The 1980s were a decade of iconic movies that have become ingrained in popular culture. From action and adventure films to romantic comedies, there is a wide range of 80s movie trivia questions that can be asked. Whether you're a movie buff or just looking to test your knowledge, these 80s movie trivia questions are sure to be both informative and entertaining.
Here are some examples of 80s movie trivia questions you might come across: Who directed the movie "E.T."? Who starred in "The Breakfast Club"? What was the highest-grossing film of the 1980s? Who played the villain in "Die Hard"? These questions cover a wide range of iconic films from the 80s, including box office hits, award-winning films, and cult classics.
In addition to the technical aspects of 80s movies, there are also many fun and interesting facts to learn about. For example, did you know that the movie "E.T." was the highest-grossing film of the 1980s and the highest-grossing film of all time (until Jurassic Park surpassed it in 1993)? Or that the movie "The Breakfast Club" was filmed in only 30 days? These trivia questions will not only test your knowledge, but also give you a glimpse into the many fascinating aspects of the 80s movies and the impact it has on our culture and entertainment.
87 80s Movie Trivia Questions Ranked From Easiest to Hardest (Updated for 2024)
- "Goose," "Jester," "Hollywood," and "Wolfman" are nicknames of some flying military bros in what 1986 movie?
Answer: Top Gun
- In what 1987 movie does Baby Houseman fall in love with her dance instructor? We're looking for a two-word answer here.
Answer: Dirty Dancing
- With what two-word phrase did the media refer to the five main actors of "The Breakfast Club?" The nickname was one letter off the moniker of a 1960s film group.
Answer: Brat Pack
- The Empire Strikes Back hit theaters during Memorial Day Weekend in 1980. That same week, an iconic horror film opened but had a relatively weak opening box office because it was counter-programmed against the Star Wars installment. What was this Jack Nicholson-starring horror film?
Answer: The Shining
- In which 1989 movie does English teacher John Keating, played by Robin Williams, urge his students to “seize the day?”
Answer: Dead Poets Society
- Which comedy set in Mexico stars Chevy Chase, Steve Martin and Martin Short as a trio of friends?
Answer: Three Amigos
- Which 1983 film (based on the book of the same name by S.E. Hinton) about rival gangs in Oklahoma in the ‘60s was chock full of young stars including Tom Cruise, Matt Dillon, Patrick Swayze, and Emilio Estevez?
Answer: The Outsiders
- That's not a box office gross. THIS is a box office gross: what 1986 film is the highest grossing Australian movie of all time?
Answer: Crocodile Dundee
- In the 1980s film "Knight Rider," what was the name of David Hasselhoff's talking car?
Answer: Kitt
- Charlie Babbitt abducts his older brother Raymond from a Cincinnati assisted-living facility at the start of what road-tripping '80s Best Picture Oscar winner?
Answer: Rain Man
- In his 1986, U.S. President Ronald Reagan invoked the quote "Where we're going, we don't need roads." from what 1985 cult classic Robert Zemeckis-directed film?
Answer: Back To the Future
- A dude named Steve on Airbnb offers tours of the Philadelphia Macy's in the Wanamaker Building, site of what 1987 movie with Andrew McCarthy dating an animated department store statue played by Kim Cattrall?
Answer: Mannequin
- In the 1986 classic "Top Gun," Tom Cruise's character uses the callsign "Maverick" and Anthony Edwards uses "Goose." What's the callsign of Maverick's rival, played by Val Kilmer?
Answer: Iceman
- Which 1987 war drama directed by Stanley Kubrick starred Matthew Modine as "Joker" Davis and Vincent D'Onofrio as “Gomer Pyle" Lawrence, young marines during the Vietnam War?
Answer: Full Metal Jacket
- What 1984 Wolfgang Peterson fantasy film is about Bastian getting sucked into the land of Fantasia while reading a book about it? The movie is an hour and half long, which is shorter than what the title implies.
Answer: The NeverEnding Story
- There can only be one! Which 1986 action-adventure film was the first in a franchise starring Christopher Lambert as a Scottish warrior in the 16th century who must fight for the Prize?
Answer: Highlander
- What pizza restaurant, located on Main Street in its namesake Connecticut town, was also the name of a 1988 romantic comedy-drama directed by Donald Petrie, and starring Vincent D’Onofrio and a young Julia Roberts?
Answer: Mystic Pizza
- Who played Hans Gruber in Die Hard and earned a spot on the AFI's "100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains" list as the 46th best villain in film history? He later revealed he almost did not take the role as he did not think Die Hard was the kind of film he wanted to make.
Answer: Alan Rickman
- What is the name of the coming-of-age 1982 comedy film, based on a 1981 book of the same name, that includes a famous pool scene that launched Phoebe Cates' career?
Answer: Fast Times
- To what year does Marty McFly get sent back to in the original Back to the Future?
Answer: 1955
- In the affectionate Star Wars parody, “Space Balls,” the film renames the slimy crime lord “Jabba” to something far less sinister and perhaps a bit more delicious. What is this character’s new name?
Answer: Pizza the Hut
- In "The Lost Boys", what amphibian is also the surname shared by the teenage vampire hunters Edgar and Alan?
Answer: Frog
- Which single-named superstar won an Oscar for “Moonstruck” (1987)?
Answer: Cher
- Real-life couple Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner met (and perhaps did a little canoodling) on the set of which 1982 comedic mystery movie directed by Sidney Poitier?
Answer: Hanky Panky
- Taking place over the course of a whole day (rather than just the morning), which 1986 movie stars Anthony Michael Hall, Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald, and Judd Nelson as a brain, an athlete, a basket case, a princess, and a criminal?
Answer: The Breakfast Club
- Henry Jones Senior, a character in a 1989 action-adventure film who accompanies his son on a quest to find the Holy Grail, was played by which "Untouchable" Oscar-winning actor?
Answer: Sean Connery (in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade)
- Directed by John Carpenter and starring Kurt Russell, what 1983 movie is about a group of research scientists in Antarctica being attacked by a shape shifting alien?
Answer: The Thing
- A 1903 Tribeca Beaux-Art building, home to the real-life Hook & Ladder Company 8, famously featured as the firehouse in what 1984 film?
Answer: Ghostbusters
- What 1988 Ron Howard fantasy film stars Warwick Davis as the titular aspiring sorcerer who tries to save a prophesied baby from harm? Val Kilmer plays a mercenary who helps the hero.
Answer: Willow
- What 1986 teen movie is about Andie, a high school social outcast played by Molly Ringwald, who is courted by her best friend Duckie, as well as the rich Blane? Directed by Howard Deutch and written by John Hughes, it shares its name with a Psychedelic Furs song that is the movie’s theme song.
Answer: Pretty In Pink
- Meryl Streep won a Best Actress Oscar for her starring role as a woman who survived the Holocaust after making a haunting decision in which 1982 historical drama based on William Styron’s novel by the same name?
Answer: Sophie's Choice
- What California-set 1982 film was the highest grossing film of the 1980s at the U.S. box office?
Answer: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
- What was the real first name of Indiana Jones? Hint: it's not Illinois or Iowa; it's much more boring than that.
Answer: Henry
- What 1989 Spike Lee film, set on a summer's day in New York's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, was named by Rolling Stone magazine as the greatest movie of the 1980s?
Answer: Do the Right Thing
- "Blue Velvet" is 1986 neo-noir film that was directed and written by what popular "surrealist?"
Answer: David Lynch
- As Air Force Colonel "Chappy" Sinclair, Louis Gossett Jr. helps a teen gank a couple of F-16s for a clandestine rescue mission in what definitely-not-"Top Gun" 1986 movie?
Answer: Iron Eagle
- What film won the Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1983? (Hint: the film actually came out in 1982.)
Answer: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
- Featuring Bette Midler’s Grammy-winning rendition of "Wind Beneath My Wings," the 1988 tear-jerking film "Beaches" is based on what author’s namesake novel released in 1985?
Answer: Iris Rainer Dart
- In 1983's War Games, Matthew Broderick averts nuclear disaster by instructing the out-of-control supercomputer to play against itself in what children's game?
Answer: Tic Tac Toe
- What 1980 movie by David Lynch told of the true-life relationship between a heavily disfigured man named John Merrick and Dr. Frederick Treves? I'm sure you won't forget it.
Answer: The Elephant Man
- In what state was E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial the highest-grossing film of the 1980s, set?
Answer: California
- What 1987 fantasy-adventure movie starred Robin Wright and Cary Elwes as characters named Buttercup and Westley, respectively, and was made from a William Goldman novel of the same name? In 2016, the movie was added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry.
Answer: Princess Bride
- Greek electronic composer Vangelis might be best remembered for providing the Academy Award-winning score to what 1981 sports drama?
Answer: Chariots of Fire
- At the end of the 1989 film Dead Poets Society, the students stand on their desk reciting "O Captain! My Captain!" in support of fired teacher John Keating. Keating taught the students the famous poem, which was written by what poet upon the death of President Abraham Lincoln?
Answer: Walt Whitman
- A 1984 Star Wars spinoff film follows what fluffy puppet creatures who live on the Moon of Endor, and who were first introduced in Return of the Jedi?
Answer: Ewoks
- What 1985 mystery comedy had three different endings? The movie was based on a board game and starred Tim Curry, Michael McKean, and Madeline Kahn, among others.
Answer: Clue
- Which 1981 comedy horror movie written and directed by John Landis was the first movie to win an Oscar for Best Makeup?
Answer: An American Werewolf in London
- What is "best in life" is "to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of their women," according to the title character from what 1982 action flick?
Answer: Conan the Barbarian
- "If you build it, they will come" is the repeated thought in Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella's head in which 1989 baseball film? It leads Ray to turn one of his cornfields into a baseball diamond.
Answer: Field of Dreams
- 80s kids' first introduction to the late singer Harry Belafonte likely came at the end of what movie, where Winona Ryder dances through the air to "Jump in the Line?"
Answer: Beetlejuice
- What 1987 comedy, featuring Steve Martin in a prosthetic nose, is based on Edmund Rostand's play Cyrano de Bergerac?
Answer: Roxanne
- According to the title of a 1989 movie directed by Oliver Stone, on what date was the main character born?
Answer: Fourth of July
- 1982's E.T. The Extraterrestrial led to a 300% bump in the sale of what candy favored by the title alien, much to the satisfaction of the Hershey Company?
Answer: Reese's Pieces
- In a famous scene from 1986's Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Ferris and co. snag a table at the snooty restaurant Chez Quis by impersonating Abe Froman, the WHAT King of Chicago. What foodstuff was it?
Answer: Sausage
- Deep-voiced actress Kathleen Turner voiced what iconic sex symbol from a 1988 movie, who famously declared, "I'm not bad. I'm just drawn that way?"
Answer: Jessica Rabbit
- Haystack Rock, an iconic sea formation off the coast of Oregon's Cannon Beach, helps the title characters of what 1985 movie navigate a mysterious map?
Answer: The Goonies
- What 1984 rom-com starred Tom Hanks as a man who falls in love with the mermaid who saved him from drowning when he was a kid?
Answer: Splash
- What 1988 Stephen Frears' period drama stars Glenn Close, John Malkovich, Michelle Pfeiffer, Uma Thurman, and Keanu Reeves and is based on a play by Christopher Hampton? The play is from an 18th-century novel by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos.
Answer: Dangerous Liaisons
- What 1988 Charles Crichton comedy involved a jewel heist and its aftermath, and included Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Palin, and Kevin Kline as part of the gang and John Cleese as a frustrated barrister? Kevin Kline won an Oscar for his performance.
Answer: A Fish Called Wanda
- What 1988 documentary from Errol Morris resulted in a man named Randall Adams being released from prison? Adams had been slated for execution before Morris made his documentary.
Answer: The Thin Blue Line
- What 1986 Spike Lee joint was rebooted as a comedy television series in the late 2010s starring DeWanda Wise as Nola Darling, a woman who juggles between three different lovers?
Answer: “She’s Gotta Have It”
- 1986's Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home sees the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise traveling back through time in order to bring back what animal, which has become extinct in their time?
Answer: Humpback Whale
- Sissy Spacek won a Best Actress Oscar in 1981 for playing what legendary musician, born into poverty in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky in the year 1932 before growing up to be one of her genre's greatest stars?
Answer: Loretta Lynn
- Using a platform and three springboards, Thornton Melon pulls off the impossible Triple Lindy to win a competition in what sport at the end of 1986's "Back to School"?
Answer: Diving
- What 1984 film about a Texas bartender caught in a murder plot, starring John Getz, Frances McDormand, and Dan Hedaya, was the first joint directorial effort from Joel and Ethan Coen?
Answer: Blood Simple
- Although a single octave "Walking Piano" was there already, director Penny Marshall had a new, three-octave version installed at what toy store for the movie Big?
Answer: FAO Schwarz
- Often credited with having the best soundtrack in movie history, what 1984 film centers on an enigmatic, plum motorcycle-drivin' musician known as The Kid?
Answer: Purple Rain
- 2121 Avenue of the Stars in Los Angeles, formerly known as Fox Plaza, might be most famous as what office tower taken over by terrorists in the action classic "Die Hard"?
Answer: Nakatomi Plaza
- Talking Heads frontman David Byrne claimed to be inspired by Japanese Noh theater when he created the "big suit" famously featured in what 1984 concert film?
Answer: Stop Making Sense
- What 1980 Martin Scorsese movie tells the real-life story of boxing middleweight champion Jake La Motta, from his early days in the ring to his later life running a nightclub?
Answer: Raging Bull
- Michael J Fox was cast as Marty McFly in the Back to the Future trilogy after he replaced which other actor who never reached the same heights he did?
Answer: Eric Stoltz
- What 1980 Best Picture winner that starred Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, and Timothy Hutton was Robert Redford's directorial debut?
Answer: Ordinary People
- Which 1985 rom-com starred Rosanna Arquette, Aidan Quinn, and Madonna (yeah, that Madonna) in an unusual love triangle?
Answer: Desperately Seeking Susan
- What 1982 Sam Raimi zombie film referred to itself as "The ultimate experience in grueling horror"?
Answer: The Evil Dead
- Not featuring the Griffith Park Observatory or the Staples Center, 1982's "Blade Runner" is set in what American city?
Answer: Los Angeles
- Charlie Sheen portrayed a recently released prisoner named Ricky "Wild Thing" Vaughn who went on to play Major League Baseball for Cleveland in what sports comedy film?
Answer: “Major League”
- What African American comedian “won” a Razzie in 1990 for Worst Screenplay for his portrayal of a New York hustler nicknamed "Quick" in the 1989 film “Harlem Nights?”
Answer: Eddie Murphy
- John Hurt starred as Winston Smith and Richard Burton as the sinister O'Brien in what literary adaptation, which came out--as was appropriate--in the mid-1980s?
Answer: Nineteen Eighty-Four
- Actor Wilford Brimley was 50 years, nine months, and six days old when what movie premiered, leading to a tongue-in-cheek milestone known as the "Brimley Line?"
Answer: Cocoon
- The 1988 Tom Cruise vehicle Cocktail gave the world what latter-day Beach Boys song, which was released as part of the movie's soundtrack as well as on the album Still Cruisin'?
Answer: Kokomo
- The story of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, led by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw (Matthew Broderick) and one of the first African-American units of the U.S. Army, was turned into what 1989 film?
Answer: Glory
- In 1982, what race-car driving, his “Own” foods-selling dazzling blue-eyed having actor starred as a lawyer angling for a comeback Frank Galvin in Sidney Lumet’s The Verdict?
Answer: Paul Newman
- What 1985 winner of the Best Picture Oscar starred Robert Redford and Meryl Streep and was filmed on location in Kenya?
Answer: Out of Africa
- In what 1985 movie does the main character's mother mistakenly believe her son's name is "Calvin Klein"?
Answer: Back to the Future
- "The Goonies" sees Mikey, Data, Mouth, and Chunk search for the treasure of a pirate whose name implies he only has one of what body part?
Answer: Eye (One-Eyed Willy)
- Daniel Day-Lewis and Juliette Binoche starred in a 1988 adaptation of what novel by the acclaimed Czechoslovakian writer Milan Kundera?
Answer: The Unbearable Lightness of Being
- The Short-Timers, a semi-autobiographical novel by Vietnam vet Gustav Hasford, was turned into what critically acclaimed 1987 war film?
Answer: Full Metal Jacket
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About the Author
Eli Robinson is the Chief Trivia Officer at Water Cooler Trivia. He was once in a Bruce Springsteen cover band called F Street Band.
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