Market Charts > 1979 > Movie Chart

North America (US and Canada) Domestic Movie Chart for 1979

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Note: This chart ranks movies by the amount they earned during 1979. It includes movies released in previous years that earned money during 1979. For example, a movie released over Thanksgiving in 1978 will most likely earn money in 1978 and 1979. Click on the individual movie to see its total gross over all the years in which it played.

Inflation-adjusted figures are based on ticket sale estimates.

See Top 1979 Movies at the Domestic Box Office for the total domestic box office for the top 100 movies released in 1979, and Movie Index 1979 for an overview of all movies released in 1979.

Top Grossing Movies of 1979

RankMovieRelease
Date
DistributorGenre1979 GrossTickets Sold
1 Superman Dec 15, 1978 Warner Bros. Adventure $93,292,767 37,168,433
2 The Amityville Horror Aug 3, 1979 American Internat… Horror $86,432,520 34,435,266
3 Rocky 2 Jun 15, 1979 United Artists Action $85,182,160 33,937,115
4 Star Trek: The Motion Picture Dec 7, 1979 Paramount Pictures Adventure $82,258,456 32,772,293
5 Apocalypse Now Aug 15, 1979 United Artists Action $78,784,010 31,388,051
6 The Muppet Movie Jun 22, 1979 Associated Film D… Adventure $76,657,000 30,540,637
7 The Jerk Dec 14, 1979 Universal Comedy $73,691,419 29,359,131
8 Moonraker Jun 29, 1979 United Artists Action $70,300,000 28,007,968
9 Alien May 25, 1979 20th Century Fox Horror $60,150,933 23,964,515
10 10 Oct 5, 1979 Warner Bros. Romantic Comedy $52,134,699 20,770,796
11 Love at First Bite Jan 1, 1979 American Internat… $43,900,000 17,490,039
12 Escape from Alcatraz Jun 22, 1979 Paramount Pictures Drama $43,000,000 17,131,474
13 Meatballs Jun 29, 1979 Paramount Pictures Comedy $43,000,000 17,131,474
14 The Electric Horseman Dec 19, 1979 Universal Romantic Comedy $42,670,138 17,000,054
15 Manhattan Apr 25, 1979 United Artists Romantic Comedy $39,946,780 15,915,051
16 Starting Over Oct 5, 1979 Paramount Pictures $38,200,000 15,219,123
17 The In-Laws Jun 15, 1979 Warner Bros. Comedy $38,200,000 15,219,123
18 All That Jazz Dec 20, 1979 20th Century Fox Drama $37,823,676 15,069,193
19 Black Stallion, The Oct 17, 1979 United Artists Adventure $37,799,643 15,059,618
20 The Main Event Jun 22, 1979 Warner Bros. $37,198,813 14,820,244
21 The Black Hole Dec 21, 1979 Walt Disney $35,841,901 14,279,641
22 The China Syndrome Mar 16, 1979 Columbia Thriller/Suspense $35,708,042 14,226,311
23 1941 Dec 14, 1979 Universal Comedy $34,175,000 13,615,537
24 ...And Justice For All Oct 19, 1979 Columbia Drama $33,300,000 13,266,932
25 The Champ Apr 4, 1979 MGM Drama $30,441,738 12,128,182
26 Being There Dec 19, 1979 United Artists Comedy $30,177,511 12,022,912
27 Chapter Two Jan 1, 1979 Columbia Comedy $30,000,000 11,952,191
28 Going in Style Jan 1, 1979 Warner Bros. Comedy $29,900,000 11,912,350
29 The Rose Nov 7, 1979 20th Century Fox Drama $29,200,000 11,633,466
30 Prophecy Jun 15, 1979 Paramount Pictures Horror $22,673,340 9,033,203
31 The Warriors Feb 9, 1979 Paramount Pictures Action $22,490,000 8,960,159
32 Norma Rae Mar 2, 1979 20th Century Fox Drama $22,228,000 8,855,776
33 The Bermuda Triangle Jan 1, 1979 Horror $22,200,000 8,844,621
34 Every Which Way but Loose Dec 20, 1978 Warner Bros. Comedy $21,596,391 8,604,139
35 Dracula Jan 1, 1979 Universal Horror $21,000,000 8,366,533
36 A Force of One Jan 1, 1979 American Cinema R… Action $20,200,000 8,047,808
37 Breaking Away Jul 13, 1979 20th Century Fox Drama $20,000,000 7,968,127
38 North Dallas Forty Aug 3, 1979 Paramount Pictures $19,010,710 7,573,988
39 The Seduction of Joe Tynan Aug 17, 1979 Universal Drama $19,000,000 7,569,721
40 Hair Mar 24, 1979 United Artists Comedy $13,100,000 5,219,123
41 The Concorde: Airport '79 Jan 1, 1979 Universal $13,000,000 5,179,282
42 Time After Time Jan 1, 1979 Warner Bros. $13,000,000 5,179,282
43 The Frisco Kid Jul 13, 1979 Warner Bros. Comedy $12,000,000 4,780,876
44 Star Wars Ep. IV: A New Hope Jul 21, 1978 20th Century Fox Adventure $10,345,657 4,121,775
45 Dirt Mar 1, 1979 American Cinema R… Documentary $9,200,000 3,665,338
46 Meteor Oct 19, 1979 American Internat… Action $8,400,000 3,346,613
47 More American Graffiti Aug 3, 1979 Universal Comedy $8,100,000 3,227,091
48 Agatha Feb 9, 1979 Warner Bros. Thriller/Suspense $7,500,000 2,988,047
49 Kramer vs. Kramer Dec 19, 1979 Columbia Drama $7,277,237 2,899,297
50 The Great Santini Oct 26, 1979 Warner Bros. Drama $7,000,000 2,788,844
51 The Prisoner of Zenda May 25, 1979 Universal Comedy $7,000,000 2,788,844
52 Dawn of the Dead Apr 20, 1979 United Film Distr… Horror $5,100,000 2,031,872
53 The Glacier Fox Feb 1, 1979 Sanrio Communicat… Documentary $3,500,000 1,394,422
54 Hanover Street Jan 1, 1979 Columbia Drama $3,000,000 1,195,219
55 Fiddler on the Roof Jan 1, 1971 United Artists Musical $1,777,630 708,219
56 When a Stranger Calls Sep 28, 1979 Columbia Thriller/Suspense $1,262,052 502,809
57 Lost and Found Jun 22, 1979 Columbia Comedy $1,022,374 407,320
58 Roller Boogie Dec 19, 1979 United Artists Comedy $775,133 308,817
59 Cuba Dec 21, 1979 United Artists Action $527,540 210,175
60 The Great Train Robbery Feb 2, 1979 United Artists Action $391,942 156,152
61 Last Embrace May 2, 1979 United Artists Thriller/Suspense $381,119 151,840
62 The Life of Brian Aug 17, 1979 Warner Bros. Comedy $140,044 55,794
63 The Passage Mar 9, 1979 United Artists Drama $70,461 28,072
64 Rich Kids Aug 17, 1979 United Artists Drama $53,064 21,141
65 Voices Mar 14, 1979 MGM Drama $27,445 10,934
66 Birds of a Feather Mar 30, 1979 United Artists Comedy $18,709 7,453
67 Dolphin Jun 30, 1979 Documentary $14,000 5,577
68 The Fish That Saved Pittsburgh Nov 2, 1979 United Artists Comedy $12,922 5,148
Total Gross of All Movies$1,793,762,976
Total Tickets Sold714,646,571

Our Theatrical Market pages are based on the Domestic Theatrical Market performance only. The Domestic Market is defined as the North American movie territory (consisting of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and Guam).

The yearly amounts on our Theatrical Market pages are based on box office years. Each box office year starts on the first Monday of the year, so the previous year ends on the Sunday before the first Monday. For example, the "2017 box office year" started on January 2, 2017 so the "2016 box office year" ended on Sunday, January 1, 2017.