| List of years in film |
|---|
| Years in film |
|---|
| |
| 19th century |
| 1870s |
The year 1978 in film involved some significant events.
The top ten 1978 released films by box office gross in the United States and Canada are as follows:
| Rank | Title | Distributor | Box-office gross |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grease | Paramount | $159,978,870 [1] |
| 2 | Superman | Warner Bros. | $134,218,018 [2] |
| 3 | National Lampoon's Animal House | Universal | $120,091,123 [3] |
| 4 | Every Which Way but Loose | Warner Bros. | $85,196,485 [4] |
| 5 | Heaven Can Wait | Paramount | $81,640,278 [5] |
| 6 | Hooper | Warner Bros. | $78,000,000 [6] |
| 7 | Jaws 2 | Universal | $77,737,272 [7] |
| 8 | Revenge of the Pink Panther | United Artists | $49,579,269 [8] |
| 9 | The Deer Hunter | Universal | $48,979,328 [9] |
| 10 | Halloween | Compass International | $47,000,000 [10] |
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
| Month | Date | Name | Age | Country | Profession | Notable films |
| January | 5 | Sally Eilers | 69 | US | Actress | |
| 12 | Arthur Sheekman | 76 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 23 | Jack Oakie | 74 | US | Actor | ||
| 26 | Leo Genn | 72 | UK | Actor | ||
| 27 | Oskar Homolka | 79 | Austria | Actor | ||
| 29 | Tim McCoy | 86 | US | Actor | ||
| February | 2 | Wendy Barrie | 69 | UK | Actress | |
| 14 | Claude Binyon | 72 | US | Writer, Director | ||
| 15 | Ilka Chase | 77 | US | Actress | ||
| 18 | Kathleen Lockhart | 83 | UK | Actress | ||
| 18 | Maggie McNamara | 48 | US | Actress | ||
| 24 | Franco Arcalli | 48 | Italy | Screenwriter | ||
| 28 | Philip Ahn | 72 | US | Actor | ||
| March | 12 | John Cazale | 42 | US | Actor | |
| 16 | Reb Russell | 72 | US | Actor | ||
| 18 | Peggy Wood | 86 | US | Actress | ||
| 24 | Leigh Brackett | 62 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 25 | Leslie Fenton | 76 | UK | Actor, Director | ||
| 25 | Jack Hulbert | 85 | UK | Actor | ||
| 25 | Hanna Ralph | 92 | Germany | Actress | ||
| 31 | Astrid Allwyn | 72 | US | Actress | ||
| April | 1 | Lynne Roberts | 56 | US | Actress | |
| 9 | Michael Wilson | 63 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 13 | Paul McGrath | 74 | US | Actor | ||
| 22 | Will Geer | 76 | US | Actor | ||
| May | 6 | Loyal Griggs | 71 | US | Cinematographer | |
| 11 | Philip Ray | 79 | UK | Actor | ||
| 12 | Robert Coogan | 53 | US | Actor | ||
| 16 | Robert Florey | 78 | France | Director | ||
| June | 20 | Mark Robson | 64 | Canada | Director | |
| 29 | Bob Crane | 49 | US | Actor | ||
| 30 | Frank Santillo | 65 | US | Editor | ||
| July | 3 | James Daly | 59 | US | Actor | |
| 14 | Jack Woolgar | 64 | UK | Actor | ||
| 17 | Thayer David | 51 | US | Actor | ||
| 19 | Agnes Christine Johnston | 82 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| August | 5 | Queenie Smith | 79 | US | Actress | |
| 13 | Ferenc Kiss | 86 | Hungary | Actor | ||
| 23 | Agustín Isunza | 77 | Mexico | Actor | ||
| 24 | Louis Prima | 67 | US | Actor, Singer | ||
| 26 | Charles Boyer | 78 | France | Actor | ||
| 28 | Robert Shaw | 51 | UK | Actor | ||
| 31 | Lee Garmes | 80 | US | Cinematographer | ||
| September | 3 | Karin Molander | 89 | Sweden | Actress | |
| 9 | Jack L. Warner | 86 | Canada | Producer, Studio Executive | ||
| 12 | Frank Ferguson | 78 | US | Actor | ||
| 18 | Ann Shoemaker | 87 | US | Actress | ||
| 24 | Ruth Etting | 80 | US | Singer, Actress | ||
| 30 | Edgar Bergen | 75 | US | Actor, Ventriloquist | ||
| October | 10 | Kathryn McGuire | 74 | US | Actress | |
| 16 | Dan Dailey | 62 | US | Actor | ||
| 19 | Gig Young | 64 | US | Actor | ||
| 30 | Brian Hayles | 47 | UK | Screenwriter | ||
| November | 5 | Denis O'Dea | 73 | Ireland | Actor | |
| 9 | Florence Marly | 59 | Czechoslovakia | Actress | ||
| 16 | Claude Dauphin | 75 | France | Actor | ||
| 20 | Robert Alan Aurthur | 56 | US | Screenwriter | ||
| 23 | June Martel | 69 | US | Actress | ||
| 26 | Ford Beebe | 90 | US | Director | ||
| 27 | Susan Shaw | 44 | UK | Actress | ||
| 28 | André Morell | 69 | UK | Actor | ||
| December | 7 | I. Stanford Jolley | 78 | US | Actor | |
| 10 | Ed Wood | 54 | US | Director, Screenwriter, Actor | ||
| 12 | Fay Compton | 84 | UK | Actress | ||
| 15 | Chill Wills | 76 | US | Actor | ||
| 19 | Duncan Lamont | 60 | UK | Actor | ||
| 23 | Louis de Rochemont | 89 | US | Producer |