This is a list of films which placed number one at the weekly box office in the United States during 1978 per Variety. The data was based on grosses from 20 to 22 key cities and therefore, the gross quoted may not be the total that the film grossed nationally in the week.
Number-one films
edit# | Week ending | Film | Gross | Notes | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | January 4, 1978 | Close Encounters of the Third Kind | $4,435,990 | [1] | |
2 | January 11, 1978 | $3,377,392 | [2] | ||
3 | January 18, 1978 | $2,274,682 | [3] | ||
4 | January 25, 1978 | $1,622,296 | [4] | ||
5 | February 1, 1978 | $1,774,208 | [5] | ||
6 | February 8, 1978 | $1,489,164 | [6][nb 1] | ||
7 | February 15, 1978 | The Betsy | $1,339,400 | The Betsy grossed $2,727,084 nationally from all markets in the weekend ended February 12, an opening record for Allied Artists | [9][10] |
8 | February 22, 1978 | Saturday Night Fever | $1,605,673 | Saturday Night Fever reached number one in its tenth week on the chart | [11] |
9 | March 1, 1978 | $2,171,501 | Saturday Night Fever grossed $3,765,000 nationally from all markets in the weekend ended February 26 | [12][13] | |
10 | March 8, 1978 | $1,687,869 | [14] | ||
11 | March 15, 1978 | $1,398,108 | [15] | ||
12 | March 22, 1978 | $1,207,132 | [16] | ||
13 | March 29, 1978 | The Fury | $1,444,416 | The Fury reached number one in its second week of release grossing $2,777,291 nationally for the weekend ended March 26 | [17][18] |
14 | April 5, 1978 | $1,257,159 | [19] | ||
15 | April 12, 1978 | The Goodbye Girl | $969,830 | The Goodbye Girl reached number one in its 19th week on the chart | [20] |
16 | April 19, 1978 | $788,848 | [21] | ||
17 | April 26, 1978 | House Calls | $949,285 | House Calls reached number one in its sixth week on the chart | [22] |
18 | May 3, 1978 | $818,620 | [23] | ||
19 | May 10, 1978 | F.I.S.T. | $724,367 | F.I.S.T. reached number one in its second week of release | [24] |
20 | May 17, 1978 | The Greek Tycoon | $677,300 | [25] | |
21 | May 24, 1978 | $981,908 | [26] | ||
22 | May 31, 1978 | American Graffiti (reissue) | $1,361,800 | [27] | |
23 | June 7, 1978 | Capricorn One | $1,411,600 | [28] | |
24 | June 14, 1978 | Damien - Omen II | $2,216,400 | Damien: Omen II grossed $3,880,880 nationally from all markets in the weekend ended June 11 | [29][30][31] |
25 | June 21, 1978 | Jaws 2 | $4,038,800 | Jaws 2 grossed $9.9 million nationally from all markets in the weekend ended June 18, an opening weekend record | [32][33][34] |
26 | June 28, 1978 | Grease | $4,174,082 | Grease reached number one in its second week of release, grossing $7,867,000 nationally from all markets in the weekend ended June 25 | [35][36] |
27 | July 5, 1978 | $3,518,287 | [37] | ||
28 | July 12, 1978 | $2,443,707 | [38] | ||
29 | July 19, 1978 | $2,129,200 | [39] | ||
30 | July 26, 1978 | $1,977,551 | Star Wars (reissue) placed third on the chart from 166 theaters but grossed $10,166,366 nationally from 1,750 theaters in the weekend ended July 23, beating the weekend record set by Jaws 2 | [40][41][42] | |
31 | August 2, 1978 | Star Wars (reissue) | $1,891,255 | Star Wars grossed $6,501,185 nationally in the weekend ended July 30 | [43][44] |
32 | August 9, 1978 | Hooper | $2,476,400 | Hooper reached number one in its third week of release. Its nationwide gross for the week was $9,437,484. | [45][46] |
33 | August 16, 1978 | $1,988,915 | [47] | ||
34 | August 23, 1978 | $1,747,842 | [48] | ||
35 | August 30, 1978 | Animal House | $2,022,990 | Animal House reached number one in its fifth week on the chart | [49] |
36 | September 6, 1978 | $2,103,917 | [50] | ||
37 | September 13, 1978 | $1,557,835 | [51] | ||
38 | September 20, 1978 | $1,251,100 | [52] | ||
39 | September 27, 1978 | $1,085,881 | [53] | ||
40 | October 4, 1978 | Up in Smoke | $1,109,000 | Up in Smoke reached number one in its second week of release | [54] |
41 | October 11, 1978 | Animal House | $1,868,567 | Animal House returned to number one in its eleventh week of release | [55] |
42 | October 18, 1978 | $1,337,828 | [56] | ||
43 | October 25, 1978 | $1,298,347 | [57] | ||
44 | November 1, 1978 | Midnight Express | $1,300,711 | Midnight Express reached number one in its fourth week of release | [58] |
45 | November 8, 1978 | Up in Smoke | $1,443,320 | Up in Smoke returned to number one in its seventh week of release. | [59] |
46 | November 15, 1978 | Magic | $1,376,000 | [60] | |
47 | November 22, 1978 | $1,177,317 | [61] | ||
48 | November 29, 1978 | Midnight Express | $993,743 | Midnight Express returned to number one in its eighth week of release | [62] |
49 | December 6, 1978 | $746,543 | [63] | ||
50 | December 13, 1978 | $590,763 | [64] | ||
51 | December 20, 1978 | Superman | $3,685,756 | Superman grossed $7,465,343 nationally from all markets in the weekend ended December 17, beating King Kong's December opening record | [65][66][67] |
52 | December 27, 1978 | $4,171,899 | Superman grossed $6,535,784 nationally from all markets in the weekend ended December 24 | [68][69][nb 2] |
Highest grossing films
editRank | Title | Distributor | Rental[71][72][73] |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Grease | Paramount Pictures | $83,091,000 |
2 | Saturday Night Fever | Paramount Pictures | $71,463,000 |
3 | Close Encounters of the Third Kind | Columbia Pictures | $54,000,000 |
4 | Animal House | Universal Pictures | $52,368,000 |
5 | Jaws 2 | Universal Pictures | $49,299,000 |
6 | Heaven Can Wait | Paramount Pictures | $42,517,000 |
7 | The Goodbye Girl | Warner Bros. | $41,000,000 |
8 | Star Wars (reissue) | 20th Century Fox | $38,375,000 |
9 | Hooper | Warner Bros. | $31,500,000 |
10 | Foul Play | Paramount Pictures | $25,065,000 |
See also
edit- List of American films — American films by year
- Lists of box office number-one films
Notes
edit- ^ The Numbers lists The One and Only with a gross of $2,707,679 from 417 theaters for the weekend ended February 5. Close Encounters of the Third Kind grossed $5,143,795 nationally for the week from 629 theaters[7][8]
- ^ Box Office Mojo and The Numbers list Every Which Way but Loose as the number one for the weekend with a gross of $10,272,294 however, this is its gross for the week.[70]
References
edit- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. January 11, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. January 18, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. January 25, 1978. p. 14.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. February 1, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. February 8, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. February 15, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "Weekend Domestic Chart for February 3, 1978". The Numbers. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
- ^ "For 8 Full Weeks $72,385,849 At B.O. For 'Close Encounters'". Daily Variety. December 28, 1978. p. 2.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. February 22, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "Harrold Robbins' The Betsy is a Blockbuster (advertisement)". Variety. February 15, 1978. pp. 14–15.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. March 1, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. March 8, 1978. p. 18.
- ^ "Par Sees N.Y. 106 Showcase Yielding 'Fever' $1.1-Mil". Variety. March 1, 1978. p. 4.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. March 15, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. March 22, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. March 29, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. April 5, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "The Fury Is Furious (advertisement)". Variety. March 29, 1978. pp. 8–9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. April 12, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. April 19, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. April 26, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. May 3, 1978. p. 15.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. May 10, 1978. p. 15.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. May 17, 1978. p. 58.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. May 24, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. May 31, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. June 7, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. June 14, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. June 21, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "The First Three Days (advertisement)". Variety. June 14, 1978. pp. 10–11.
- ^ "Domestic 1978 Weekend 23 June 9-11, 1978". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. June 28, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "'Jaws 2,' 'Grease' Soar at B.O.". Daily Variety. June 20, 1978. p. 1.
- ^ "Domestic 1978 Weekend 24 June 16-18, 1978". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. July 5, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "'Jaws 2', 'Grease', Get Hot Rival, 'Cheap Detective'". Variety. June 28, 1978. p. 6.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. July 12, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. July 19, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. July 26, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. August 2, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "Wham B.O. For 'Star Wars' In Second Wave". Variety. July 26, 1978. p. 1.
- ^ "Domestic 1978 Weekend 29 July 21-23, 1978". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. August 9, 1978. p. 12.
- ^ "Latest As To 'Wars'". Variety. August 2, 1978. p. 82.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. August 16, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "Sooper Hooper (advertisement)". Variety. August 16, 1978. p. 25.
Third week - 849 theatres: Average per theatre - $11,116
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. August 23, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. August 30, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. September 6, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. September 13, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. September 20, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. September 27, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. October 4, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. October 11, 1978. p. 15.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. October 18, 1978. p. 20.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. October 25, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. November 1, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. November 8, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. November 15, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. November 22, 1978. p. 11.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. November 29, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. December 6, 1978. p. 14.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. December 13, 1978. p. 10.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. December 20, 1978. p. 13.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. December 27, 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "'Superman': It's Adult". Variety. December 20, 1978. p. 3.
- ^ "Domestic 1978 Weekend 50 December 15-17, 1978". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
- ^ "50 Top-Grossing Films". Variety. January 10, 1979. p. 17.
- ^ "Domestic 1978 Weekend 51 December 22-24, 1978". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
- ^ "'Loose' Pulls $10 Mil In Seven, Reports WB". Daily Variety. December 28, 1978. p. 2.
- ^ Steinberg, Cobbett (1980). Film facts. New York: Facts on File. p. 28. ISBN 0871963132. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
- ^ "All-Time Film Rental Champs". Variety. 293 (9): 20. 3 January 1979. ISSN 0011-5509. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
- ^ "Big Rental Films of 1978". Variety. 293 (9): 17. 3 January 1979. ISSN 0011-5509.