25 iconic movies that are somehow turning 50 in 2026

Louis PeitzmanThu, July 30, 2026 at 2:34 PM UTC

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Robert De Niro behind the wheel of a taxi in a scene from the movie Taxi Driver. -The 25 most beloved movies turning 50 in 2026

It's hard to imagine now, but "Rocky" wasn't always poised to be the enduring classic that it became. Sylvester Stallone wrote the script—his first—in just three days. It was then very nearly made into a TV movie, destined to be forgotten. And it almost didn't star Stallone himself. Of course, we all know how "Rocky" turned out in the end, with the film going on to become a Best Picture winner and catapulting its writer and star to worldwide fame. But looking back 50 years later, it's still remarkable how close it all came to falling apart.

There are stories like this behind many of the greatest films ever made. The ones we remember most fondly are simply the movies where things clicked into place, often despite great odds. That's surely the case for the other standouts from 1976, a year in cinema still somewhere in the middle of the New Hollywood movement that defined moviegoing from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s. It was an era that gave us filmmakers like Martin Scorsese, Sidney Lumet, and Brian De Palma — all of whom are represented on this list of the 25 most beloved movies turning 50 in 2026.

To find cinephiles' favorite 1976 movies, Stacker consulted online film cataloging service Letterboxd and sorted 1976 releases by popularity. The resulting ranking represents some of that year's most iconic films (including "Rocky"), along with several deeper cuts ripe for discovery. We've also included IMDb user ratings, as well as Metascores for critical context.

Read on to see the 25 most popular movies celebrating their 50th birthday this year.

Alain Delon as Robert Klein in Mr. Klein (1976), wearing a gray coat and bowler hat, with his silhouette projected onto a wall behind him. -#25. Mr. Klein

- Director: Joseph Losey - IMDb user rating: 7.5 - Metascore: Data not available - Runtime: 2 hours, 3 minutes

The French Holocaust drama "Mr. Klein" stars Alain Delon as a Parisian art dealer targeted by the police who believe him to be Jewish. Klein believes this to be a case of mistaken identity, but as he struggles to find proof of who he really is, the twisty film refuses to provide any easy answers. In a 2019 review for the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan wrote, "Moody, elegantly disturbing and impeccably made by a master director, this story of blurred identities and casual immorality in German-occupied Paris benefits from what might be the best performance of star Alain Delon's long career."

The masked killer from The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976), wearing a white burlap hood with eye holes and a brown jacket against a blue-purple background. -#24. The Town That Dreaded Sundown

- Director: Charles B. Pierce - IMDb user rating: 6.0 - Metascore: 52 - Runtime: 1 hour, 30 minutes

"The Town That Dreaded Sundown" wasn't well received upon its release. In a dismissive review for The New York Times, Vincent Canby wrote, "A couple of professional actors, Ben Johnson and Andrew Prine, head the cast, but the film looks nonprofessional in every other respect." Nevertheless, the low-budget film was a box-office hit that has since come to be regarded as an influential early slasher. "The Town That Dreaded Sundown," which follows a hooded serial murderer called the Phantom Killer who targets Texarkana, also inspired a metasequel of the same name in 2014.

American actress Eileen Brennan as Tess Skeffington in Murder by Death (1976), seated in an ornate wooden chair with a serious expression inside a lavish mansion. -#23. Murder by Death

- Director: Robert Moore - IMDb user rating: 7.2 - Metascore: 59 - Runtime: 1 hour, 35 minutes

With a sharp script from playwright Neil Simon, the mystery comedy "Murder by Death" is notable for its impressive ensemble cast, including Peter Sellers, Alec Guinness, Maggie Smith, and writer Truman Capote, among others. Most of them play parody versions of famous fictional crime-solvers. It earned two Golden Globe nominations and mostly positive reviews, with Variety calling it "a very good silly-funny Neil Simon satirical comedy."

American actor Cliff Robertson in Obsession (1976), wearing a light-colored suit and patterned tie while looking ahead inside a modern office with city buildings visible through the window. -#22. Obsession

- Director: Brian De Palma - IMDb user rating: 6.7 - Metascore: 59 - Runtime: 1 hour, 38 minutes

Not to be confused with the 2026 horror film of the same name, Brian De Palma's "Obsession"—his first of two movies on this list—is a psychological thriller about a man (Cliff Robertson) haunted by the death of his wife, who then falls in love with her exact double. Both women are played by Geneviève Bujold, and yes, De Palma cited "Vertigo" as an influence. The New York Post's Lou Lumenick wrote in 2011, "Subtlety is not a term that can often be applied to DePalma's other work, but it's this uncharacteristic restraint that helps make 'Obsession' his masterpiece."

A man in a trench coat and wide-brimmed hat sits on a rain-soaked street, pointing upward with his mouth open, in a dramatic scene from The Fifth Seal (Az ötödik pecsét, 1976). -#21. The Fifth Seal

- Director: Zoltán Fábri - IMDb user rating: 8.5 - Metascore: Data not available - Runtime: 1 hour, 56 minutes

Though the subject matter might prove daunting for some, Zoltán Fábri's "The Fifth Seal" is regarded as a major achievement in Hungarian filmmaking. The movie is a wartime drama with a focus on the psychological, asking tough questions of its characters—and its audience. The Guardian critic Peter Bradshaw has called it a "gloomy fable of disillusion and resignation."

Poster for Harlan County, USA (1976), featuring the film title in large stencil-style letters surrounded by sepia-toned photographs of coal miners, protesters, and local residents. -#20. Harlan County U.S.A.

- Director: Barbara Kopple - IMDb user rating: 8.2 - Metascore: 80 - Runtime: 1 hour, 43 minutes

"Harlan County U.S.A." won Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards—and with good reason. The film is a remarkable depiction of a 1973 coal miners' strike, and earned massive acclaim from critics. In fact, it has a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. In a 2005 review, Roger Ebert championed "Harlan County U.S.A." as "articulate, indomitable, courageous."

Robert De Niro and Gérard Depardieu in 1900 (Novecento, 1976), shown in a close-up promotional image with warm lighting and an industrial background. -#19. 1900

- Director: Bernardo Bertolucci - IMDb user rating: 7.6 - Metascore: 70 - Runtime: 5 hours, 17 minutes

You have to strap in for Bernardo Bertolucci's epic historical drama "1900," which runs over five hours and was screened in two separate parts in many countries to account for its length. (In the U.S., it was edited down to a shorter version, but the unedited cut is now available.) While reviews for the Robert De Niro and Gérard Depardieu film were decidedly mixed at the time, it has always had its fans. For Sight & Sound, Geoffrey Nowell-Smith wrote, "Its eccentricity, and the incorporation of this eccentricity into the staid format of the historical spectacular, proves to be its redemption."

A man in a dark suit looks over his shoulder beside a door labeled “Detective Bureau” in a scene from Alice, Sweet Alice (1976). -#18. Alice, Sweet Alice

- Director: Alfred Sole - IMDb user rating: 6.4 - Metascore: 67 - Runtime: 1 hour, 47 minutes

Brooke Shields has a memorable early role in "Alice, Sweet Alice," playing the first victim of a masked killer whose identity drives the film's central mystery. Highly controversial at the time for its graphic violence, the movie has the feel of an Italian giallo despite being made by American director Alfred Sole. In a 2005 review for Slant, Jeremiah Kipp wrote, "'Alice, Sweet Alice' conflates the angst of adolescent sexual development with the fury of Catholic retribution, suggesting at times an analog version of David Fincher's 'Se7en.'"

Farrah Fawcett in Logan's Run (1976), looking off to the side with a concerned expression while wearing a shimmering high-collared outfit. -#17. Logan's Run

- Director: Michael Anderson - IMDb user rating: 6.8 - Metascore: 53 - Runtime: 1 hour, 59 minutes

Based on the novel of the same name, "Logan's Run" is a dystopian sci-fi action movie about a society where citizens who reach the age of 30 are killed. The film got Oscar nominations for art direction and cinematography, and it received a Special Achievement Award in commendation of its visual effects. Reviews were mixed, but Roger Ebert defended "Logan's Run" as "a vast, silly extravaganza that delivers a certain amount of fun, once it stops taking itself seriously."

Geraldine Chaplin and Ana Torrent in Cría cuervos (1976), posing side by side with solemn expressions against a plain indoor background. -#16. Cría Cuervos

- Director: Carlos Saura - IMDb user rating: 7.9 - Metascore: Data not available - Runtime: 1 hour, 45 minutes

The psychological drama "Cría Cuervos" was chosen as Spain's entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars, though it was ultimately not picked. The movie did, however, earn the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival, and has, in the 50 years since its release, solidified its reputation as a classic. For The Guardian, Peter Bradshaw wrote, "The film is a masterpiece of form and technique, and [Geraldine] Chaplin and [Ana] Torrent are both outstanding."

Clint Eastwood as Josey Wales in The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), wearing a black cowboy hat and looking into the distance beneath a bright blue sky. -#15. The Outlaw Josey Wales

- Director: Clint Eastwood - IMDb user rating: 7.8 - Metascore: 69 - Runtime: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Clint Eastwood directed and starred in "The Outlaw Josey Wales," which is not your typical Western. Here, Eastwood's gunslinger character is not exactly a hero, and he spends the movie evading the Union soldiers and bounty hunters who want him dead. As Time Out's Phil Hardy noted, "the film demonstrated Eastwood's ability to recreate his first starring role, as the mythic Man with No Name of the Italian Westerns, and to subtly undercut it through comedy and mockery."

Dustin Hoffman and a woman share a quiet, intimate moment in a black-and-white scene from Marathon Man (1976), resting their heads together outdoors. -#14. Marathon Man

- Director: John Schlesinger - IMDb user rating: 7.4 - Metascore: 64 - Runtime: 2 hours, 5 minutes

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"Is it safe?" For all that happens over the course of two hours, "Marathon Man" will always be best remembered for the notorious scene where Dr. Szell (Laurence Olivier), a disguised Nazi war criminal, uses dental instruments to torture Babe (Dustin Hoffman). Olivier was nominated for an Oscar for his performance, but critics also recognized William Goldman's taut script. In a contemporary review, Roger Ebert wrote, "If holes in plots bother you, 'Marathon Man' will be maddening. But as well-crafted escapist entertainment, as a diabolical thriller, the movie works with relentless skill."

Ben Gazzara in The Killing of a Chinese Bookie (1976), wearing a dark suit and looking over his shoulder on a city street at night with blurred lights in the background. -#13. The Killing of a Chinese Bookie

- Director: John Cassavetes - IMDb user rating: 7.2 - Metascore: 65 - Runtime: 2 hours, 15 minutes

John Cassavetes movies are often intense experiences, and that's certainly true of "The Killing of a Chinese Bookie," which stars Ben Gazzara as a strip club owner whose gambling debt forces him to do a gangster's bidding. It's probably for the best that a potential remake never came to fruition. Writing for The New Yorker, Richard Brody said, "John Cassavetes, who made much of his money performing in action films, put that experience to work as the director of this hard, brooding crime drama."

Tatsuya Fuji and Eiko Matsuda in In the Realm of the Senses (Ai no Corrida, 1976), standing together beneath a traditional paper umbrella in the rain. -#12. In the Realm of the Senses

- Director: Nagisa Ōshima - IMDb user rating: 6.6 - Metascore: Data not available - Runtime: 1 hour, 49 minutes

One of the most controversial films ever made, the Japanese movie "In the Realm of the Senses" shocked audiences with its graphic content and was banned across the globe. Up until the '90s, it was hard to see an uncut version of the movie in the U.S. In a Time Out review from 2009, Trevor Johnston wrote, "Unsanitized, worryingly convincing in its sadomasochistic detail, this is seriously provocative cinema, a telling reminder of what it really means to be dangerous."

Chantal Akerman looks through the viewfinder of a film camera in a behind-the-scenes photograph from News from Home (1976). -#11. News from Home

- Director: Chantal Akerman - IMDb user rating: 7.3 - Metascore: Data not available - Runtime: 1 hour, 29 minutes

Chantal Akerman's 1975 classic "Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles" has been called the greatest movie ever made. She followed that up with another lauded film, the avant-garde documentary "News from Home," in which footage of New York is interspersed with the filmmaker reading letters sent by her mother. Is it for everyone? Surely not. But the Chicago Reader's Jonathan Rosenbaum praised it as "one of the best depictions of the alienation of exile that I know."

Buck Henry as Oliver Farnsworth in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), wearing large eyeglasses and looking upward with a worried expression. -#10. The Man Who Fell to Earth

- Director: Nicolas Roeg - IMDb user rating: 6.6 - Metascore: 81 - Runtime: 2 hours, 19 minutes

David Bowie always had a certain alien vibe about him, and that was used to great effect in "The Man Who Fell to Earth," a surreal sci-fi drama where he plays an extraterrestrial who crash-lands on our planet. The movie is now regarded as a cult classic that has influenced films like "The Prestige" and "Under the Skin," and it was adapted into the 2015 musical "Lazarus." In The Ringer, Adam Nayman wrote, "[Nicolas] Roeg's film is so rich and lucid that it could be an essay."

French actress Isabelle Adjani in The Tenant (1976), wearing oversized eyeglasses and a fur coat while resting her head on her hand in a black-and-white close-up. -#9. The Tenant

- Director: Roman Polanski - IMDb user rating: 7.5 - Metascore: 71 - Runtime: 2 hours, 6 minutes

"The Tenant" is not one of Roman Polanski's more famous films, but it forms the third part of his "Apartment Trilogy," following the more well-known "Repulsion" and "Rosemary's Baby." It's another psychological thriller, this time about a man, played by Polanski himself, who discovers that his apartment belonged to a tenant who died by suicide. In a contemporary review for The New York Times, Vincent Canby wrote, "That 'The Tenant' works so well is because it's not strictly about madness, though that is its narrative form. It's about emotional isolation that has become physical."

Austin Stoker and Laurie Zimmer in Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), standing together inside a police station, with Stoker wearing a sheriff's uniform and Zimmer dressed in a turtleneck sweater. -#8. Assault on Precinct 13

- Director: John Carpenter - IMDb user rating: 7.3 - Metascore: 89 - Runtime: 1 hour, 31 minutes

John Carpenter was inspired by classic Westerns and "Night of the Living Dead" when he wrote and directed the action film "Assault on Precinct 13," which follows a police officer (Austin Stoker) defending a nearly shuttered station from a ruthless gang's siege. While not as famous as Carpenter's subsequent work, like "Halloween," this early film has a serious cult following. The Chicago Reader's Dave Kehr called it a "hopelessly violent but exceedingly well-made police thriller." It was also remade in 2005, though that iteration has had less staying power.

John Cassavetes and Peter Falk in Mikey and Nicky (1976), seated side by side on a nighttime bus, sharing a tense moment under dim blue lighting. -#7. Mikey and Nicky

- Director: Elaine May - IMDb user rating: 7.3 - Metascore: 81 - Runtime: 1 hour, 46 minutes

John Cassavetes wasn't only directing films in 1976—he also starred in "Mikey and Nicky," a crime drama helmed by Elaine May. Cassavetes plays the titular Nicky, a desperate mobster looking for help from his childhood friend Mikey, played by Peter Falk. "Mikey and Nicky" was a bomb that kept May from directing for over a decade, but it's much more appreciated now, particularly with the release of May's director's cut. Polygon's Matt Patches called it "a nuclear attack on toxic masculinity, and among the more challenging films I've ever watched."

Harvey Spencer Stephens as Damien Thorn in The Omen (1976), wearing patterned pajamas and looking upward while sitting near a glowing fireplace. -#6. The Omen

- Director: Richard Donner - IMDb user rating: 7.5 - Metascore: 43 - Runtime: 1 hour, 51 minutes

Richard Donner's "The Omen" is a little schlockier than you might expect from an Academy Award-winning horror film (it picked up a trophy for Jerry Goldsmith's score), but there's no questioning its influence. The film—which follows young Damien Thorn (Harvey Spencer Stephens), who turns out to be the Antichrist—spawned an entire franchise and countless copycats. As Los Angeles Times critic Kevin Thomas put it, "No matter how much you may dislike 'The Omen,' there's just no denying that it is an absolutely riveting, thoroughly scary experience."

Austin Stoker and Laurie Zimmer in Assault on Precinct 13 (1976), standing together inside a police station, with Stoker wearing a sheriff's uniform and Zimmer dressed in a turtleneck sweater. -#5. All the President's Men

- Director: Alan J. Pakula - IMDb user rating: 7.9 - Metascore: 84 - Runtime: 2 hours, 18 minutes

Who knew a film about a newspaper investigation could be so thrilling? In "All the President's Men," Alan J. Pakula and writer William Goldman manage to turn Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) and Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) investigating the Watergate scandal into edge-of-your-seat entertainment. Roger Ebert praised it by saying, "The movie's so well paced, acted, and edited that it develops the illusion of momentum."

Peter Finch as Howard Beale in Network (1976), standing with his arms outstretched in front of a colorful stained-glass window while delivering an impassioned speech. -#4. Network

- Director: Sidney Lumet - IMDb user rating: 8.1 - Metascore: 83 - Runtime: 2 hours, 1 minute

Many movies are said to be ahead of their time, but few can boast the kind of prescience that "Network" delivers. While ostensibly the story of news anchor Howard Beale (Peter Finch) having a nervous breakdown, the film accurately predicted the evolution of media, from the transformation of news into entertainment to reality television. In a 2026 review for Slant, Derek Smith noted, "Half a century later, Sidney Lumet's 'Network' remains a darkly humorous and relevant treatise on capitalism's erosion of morality."

Sylvester Stallone and Jayne Kennedy in Rocky (1976), standing together at a meatpacking facility as Kennedy holds a television news microphone. -#3. Rocky

- Director: John G. Avildsen - IMDb user rating: 8.1 - Metascore: 70 - Runtime: 2 hours

It's hard to measure the success of "Rocky," a film made for $1 million that went on to gross over $115 million. It led to eight more movies, with the series as a whole earning more than $1.5 billion, making it the most profitable sports movie franchise in cinema. And it's become a cultural touchstone that far surpasses the simple story of Sylvester Stallone as an aspiring heavyweight champion. In a contemporary review for the New York Daily News, Kathleen Carroll wrote, "Like the movies of Frank Capra, Rocky is a glowing tribute to the human spirit—a chin-up reminder that the decent, little guys of the world often accomplish the impossible if only because they try so hard."

Sissy Spacek as Carrie White in Carrie (1976), wearing a flowing white nightgown with sheer sleeves and posing with her arms outstretched in a black-and-white production still. -#2. Carrie

- Director: Brian De Palma - IMDb user rating: 7.4 - Metascore: 86 - Runtime: 1 hour, 38 minutes

The first adaptation of a Stephen King novel, "Carrie" is inarguably one of the very best. Brian De Palma earns his second spot on this list with his riveting take on Carrie White (Sissy Spacek), a high schooler tormented by bullies and her abusive mother (Piper Laurie). In the movie's most memorable sequence, still harrowing after 50 years, Carrie uses her telekinetic powers for blood-soaked revenge at the prom. The renowned critic Pauline Kael, writing for The New Yorker, said, "'Carrie' is a terrifying lyrical thriller. The director, Brian De Palma, has mastered a teasing style—a perverse mixture of comedy and horror and tension."

Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver (1976), seated inside a taxi with one arm resting on the open window, glancing over his shoulder in a black-and-white image. -#1. Taxi Driver

- Director: Martin Scorsese - IMDb user rating: 8.2 - Metascore: 94 - Runtime: 1 hour, 54 minutes

Even people who haven't seen "Taxi Driver" know the iconic scene of Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) talking to himself in the mirror, but the movie's impact far exceeds one quotable moment. Martin Scorsese's harrowing psychological drama, with a screenplay by Paul Schrader, captured the country's uneasy state in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. As Kevin Kelly wrote for The Boston Globe, "'Taxi Driver' is so volatile it nearly explodes from the screen. Under Martin Scorsese's brilliant direction, it works a dramatic tension that is inescapable, carefully, systematically straitjacketing its audience in the problems of its central character."

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