The following is an overview of events in 1980 in film, including the highest-grossing films, award ceremonies and festivals, a list of films released and notable deaths.

The top ten 1980 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:

The following table lists known worldwide gross revenue figures for several high-grossing films that originally released in 1980. Note that this list is incomplete and is therefore not representative of the highest-grossing films worldwide in 1980.

• April 29 – Sir Alfred Hitchcock, known as "The Master of Suspense", dies at his home in Bel Air, California, at the age of 80.
• May 21 – The Empire Strikes Back is released and is the highest-grossing film of the year (just as its predecessor, Star Wars, was three years prior).
• June 9 – Richard Pryor sets himself on fire while free-basing cocaine and drinking 151-proof rum. Pryor ran down his street in Northridge, California, until subdued by police.
• June 20 – The Blues Brothers is released, and in addition to becoming one of the top-grossing films of the year, it also became the first feature film to be based on characters created on Saturday Night Live.
• June 23 – Filming begins on George Lucas and Steven Spielberg's first Indiana Jones film Raiders of the Lost Ark.
• August 13 – Pacific Data Images is founded by Carl Rosendahl.
• November 4 – Former Screen Actors Guild president and film actor Ronald Reagan wins the 1980 United States presidential election in a landslide victory.
• November 7- Legendary actor Steve McQueen dies at the age of 50 after surgery to remove tumours in his neck after previously been diagnosed with lung cancer.
• November 19 – Heaven's Gate becomes one of the biggest box office bombs of all-time and its colossal failure bankrupts United Artists.
• Allied Artists is sold to Lorimar Productions.

Industry professionals predicted comedy films and upbeat entertainment to dominate theaters in 1980. This was a response to poor morale in a nation suffering through economic recession, which generally increased theatrical visits as audiences sought escapism and ignored romantic films and depictions of blue-collar life.^[6][7] The financial success and low cost of production cost of comedies such as Blazing Saddles (1974) and Animal House (1978), had further driven demand for comedies; Airplane!, The Blues Brothers, Caddyshack, and The Jerk, were all scheduled for release that year. The average cost of making films had risen to $6 million which had reduced the number of films being made for niche audiences. Some studios continued to release a wide variety of films, hoping that few significant successes would compensate for other failures.^[7]

A surge of interest in science-fiction following Star Wars' release had led to many low-budget entries in the genre attempting to profit by association, and big budget entries such as Star Trek: The Motion Picture and The Black Hole, both of which were released in late 1979, just months before The Empire Strikes Back.^[8]

Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):

All That Jazz, directed by Bob Fosse, United States

Kagemusha, 影武者 (Shadow Warrior), directed by Akira Kurosawa, Japan

Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival):

Atlantic City, directed by Louis Malle, US / Canada / France

Gloria, directed by John Cassavetes, United States

Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):

Heartland, directed by Richard Pearce, United States

• List of 1980 films at IMDb
• 1980 Domestic Grosses at Box Office Mojo
• List of 1980 deaths at IMDb
• List of 1980 births at IMDb