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v t e

The year 1976 in film involved some significant events.

Highest-grossing films (U.S.)

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

Events

• January – Paramount Pictures sets up a separate motion picture division and names David V. Picker as president.^[3]
• 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^[update] all around the world.^[4]
• April 9 – Alfred Hitchcock's last film, Family Plot, is released.
• July 29 - Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton divorce again.
• August 11 – John Wayne appears in his final film, The Shootist.
• August 26 – Alan Ladd Jr. is promoted from head of worldwide production to president of 20th Century Fox's film division.
• November 15 – Michael Eisner is brought in as president and CEO of Paramount Pictures.
• November 21 – Rocky, the first in the film series opens. It becomes the highest-grossing film released in the year and goes on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
• December 5 – Bound for Glory debuts and is the first motion picture in which inventor/operator Garrett Brown used his new Steadicam for filming moving scenes,^[5] although its use had already been seen in Marathon Man and Rocky which were filmed later but released earlier.
• December 17 - King Kong opens to the year's highest opening weekend gross and overall box office success.

Awards

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

United States 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
• 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
• Barocco, directed by André Téchiné, starring Isabelle Adjani, Gérard Depardieu, Marie-France Pisier – (France); Winner of three César Awards for Best Actress, Best Cinematography, and Best Music.
• 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

• The Eagle Has Landed, starring Michael Caine and Donald Sutherland – (U.K./United States)
• 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

• 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

• 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

H

• 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

• 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

J

• 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)

K

• 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
• The Marquise of O, directed by Éric Rohmer – (West Germany/France)
• Massacre at Central High, directed by Rene Daalder
• 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./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.)
• 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

• 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 – (UK/US)
• 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)

P

• 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 – (UK/US)
• Rocky, directed by John G. Avildsen, starring Sylvester Stallone, Burgess Meredith, Carl Weathers, Talia Shire, Burt Young

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 – (UK/US)
• 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.)
• The Song Remains the Same, featuring Led Zeppelin – (UK/US)
• 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 Volonté 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

• 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

V

• 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

• 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

1976 Wide-release movies

January–March

• January 1976
  • 11 January
    • Jim the World's Greatest
  • 14 January
    • Killer Force
  • 18 January
    • Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde
  • 27 January
    • The Four Deuces
• February 1976
  • 4 February
    • Next Stop, Greenwich Village
  • 6 February
    • Echoes of a Summer
  • 8 February
    • Taxi Driver
  • 10 February
    • Hot Potato
  • 11 February
    • Gable and Lombard
    • No Deposit, No Return
  • 13 February
    • Jack and the Beanstalk
  • 15 February
    • Deadly Hero
    • The Killing of a Chinese Bookie
  • 19 February
    • Grey Gardens
  • 27 February
    • Griffin and Phoenix
• March 1976
  • 3 March
    • The First Nudie Musical
  • 5 March
    • Black Shampoo
  • 11 March
    • Creature from Black Lake
    • Robin and Marian
  • 12 March
    • I Will, I Will... for Now
  • 13 March
    • One Summer Love
  • 17 March
    • Moving Violation
  • 18 March
    • The Man Who Fell to Earth
    • Mustang Country
  • 25 March
    • The Slipper and the Rose
  • 26 March
    • Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw
    • Ride a Wild Pony
    • Sky Riders
  • 31 March
    • W.C. Fields and Me

April–June

• April 1976
  • 1 April
    • Caddie
    • The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox
  • 2 April
    • Lipstick
  • 5 April
    • The Blue Bird
  • 7 April
    • The Bad News Bears
    • Sparkle
  • 9 April
    • All the President's Men
    • Family Plot
  • 11 April
    • Jackson County Jail
    • The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea
  • 14 April
    • The River Niger
  • 23 April
    • Eat My Dust!
    • Stay Hungry
  • 25 April
    • Hollywood Boulevard
• May 1976
  • 5 May
    • Baby Blue Marine
  • 16 May
    • Escape from the Dark
    • That's Entertainment, Part II
  • 19 May
    • The Missouri Breaks
    • The Premonition
  • 21 May
    • 1900
    • Embryo
    • Hawmps!
  • 26 May
    • Drive-In
    • Mother, Jugs & Speed
    • Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood
  • 28 May
    • Leadbelly
    • The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane (Cannes Film Festival)
    • Shoot
• June 1976
  • 1 June
    • A Clockwork Orange (re-release)
    • The Last Hard Men
  • 2 June
    • Breaking Point
    • A Small Town in Texas
  • 4 June
    • Ode to Billy Joe
  • 11 June
    • The Cars That Ate Paris
    • The Tenant
  • 17 June
    • Harry and Walter Go to New York
    • Silent Movie
  • 18 June
    • The Food of the Gods
    • Midway
  • 20 June
    • Once Upon a Girl
  • 23 June
    • The Big Bus
    • The Great Scout & Cathouse Thursday
    • Logan's Run
    • Murder by Death
  • 24 June
    • Buffalo Bill and the Indians, or Sitting Bull's History Lesson
  • 25 June
    • The Omen
  • 28 June
    • Sweet Revenge
  • 30 June
    • The Outlaw Josey Wales

July–September

• July 1976
  • 1 July
    • To Fly!
    • Treasure of Matecumbe
  • 6 July
    • Cannonball
  • 7 July
    • Gus
  • 9 July
    • Mad Dog Morgan
    • The Opening of Misty Beethoven
  • 14 July
    • Shadow of the Hawk
  • 16 July
    • The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings
  • 23 July
    • Lifeguard
    • Special Delivery
    • A*P*E
  • 28 July
    • Futureworld
  • 29 July
    • Oz
    • Swashbuckler
  • 30 July
    • Drum
    • Squirm
  • 31 July
    • St. Ives
• August 1976
  • 1 August
    • Obsession
    • The Wackiest Wagon Train in the West
  • 4 August
    • The Return of a Man Called Horse
  • 8 August
    • From Noon till Three
  • 12 August
    • The Devil's Playground
    • The Ritz
  • 18 August
    • The Great Texas Dynamite Chase
  • 20 August
    • The Gumball Rally
    • The Shootist
  • 25 August
    • Gator
    • J. D.'s Revenge
• September 1976
• High Velocity
  • 9 September
    • Vigilante Force
  • 15 September
    • In the Realm of the Senses
    • Bugsy Malone
  • 17 September
    • The Front
  • 22 September
    • Mad Dog Morgan
  • 29 September
    • Norman... Is That You?

October–December

• October 1976
  • 3 October
    • Alex & the Gypsy
  • 7 October
    • A Matter of Time
    • The Smurfs and the Magic Flute
  • 8 October
    • Fighting Mad
    • Marathon Man
    • Scorchy
  • 15 October
    • Harlan County, USA
  • 18 October
    • Burnt Offerings
    • The Killer Inside Me
  • 20 October
    • Diary of the Dead
    • The Song Remains the Same
  • 22 October
    • Car Wash
    • God Told Me To
    • Up!
  • 24 October
    • The Seven-Per-Cent Solution
  • 26 October
    • Monsieur Klein
  • 31 October
    • Carry On England
• November 1976
  • 1 November
    • Buffalo Rider
  • 3 November
    • Carrie
  • 5 November
    • John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13. (Los Angeles and New York City openings).
  • 10 November
    • The Next Man
  • 12 November
    • The Boy in the Plastic Bubble
    • Two-Minute Warning
    • Welcome to L.A.
  • 13 November
    • Alice, Sweet Alice
  • 14 November
    • Sybil
  • 17 November
    • The Twelve Tasks of Asterix
  • 19 November
    • The Last Tycoon
  • 21 November
    • Rocky
  • 24 November
    • Shout at the Devil
  • 27 November
    • Network nationwide 13 days after its previous (November 14) Los Angeles and New York City openings.
• December 1976
  • 5 December
    • Bound for Glory
  • 7 December
    • Fellini's Casanova (Italy)
  • 8 December
    • A Star Is Born
    • Silver Streak
  • 10 December
    • Alice in Wonderland
    • Queen Kong
  • 15 December
    • At the Earth's Core
    • The Pink Panther Strikes Again
    • Tracks
  • 17 December
    • The Shaggy D.A.
    • Freaky Friday
    • King Kong
  • 18 December
    • The Cassandra Crossing
  • 20 December
    • Across the Great Divide
  • 21 December
    • Mikey and Nicky
    • Nickelodeon
  • 22 December
    • The Enforcer
    • Voyage of the Damned (New York City, with its Los Angeles opening on the following day, 23rd.
  • 24 December
    • The Monkey Hustle
    • The Town That Dreaded Sundown
    • In Search of Noah's Ark
  • 25 December
    • The Eagle Has Landed

Births

• January 2 – Paz Vega, Spanish actress
• January 6
  • Johnny Yong Bosch, American actor, voice actor
  • Danny Pintauro, American actor
• January 13 – Michael Peña, American actor
• January 21 – Lars Eidinger, German film, television and stage actor
• January 28 – Lee Ingleby, English film, television and stage actor
• February 3 – Isla Fisher, Australian actress
• February 5 – Abhishek Bachchan, Indian actor
• February 9 – Charlie Day, American actor, screenwriter, producer, comedian, director and musician
• February 11 – Brice Beckham, American actor
• February 23
  • Aaron Aziz, Singaporean actor
  • Kelly Macdonald, Scottish actress
• February 25 – Rashida Jones, American actress
• February 28 - Ali Larter, American actress and model
• March 8 – Freddie Prinze Jr., American actor, voice actor, writer and producer
• March 13 – Danny Masterson, American actor
• March 14 – Corey Stoll, American actor
• March 16 – Paul Schneider, American actor
• March 21 – Rachael MacFarlane, American voice actress, singer and writer
• March 22 – Reese Witherspoon, American actress
• March 23
  • Michelle Monaghan, American actress
  • Keri Russell, American actress
• March 26 – Amy Smart, American actress
• April 1
  • Troy Baker, American voice actor
  • David Oyelowo, English actor, producer, director
• April 5 – Sterling K. Brown, American actor
• April 6 - Candace Cameron Bure, American actress
• April 13 – Jonathan Brandis, American actor (d. 2003)
• April 15 – Susan Ward, American actress
• April 20 – Joey Lawrence, American actor
• April 23 – Gabriel Damon, American actor
• April 26 – Elisabet Reinsalu, Estonian actress
• April 27 – Sally Hawkins, English actress
• May 5 – Sage Stallone, American actor (d. 2012)
• 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
• May 30 – Omri Katz, American retired actor
• May 31 – Colin Farrell, Irish actor
• July 3 - Andrea Barber, American actress
• July 9 – Fred Savage, American actor
• July 15 – Diane Kruger, German actress
• July 19
  • Benedict Cumberbatch, English actor
  • Vinessa Shaw, American actress
• July 31 – Mela Lee, American voice actress
• August 2 – Sam Worthington, Australian actor
• August 6
  • Andero Ermel, Estonian actor
  • Soleil Moon Frye, American actress and director
• August 9 – Audrey Tautou, French actress
• August 26 – Mike Colter, American actor
• August 27 – Sarah Chalke, Canadian actress, model and voice artist
• September 3 – Vivek Oberoi, Indian actor
• September 5 – Carice van Houten, Dutch actress
• September 6
  • Robin Atkin Downes, English actor and voice actor
  • Naomie Harris, English actress
• September 20 – Enuka Okuma, Canadian actress
• September 26 – Kersti Heinloo, Estonian actress
• October 3 – Seann William Scott, American actor, comedian and producer
• October 4 – Alicia Silverstone, American actress
• October 20 – Dan Fogler, American actor, comedian and writer
• October 21 – Andrew Scott, Irish actor
• October 23 – Ryan Reynolds, Canadian actor
• October 31 – Piper Perabo, American actress
• November 29
  • Chadwick Boseman, American actor (d. 2020)
  • Anna Faris, American actress
• December 7 – Mark Duplass, American actor
• December 8 – Dominic Monaghan, English actor
• December 29 – Danny McBride, American actor, comedian and writer

Notable deaths

Film debuts

• Albert Brooks – Taxi Driver
• Bruce Campbell – It's Murder!
• Stephen Collins – All the President's Men
• Lindsay Crouse – All the President's Men
• Richard Griffiths – It Shouldn't Happen to a Vet
• Mariel Hemingway – Lipstick
• Ernie Hudson – Leadbelly
• Amy Irving – Carrie
• Jessica Lange – King Kong
• Delroy Lindo – Find the Lady
• Mark Margolis – The Opening of Misty Beethoven
• Lena Olin – Face to Face
• Jonathan Pryce – Voyage of the Damned
• John Ratzenberger – The Ritz
• James Rebhorn – The Yum Yum Girls
• Mercedes Ruehl – Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands
• Theresa Russell – The Last Tycoon
• Brooke Shields – Alice, Sweet Alice
• P.J. Soles – Carrie
• Debra Winger – Slumber Party '57
• Chow Yun-fat – Tou tai ren