• Ordinary People
  • The Elephant Man
  • The Ninth Configuration
  • Raging Bull
  • The Stunt Man

• Coal Miner's Daughter
  • Airplane!
  • Fame
  • The Idolmaker
  • Melvin and Howard

• Robert De Niro –Raging Bull asJake La Motta
  • John Hurt –The Elephant Man asJohn Merrick
  • Jack Lemmon –Tribute as Scottie Templeton
  • Peter O'Toole –The Stunt Man as Eli Cross
  • Donald Sutherland –Ordinary People as Calvin Jarrett

• Mary Tyler Moore –Ordinary People as Beth Jarrett
  • Ellen Burstyn –Resurrection as Edna Mae McCauley
  • Nastassja Kinski –Tess as Tess Durbeyfield
  • Deborah Raffin –Touched by Love as Lena Canada
  • Gena Rowlands –Gloria as Gloria Swenson

• Ray Sharkey –The Idolmaker as Vinnie Vacarri
  • Neil Diamond –The Jazz Singer as Yussel Rabinovitch
  • Tommy Lee Jones –Coal Miner's Daughter as Doolittle Mooney Lynn
  • Paul Le Mat –Melvin and Howard as Melvin Dummar
  • Walter Matthau –Hopscotch as Miles Kendig

• Sissy Spacek –Coal Miner's Daughter asLoretta Lynn
  • Irene Cara –Fame as Coco Hernandez
  • Goldie Hawn –Private Benjamin as Judy Benjamin
  • Bette Midler –Divine Madness! as Herself / The Divine Miss M
  • Dolly Parton –9 to 5 as Doralee Rhodes

• Timothy Hutton –Ordinary People as Conrad Jarrett
  • Judd Hirsch –Ordinary People as Tyrone Berger
  • Joe Pesci –Raging Bull asJoey LaMotta
  • Jason Robards –Melvin and Howard asHoward Hughes
  • Scott Wilson –The Ninth Configuration as Capt. Billy Cutshaw

• Mary Steenburgen –Melvin and Howard as Lynda Dummar
  • Lucie Arnaz –The Jazz Singer as Molly Bell
  • Beverly D'Angelo –Coal Miner's Daughter asPatsy Cline
  • Cathy Moriarty –Raging Bull asVicki LaMotta
  • Debra Winger –Urban Cowboy as Sissy Davis

• Robert Redford –Ordinary People
  • David Lynch –The Elephant Man
  • Roman Polanski –Tess
  • Richard Rush –The Stunt Man
  • Martin Scorsese –Raging Bull

• The Ninth Configuration –William Peter Blatty
  • The Elephant Man –Eric Bergren and Christopher De Vore
  • Ordinary People –Alvin Sargent
  • Raging Bull –Mardik Martin andPaul Schrader
  • The Stunt Man – Lawrence B. Marcus

• The Stunt Man –Dominic Frontiere
  • American Gigolo –Giorgio Moroder
  • The Competition –Lalo Schifrin
  • The Empire Strikes Back –John Williams
  • Fame –Michael Gore
  • Somewhere in Time –John Barry

• "Fame" (Michael Gore,Dean Pitchford) –Fame
  • "9 to 5" (Dolly Parton) –9 to 5
  • "Call Me" (Giorgio Moroder,Debbie Harry) –American Gigolo
  • "Love on the Rocks" (Neil Diamond,Gilbert Bécaud) –The Jazz Singer
  • "Yesterday's Dreams" (Michel Legrand,Carol Connors,Johnny Mathis) –Falling in Love Again

• Timothy Hutton –Ordinary People as Conrad Jarrett
  • Christopher Atkins –The Blue Lagoon as Richard LeStrange
  • William Hurt –Altered States as Dr. Edward Jessup
  • Michael O'Keefe –The Great Santini as Ben Meechum
  • Steve Railsback –The Stunt Man as Cameron

• Nastassja Kinski –Tess as Tess Durbeyfield
  • Nancy Allen –Dressed to Kill as Liz Blake
  • Cathy Moriarty –Raging Bull asVicki LaMotta
  • Dolly Parton –9 to 5 as Doralee Rhodes
  • Debra Winger –Urban Cowboy as Sissy Davis

• Tess (United Kingdom)
  • 'Breaker' Morant (Australia)
  • Kagemusha (Japan)
  • The Last Metro (France)
  • My Brilliant Career (Australia)
  • Special Treatment (Yugoslavia)

• Dallas
• Hart to Hart
• Lou Grant
• Vega$
• The Scarlett O'Hara War

• Alice
• The Love Boat
• M*A*S*H
• Soap

• Edward Asner -Lou Grant as Lou Grant
• Larry Hagman -Dallas as J.R. Ewing
• Robert Urich -Vega$ as Dan Tanna
• Robert Wagner -Hart to Hart as Jonathan Hart

• Barbara Bel Geddes -Dallas as Miss Ellie Ewing Farlow
• Melissa Gilbert -Little House on the Prairie as Laura Ingalls Wilder
• Linda Gray -Dallas as Sue Ellen Ewing
• Stefanie Powers -Hart to Hart as Jennifer Hart

• Judd Hirsch -Taxi as Alex Reiger
• Hal Linden -Barney Miller as Capt. Bernard "Barney" Miller
• Gavin MacLeod -The Love Boat as Capt. Merrill Stubing
• Wayne Rogers -House Calls as Dr. Charley Michaels

• Loni Anderson -WKRP in Cincinnati as Jennifer Marlowe
• Polly Holliday -Flo as Florence "Flo" Castleberry
• Linda Lavin -Alice as Alice Hyatt
• Lynn Redgrave -House Calls as Ann Atkinson

Vic Tayback -Alice as Mel Sharples (tie)

• Danny DeVito -Taxi as Louie De Palma
• Andy Kaufman -Taxi as Latka Gravas
• Geoffrey Lewis -Flo as Earl Tucker

Diane Ladd -Alice as Isabelle "Belle" Dupree (tie)

• Marilu Henner -Taxi as Elaine O'Connor Nardo
• Beth Howland -Alice as Vera Gorman Novak
• Linda Kelsey -Lou Grant as Billie Newman

• The Diary of Anne Frank
• The Ordeal of Dr. Mudd
• Playing for Time
• A Tale of Two Cities