Box Office Records > Worldwide > All Movies > Cumulative > Top 1981 Worldwide
Top 1981 Movies at the Worldwide Box Office
See also: Top 1981 Domestic - Top 1981 International
Other Worldwide Cumulative records: All Time Worldwide - All Time Single Market - All Time Animated Worldwide - All Time Sequel Worldwide - All Time Non-Sequel Worldwide - Top 2023 Worldwide - Top 2024 Worldwide
This chart contains the total worldwide box office for the movies released in 1981.
| Rank | Movie | Worldwide Box Office | Domestic Box Office | International Box Office | Domestic Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raiders of the Lost Ark | $367,451,914 | $225,686,079 | $141,765,835 | 61.42% |
| 2 | For Your Eyes Only | $195,300,000 | $54,800,000 | $140,500,000 | 28.06% |
| 3 | Superman II | $190,400,000 | $108,185,706 | $82,214,294 | 56.82% |
| 4 | On Golden Pond | $119,285,432 | $119,285,432 | 100.00% | |
| 5 | Stripes | $85,300,000 | $85,300,000 | 100.00% | |
| 6 | Arthur | $81,464,486 | $81,464,486 | 100.00% | |
| 7 | Fort Apache, The Bronx | $65,200,000 | $29,200,000 | $36,000,000 | 44.79% |
| 8 | An American Werewolf in London | $61,968,388 | $31,973,249 | $29,995,139 | 51.60% |
| 9 | Chariots of Fire | $61,910,507 | $61,558,162 | $352,345 | 99.43% |
| 10 | The Cannonball Run | $57,498,710 | $57,498,710 | 100.00% | |
| 11 | Reds | $50,000,130 | $50,000,000 | $130 | 100.00% |
| 12 | Clash of the Titans | $44,400,000 | $30,000,000 | $14,400,000 | 67.57% |
| 13 | The Postman Always Rings Twice | $44,200,000 | $12,200,000 | $32,000,000 | 27.60% |
| 14 | The Fox and the Hound | $43,899,231 | $43,899,231 | 100.00% | |
| 15 | The Four Seasons | $42,488,161 | $42,488,161 | 100.00% | |
| 16 | Time Bandits | $37,400,000 | $37,400,000 | 100.00% | |
| 17 | Cheech & Chong's Nice Dreams | $37,000,000 | $37,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 18 | Tarzan, The Ape Man | $36,565,000 | $36,565,000 | 100.00% | |
| 19 | Taps | $35,856,053 | $35,856,053 | 100.00% | |
| 20 | Excalibur | $34,200,000 | $34,200,000 | 100.00% | |
| 21 | Absence of Malice | $33,312,129 | $33,312,129 | 100.00% | |
| 22 | Endless Love | $33,000,000 | $33,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 23 | Sharky's Machine | $32,984,898 | $32,984,898 | 100.00% | |
| 24 | History of the World: Part I | $31,672,000 | $31,672,000 | 100.00% | |
| 25 | Bustin' Loose | $31,261,000 | $31,261,000 | 100.00% | |
| 26 | The Great Muppet Caper | $31,206,251 | $31,206,251 | 100.00% | |
| 27 | Neighbors | $29,916,207 | $29,916,207 | 100.00% | |
| 28 | Victory | $27,453,000 | $10,853,000 | $16,600,000 | 39.53% |
| 29 | The Jazz Singer | $27,118,000 | $27,118,000 | 100.00% | |
| 30 | Only When I Laugh | $25,782,304 | $25,782,304 | 100.00% | |
| 31 | Halloween II | $25,533,818 | $25,533,818 | 100.00% | |
| 32 | Escape from New York | $25,276,350 | $25,244,700 | $31,650 | 99.87% |
| 33 | Mommie Dearest | $25,032,000 | $19,032,000 | $6,000,000 | 76.03% |
| 34 | Modern Problems | $24,474,312 | $24,474,312 | 100.00% | |
| 35 | Body Heat | $24,058,000 | $24,058,000 | 100.00% | |
| 36 | Graduation Day | $23,894,000 | $23,894,000 | 100.00% | |
| 37 | Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior | $23,668,407 | $23,667,907 | $500 | 100.00% |
| 38 | The French Lieutenant's Woman | $22,600,000 | $22,600,000 | 100.00% | |
| 39 | Friday the 13th Part 2 | $21,722,776 | $21,722,776 | 100.00% | |
| 40 | The Final Conflict | $20,471,000 | $20,471,000 | 100.00% | |
| 41 | The Incredible Shrinking Woman | $20,259,000 | $20,259,000 | 100.00% | |
| 42 | Outland | $20,000,000 | $20,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 43 | Nighthawks | $19,600,000 | $14,600,000 | $5,000,000 | 74.49% |
| 44 | Heavy Metal | $19,571,091 | $19,571,091 | 100.00% | |
| 45 | Paternity | $18,838,000 | $18,838,000 | 100.00% | |
| 46 | Under the Rainbow | $18,826,490 | $18,826,490 | 100.00% | |
| 47 | Private Lessons | $18,066,774 | $18,064,851 | $1,923 | 99.99% |
| 48 | The Private Eyes | $18,000,000 | $18,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 49 | The Howling | $17,985,130 | $17,985,000 | $130 | 100.00% |
| 50 | Eye of the Needle | $17,583,000 | $17,583,000 | 100.00% | |
| 51 | Take This Job and Shove It | $17,569,000 | $17,569,000 | 100.00% | |
| 52 | Ragtime | $17,468,158 | $17,468,158 | 100.00% | |
| 53 | Ghost Story | $16,202,210 | $16,202,210 | 100.00% | |
| 54 | The Devil and Max Devlin | $16,000,000 | $16,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 55 | Caveman | $15,965,000 | $15,965,000 | 100.00% | |
| 56 | Continental Divide | $15,578,000 | $15,578,000 | 100.00% | |
| 57 | S.O.B. | $14,867,086 | $14,867,086 | 100.00% | |
| 58 | Scanners | $14,200,000 | $14,200,000 | 100.00% | |
| 59 | The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia | $14,000,000 | $14,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 60 | Blow Out | $13,747,988 | $13,747,234 | $754 | 99.99% |
| 61 | The Legend of the Lone Ranger | $13,400,000 | $13,400,000 | 100.00% | |
| 62 | On the Right Track | $13,000,000 | $13,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 63 | Rich and Famous | $13,000,000 | $13,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 64 | True Confessions | $12,200,000 | $12,200,000 | 100.00% | |
| 65 | First Monday in October | $12,000,000 | $12,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 66 | Back Roads | $11,809,387 | $11,809,387 | 100.00% | |
| 67 | Sphinx | $11,400,000 | $2,000,000 | $9,400,000 | 17.54% |
| 68 | Raggedy Man | $11,000,000 | $11,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 69 | Wolfen | $11,000,000 | $11,000,000 | 100.00% | |
| 70 | Happy Birthday To Me | $10,609,514 | $10,609,514 | 100.00% | |
| 71 | Rollover | $10,217,873 | $10,217,873 | 100.00% |
This table is updated daily to reflect the latest studio reports.
Note: This chart is not adjusted for inflation.