The Highest-Grossing Movie Each Year of the 1980s

If you ask people what movie decade they remember the most, many would say it’s the 1980s. Blockbusters were abundant, Spielberg became a king, and George Lucas mastered the art of sequels with Star Wars. Also, horror evolved to serve the mainstream with lesser approaches based on microbudgets that could bring cash every year with countless sequels, franchise variations, and new slasher villains. Arthouse and experimental cinema had to take a step back to let commercial cinema thrive.

Normally, this would heavily impact the box office and the dynamics of release schedules. Big studios booked summer release dates for the directors that could bring in millions. But some movies also surprised the hell out of executives who understood the need for an occasional shift of tone and the genres often associated with summer blockbusters. To understand this decade further in terms of box office charts, here’s a compilation of the highest-grossing films of each year in the 1980s.

Note: Earnings listed are based solely on domestic gross.

1980 – The Empire Strikes Back

Released on May 21, 1980 – Box Office Gross: $209 million

In The Empire Strikes Back, the Rebel Alliance is still trying to fight the Empire. Young Jedi Luke Skywalker has a near-death experience and is told by a ghost of Obi-Wan Kenobi that he must continue his Jedi training by seeking Jedi Master Yoda. During an attack by the Darth Vader’s Imperial fleet, Luke escapes to Dagobah to train. At the same time, Princess Lea, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and C-3PO seek refuge on a planet governed by Lando Calrissian.

Still considered one of the best sequels ever made, The Empire Strikes Back raises the stakes of its characters, and the franchise takes a darker tone. Audiences were hooked by the story direction and flocked to theaters to see the highly-anticipated sequel to one of the most successful films of the 1970s.

It won two Academy Awards and blew up the global box office with earnings of more than half a billion. During its initial theatrical run in the country, it would make enough to be the highest-grossing film of 1980. Time would also prove its legacy, with more money being collected with re-releases and with critics calling it the best movie of the Star Wars franchise.

You can stream The Empire Strikes Back on Disney+.

1981 – Raiders of the Lost Ark

Released on June 12, 1981 – Box Office Gross: $212 million

Raiders of the Lost Ark is the story of Henry “Indiana” Jones, a professor who is also an adventurer capable of retrieving historic artifacts to keep them in good hands. His latest mission doesn’t go well, but this doesn’t stop the government from seeking his help. His mission? To stop the Nazis before they find the Ark of the Covenant, a centuries-old religious object whose content could help make Hitler and his army invincible. Indy accepts and is forced to seek the help of an ally named Marion in order to get to the ark first.

Steven Spielberg’s first Indiana Jones movie was the result of frustration. The director of Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind had to recover after the failure of 1941, and he thought studios would let him make a James Bond film. They didn’t, and when he expressed this frustration to his friend and colleague George Lucas, the reply came in the form of a proposal to make an Indiana Jones film.

The result was Spielberg’s first ’80s film, and one that would pave the way for several box office hits. However, running against Superman II wasn’t easy. The two films competed at the box office, but Indiana Jones would ultimately win the battle.

The films were responsible for the $1.95 billion summer box office of 1981, an increase over the previous years that would make the year one of the most profitable cinema history. Raiders of the Lost Ark was also nominated for nine Academy Awards and would end up winning five of them.

You can stream Raiders of the Lost Ark on Disney+.

Released on June 11, 1982 – Box Office Gross: $359 million

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial tells the story of Elliot, a ten-year-old boy who finds something extraordinary in a tool shed. There’s a scary and wrinkled creature that screams out loud when they see each other. However, the following day, Elliot decides to leave a candy trail to lure him out. He and the alien, who calls himself E.T. after reading a comic book, form a friendship so strong that eventually, their minds connect. E.T. wants to go home, and Elliot is eager to help him.

The film was an instant hit all over the world, and it quickly defeated 1977’s Star Wars to become the highest-grossing film of all time. The record would eventually be broken by Spielberg again with 1993’s Jurassic Park. Again, Spielberg’s film would get nine nominations at the Academy Awards, and it would win four of those.

The film was a summer blockbuster that ranged from the scary to the endearing in a wonderful sci-fi adventure journey that appealed to young and adult audiences, as Spielberg showed for the first time that he could direct young performers as no one else could. The legacy of the film is visible in modern movies and TV shows like Stranger Things, Arrival, and Super 8.

1983 – Return of the Jedi

Released on May 25, 1983 – Box Office Gross: $309 million

Return of the Jedi follows our group of heroes first trying to save Han Solo from the hands of Jabba the Hutt after he was frozen in carbonite by Vader’s crew. After a thrilling opening scene, the crew gets together, but Luke heads over to the Dagobah to finish his training.

Han, Leia, Chewbacca, and the droids try to disable the new Death Star’s energy shield while Luke surrenders to Vader to try and convince him to leave the dark side. The problem is that Vader is still under the emotional grasp of Emperor Palpatine, who will attempt to kill Luke and incapacitate the Jedi crew.

The film quickly turned into the year’s highest-grossing film. It received five Academy Award nominations and won one of them (Special Achievement Academy Award for Visual Effects). In retrospect, the film probably isn’t as good as the previous two Star Wars films. Nevertheless, it remains a fan favorite with one of the best, if not the best, opening sequences of all Star Wars films.

1984 – Beverly Hills Cop

Released on December 5, 1984 – Box Office Gross: $234 million

Beverly Hills Cop is the story of Axel Foley, a Detroit police detective whose behavior isn’t exactly ideal. But at least he catches the bad guys, even if it costs the city a few millions of collateral damage. To investigate the murder of his childhood friend, Axel is forced to take time off. He lands in Beverly Hills, as he believes all the clues point to Los Angeles. It’s not until he arrives that Axel sees that Hollywood is pretty different from Detroit, and he will have to change his ways.

Starring Eddie Murphy in the role that shot him to stardom, Beverly Hills Cop is a comedy action film that perfectly adapted its genre formula into a wild and funny action ride that still feels relevant and was responsible for launching an entire franchise that’s still active.

The film garnered an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay, a fairly surprising nomination for the genre. Ghostbusters had the record of 1984 after being a summer hit, but Beverly Hills Cop quickly took over in December when it made $234 million in total, and it became one of the highest-grossing R-rated films of all time.

1985 – Back to the Future

Released on July 3, 1985 – Box Office Gross: $210 million

Back to the Future follows Marty McFly, a teenager who’s friends with a wacky scientist who claims he has invented a time machine. When it’s time to test it, terrorists arrive and shoot Doc Brown, forcing Marty to get in the DeLorean and push whatever buttons he can. He’s accidentally sent to 1955 where Marty will have to find Brown in the past and convince him his idea has worked in the future and perhaps take him back to 1985.

The sci-fi adventure by Universal Pictures had a rocky production after writers Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale thought of the idea and pitched it to Columbia Pictures. Eventually, the project landed at Amblin Entertainment, under the supervision of Steven Spielberg.

The result was a film that slowly got the attention it deserved. Ticket sales increased every week that passed, and after three months it had made over $150 million. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards (Best Original Screenplay being among them), and it won one for Best Sound Effects Editing. How it wasn’t nominated for Best Visual Effects is beyond belief.

1986 – Top Gun

Released on May 16, 1986 – Box Office Gross: $176 million

In Top Gun, Lieutenant Pete “Maverick” Mitchell and his best friend and co-pilot, Nick “Goose” Bradshaw, are sent to train at Top Gun, the naval school where the country’s top-performing pilots become the best of the best. The problem is that Maverick often goes rogue and doesn’t follow every order. When a tragedy occurs, Maverick questions his own talent, but it’s an issue he will have to overcome if he wants to fight the bad guys.

The extremely successful film put Tom Cruise in the spotlight as an action star capable of leading a high-profile Hollywood film. While it got nominated for four Academy Awards, it didn’t win in any of the technical categories. Instead, it won for Best Original Song (for the ballad “Take My Breath Away”). Though the film has always been seen as military propaganda, it wasn’t only successful in the United States where it made $176.8 million; the international gross was $177 million.

1987 – Three Men and a Baby

Released on November 25, 1987 – Box Office Gross: $167 million

Based on the 1985 French film Trois Hommes et un Couffin, Three Men and a Baby tells the story of three bachelors named Peter, Michael, and Jack, who are living together in a shared New York apartment. Their lifestyles are free-spirited. The problem is that a baby is dropped on their doorstep with a note that says Mary is the result of Jack’s encounter with an actress one year prior. Of course, their lives change when they’re forced to take care of baby Mary.

The fairly simple premise of the film made it easily digestible for audiences, and the film ended up surpassing box office competitors like Fatal Attraction and Beverly Hills Cop II. The film’s legacy isn’t as big as its peers on the list, but back then, it won the hearts of film critics who were enamored with its three leads: Tom Selleck (in one of his best performances), Steve Guttenberg, and Ted Danson. Disney had announced a reboot in the early 2020s, but the project apparently vanished.

1988 – Rain Man

Released on December 16, 1988 – Box Office Gross: $172 million

In Rain Man, Charlie Babbitt is a shady and greedy businessman who finds out he has a brother after his father dies. Thinking his wealthy father has left him some money, Charlie finds out that his brother Raymon got all the inheritance. He decides to connect with a brother he never knew and realizes Raymond has autism. When Charlie decides to take a road trip with Raymond to try and get some of the money, he realizes there’s more to Raymond than he thought.

Two years after Top Gun, Tom Cruise took the box office reins again with Rain Man, the Barry Levinson feature that was celebrated worldwide and put Cruise on the map as more than the handsome actor who could lead blockbusters. He could also do drama.

The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards, and it would end up winning four: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (for Dustin Hoffman’s performance as Raymond), and Best Original Screenplay. The film’s domestic earnings made it the highest-grossing film in the country, but overseas, it made over $410 million.

1989 – Batman

Released on June 23, 1989 – Box Office Gross: $251 million

In Tim Burton’s Batman, Gotham City is being raided by a new criminal mastermind whose methods are anything but traditional. Luckily, the Joker’s counterpart is the caped vigilante, Batman, who shows he isn’t afraid to restore order if he has to. The problem is that the Joker’s hands are in every corner of the city and Batman will have to act soon before the Joker commits his ultimate act of terrorism.

The film was the result of Warner Bros. putting their trust in a young director whose previous film, Beetlejuice, had been a bizarre success. Keaton was cast, even though this went against the studio’s order to cast an action star. Jack Nicholson accepted the role of Joker as long as he could design his shooting schedule, had a cut of the film’s earnings, and was credited as the star in promotional materials.

Batman quickly became the highest-grossing superhero film of all time until Spider-Man passed it in 2002. In a bizarre turn of events, even though it made over $400 million worldwide, Warner Bros. claimed they ended up losing money because of “Hollywood accounting,” the shady practice where movie industry accountants are unable to calculate profit considering taxes, royalties, and other expenses. Yeah, we don’t buy it either.