by Liu Chia-Hui, starring Adam Cheng, Gordon Liu and Wang Lung-wei – (Hong Kong)
The Simple-Minded Murderer (Den Enfaldige Mördaren), starring Stellan Skarsgård – (Sweden)
The Sixth (Shestoy) – (U.S.S.R.)
Smash Palace, directed by Roger Donaldson – (New Zealand)
Sogni d'oro (Golden Dreams), directed by and starring Nanni Moretti – (Italy)
Southern Comfort, directed by Walter Hill, starring Keith Carradine, Powers Boothe and Fred Ward
Sphinx, starring Lesley-Anne Down and Frank Langella
Station (Eki Station) – (Japan)
Strange Affair (Une étrange affaire), starring Michel Piccoli – (France)
Strange Behavior, starring Michael Murphy and Louise Fletcher – (New Zealand)
Stripes, directed by Ivan Reitman, starring Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Warren Oates, John Larroquette, John Candy
Student Bodies
Suddenly at Midnight (Gipeun bam, gapjagi) – (South Korea)
T
Take This Job and Shove It, starring Robert Hays, Barbara Hershey, Art Carney
Tales of Ordinary Madness (Storie di ordinaria follia), starring Ben Gazzara and Ornella Muti – (Italy/France)
Taps, directed by Harold Becker, starring Timothy Hutton, George C. Scott, Ronny Cox, Sean Penn, Tom Cruise
Tarzan, the Ape Man, starring Bo Derek and Richard Harris
Tattoo, starring Bruce Dern and Maud Adams
Taxi zum Klo (Taxi to the Toilet) – (West Germany)
Teheran 43, starring Alain Delon – (U.S.S.R./France/Switzerland)
The Bushido Blade
They All Laughed, directed by Peter Bogdanovich, starring Audrey Hepburn and Ben Gazzara
They Don't Wear Black Tie (Eles Não Usam Black-Tie) – (Brazil)
Thief aka Violent Streets, directed by Michael Mann, starring James Caan, Tuesday Weld, James Belushi, Robert Prosky
This Is Elvis, a documentary
Three Brothers (Tre fratelli), directed by Francesco Rosi – (Italy)
Threshold, directed by Richard Pearce, starring Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum, Mare Winningham – (Canada)
Ticket to Heaven, starring Nick Mancuso, Saul Rubinek, Meg Foster – (Canada)
Time Bandits, directed by Terry Gilliam, starring John Cleese, Sean Connery, Shelley Duvall – (U.K.)
Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man (La tragedia di un uomo ridicolo), directed by Bernardo Bertolucci, starring Ugo Tognazzi and Anouk Aimée – (Italy)
Tree of Knowledge (Kundskabens træ) – (Denmark)
True Confessions, directed by Ulu Grosbard, starring Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall, Charles Durning, Burgess Meredith, Kenneth McMillan
The True Story of Ah Q (Ā Q zhèng zhuàn) – (China)
Tuck Everlasting
U-V
Under the Rainbow, starring Chevy Chase, Carrie Fisher and Billy Barty
Les Uns et les Autres, directed by Claude Lelouch – (France)
Útlaginn (Outlaw: The Saga of Gisli) – (Iceland)
Variola Vera – (Yugoslavia)
Vernon, Florida, a documentary
W
Whose Life Is It Anyway?, directed by John Badham, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Bob Balaban, Christine Lahti, John Cassavetes
Will, starring Robert Conrad
Wolfen, starring Albert Finney, Diane Venora and Gregory Hines
The Woman Next Door (La Femme d'à côté), directed by François Truffaut, starring Gérard Depardieu and Fanny Ardant – (France)
Woman Who Exposes Herself (Misetagaru onna) – (Japan)
Z
Zoot Suit, starring Edward James Olmos
Zorro, The Gay Blade, starring George Hamilton, Lauren Hutton, Brenda Vaccaro, Ron Leibman
January 1981
January 7
Scream
January 14
Scanners
January 28
Blood Beach
January 30
Earthbound
The Incredible Shrinking Woman
February 1981
February 1
Blood Beach
February 11
Sphinx
February 13
American Pop
Eyewitness
March 1981
March 6
All Night Long
The Devil and Max Devlin
Maniac
On the Right Track
March 13
Back Roads
The Funhouse
Modern Romance
March 20
Amy
Omen III: The Final Conflict
The Postman Always Rings Twice
March 27
Eyes of a Stranger
Thief
April 1981
April 3
Hardly Working
April 4
This Is Elvis
Nighthawks
April 10
Excalibur
Going Ape!
The Howling
Knightriders
April 17
Caveman
April 24
Cattle Annie and Little Britches
The Hand
Ms. 45
Night School
Take This Job and Shove It
April 28
Bloody Birthday
May 1981
May 1
Friday the 13th Part 2
Graduation Day
King of the Mountain
May 3
Image of the Beast
May 8
The Burning
May 15
The Fan
May 22
Bustin' Loose
The Four Seasons
The Legend of the Lone Ranger
May 29
Dead & Buried
Polyester
The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia
June 1981
June 5
Cheech & Chong's Nice Dreams
Final Exam
Tuck Everlasting
June 12
Clash of the Titans
History of the World, Part I
Raiders of the Lost Ark
June 19
The Cannonball Run
Superman II
June 26
For Your Eyes Only
The Great Muppet Caper
Stripes
July 1981
July 1
S.O.B.
July 10
Escape from New York
The Fox and the Hound
July 17
Arthur
Endless Love
Zorro, The Gay Blade
July 24
Blow Out
Wolfen
July 31
Under the Rainbow
August 1981
August 7
Heavy Metal
Student Bodies
August 14
Deadly Blessing
An Eye for an Eye
They All Laughed
August 21
An American Werewolf in London
First Monday in October
Prince of the City
August 28
Body Heat
Chu Chu and the Philly Flash
Hell Night
Private Lessons
September 1981
September 18
Continental Divide
Mommie Dearest
Raggedy Man
September 23
Only When I Laugh
Rich and Famous
September 25
The Boogens
Carbon Copy
So Fine
October 1981
Galaxy of Terror
October 2
Enter the Ninja
Paternity
October 9
Full Moon High
Tattoo
October 11
My Dinner with Andre
October 14
Just Before Dawn
October 16
All the Marbles
October 23
Nightmare
October 30
Looker
Halloween II
November 1981
November 6
The Prowler
Fantasies
Time Bandits
November 13
The Pursuit of D. B. Cooper
November 20
The Looney Looney Looney Bugs Bunny Movie
December 1981
December 4
On Golden Pond
Reds
December 11
Buddy Buddy
Dawn of the Mummy
Four Friends
Rollover
December 18
Absence of Malice
Ghost Story
Neighbors
Sharky's Machine
December 20
Taps
December 25
Modern Problems
January 6 – Jérémie Renier, Belgian actor
January 8 – Genevieve Cortese, American actress
January 21 – Izabella Miko, Polish actress and dancer
January 22 – Beverley Mitchell, American actress
January 28 – Elijah Wood, American actor
January 31 – Justin Timberlake, American singer and actor
February 9 – Tom Hiddleston, English actor
February 11 – Kelly Rowland, American singer and actress
February 12 - Lauri Lagle, Estonian actor, director and screenwriter
February 17 – Joseph Gordon-Levitt, American actor
February 19 – Beth Ditto, American singer-songwriter
February 23 – Josh Gad, American actor and comedian
March 2 – Bryce Dallas Howard, American actress
March 6 – Ellen Muth, American actress
March 11 – David Anders, American actor
March 28 – Julia Stiles, American actress
April 10
Laura Bell Bundy, American actress
Michael Pitt, American actor
April 13 – Courtney Peldon, American actress
April 19
Hayden Christensen, Canadian actor
Catalina Sandino Moreno, Colombian actress
April 28 – Jessica Alba, American actress
May 5
Danielle Fishel, American actress
Farid Kamil, Malaysian actor and film director
May 11 – Austin O'Brien, American actor
May 12 – Rami Malek, American actor
May 15 – Jamie-Lynn Sigler, American actress
May 28 – Laura Bailey, American voice actress
June 1 – Amy Schumer, American actress and comedian
June 7 – Larisa Oleynik, American actress
June 9 – Natalie Portman, Israeli-American actress
June 10 – Jonathan Bennett, American actor
June 13 – Chris Evans, American actor
June 14 – Chauncey Leopardi, American actor
June 20 – Alisan Porter, former American actress
July 24 – Summer Glau, American actress
July 30 – Lisa Wilhoit, American actress
August 1 – Taylor Fry, former American child actress
August 3 – Travis Willingham, American voice actor
August 4
Marques Houston, American singer and actor
Meghan Markle, American actress and model
Abigail Spencer, American actress
August 8 – Meagan Good, American actress
August 20 – Ben Barnes, English actor
August 24 – Chad Michael Murray, American actor
August 25 – Rachel Bilson, American actress
August 27 – Patrick J. Adams, Canadian actor
September 4 – Beyoncé Knowles, American singer and actress
September 6 - Natalie Portman, American-Israeli actress
September 8 – Jonathan Taylor Thomas, American actor
September 12 – Jennifer Hudson, American singer and actress
September 16 – Alexis Bledel, American actress
September 23 – Misti Traya, American actress
September 26 – Christina Milian, American singer and actress
September 29 – Shay Astar, American singer and actress
September 30 – Ashleigh Aston Moore, former Canadian child actress (d. 2007)
October 1 – Rupert Friend, English actor
October 3 – Seth Gabel, American actor
October 9 – Zachery Ty Bryan, American actor
October 12 – Tom Guiry, American actor
October 22 – Michael Fishman, American actor
November 9 – Scottie Thompson, American actress
November 16 – Caitlin Glass, American voice actress
November 18 – Nasim Pedrad, Iranian-American actress and comedian
November 20 – Andrea Riseborough, English actress
December 2 – Britney Spears, American singer and actress
December 3 – Liza Lapira, American actress
December 13 – Amy Lee, American singer-songwriter (Evanescence)
December 16 – Krysten Ritter, American actress
December 18 – Josh Dallas, American actor
December 27 – Emilie de Ravin, Australian actress
December 28 – Sienna Miller, English actress
Ben Affleck – The Dark End of the Street
Jason Alexander – The Burning
Kim Basinger – Hard Country
Bart the Bear – Windwalker
James Belushi – Thief
Gabriel Byrne – Excalibur
James Cameron – Piranha II: The Spawning
Kevin Costner – Malibu Hot Summer
Tom Cruise – Endless Love
Jeff Daniels – Ragtime
Rebecca De Mornay - One from the Heart
Dennis Farina – Thief
Jami Gertz – Endless Love
Bob Gunton – Rollover
Glenne Headly – Four Friends
Holly Hunter – The Burning
Ciarán Hinds – Excalibur
Peter MacNicol – Dragonslayer
Alfred Molina – Raiders of the Lost Ark
Bill Nighy - Eye of the Needle
Chris Noth - Waitress!
Demi Moore – Choices
Sean Penn – Taps
Martha Plimpton – Rollover
Amanda Plummer – Cattle Annie and Little Britches
Geoffrey Rush – Hoodwink
Meg Ryan – Rich and Famous
Madeleine Stowe – Gangster Wars
Henry Thomas – Raggedy Man
Kathleen Turner – Body Heat
