Broadcast News (1987)
89%RT Audience Score: 79%
Awards & Nominations: Nominated for 7 Oscars
15 wins & 24 nominations total
Blockbuster dramatist James L. Brooks delivers with Broadcast News, fully entertaining with deft, deep characterization.
Broadcast News is the perfect movie for anyone who loves a good romantic comedy with a side of workplace drama. Holly Hunter shines as Jane Craig, a smart and ambitious news producer who finds herself torn between two men: the charming but shallow anchor Tom Grunick (played by William Hurt) and the neurotic but brilliant reporter Aaron Altman (played by Albert Brooks). With sharp writing and standout performances from the entire cast, this movie is a must-watch for anyone who’s ever had to balance their personal and professional lives. Plus, who doesn’t love a good ’80s power suit?
Production Company(ies)
Morgan Creek Entertainment, Davis-Films, August Entertainment,
Distributor
20th Century Fox
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
600 East Capitol Street SE, Capitol Hill, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
MPAA / Certificate
R
Year of Release
1987
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Stereo
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:2h 12m
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Language(s):English, Spanish, French, German
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Dec 16, 1987 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 5, 1999
Genre(s)
Comedy/Romance
Keyword(s)
broadcast news, comedy, romance, intelligent satire, American television news, highly strung news producer, vapid anchorman, talented news reporter, feminist heroine, romantic-comedy, James L Brooks, directed by James L Brooks, written by James L Brooks, produced by James L Brooks, starring William Hurt, Tom Grunick, Albert Brooks, Aaron Altman, Holly Hunter, Jane Craig, Robert Prosky, Ernie Merriman, Lois Chiles, Jennifer Mack, Joan Cusack, Blair Litton, R rating, box office gross, 20th Century Fox, reviewed by Sean French, Duane Byrge, Jen Chaney, Gene Siskel, Richard Corliss, Variety Staff, Josh Larsen, Matt Brunson, Chris Plante, Ángel Fernández-Santos, Molly Haskell, Hilary Mantel
Worldwide gross: $67,331,309
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $179,723,078
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 755
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 19,599,027
US/Canada gross: $51,249,404
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $136,796,696
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 557
US/Canada opening weekend: $197,542
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $527,286
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,393
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $20,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $53,384,697
Production budget ranking: 750
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $28,747,660
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $97,590,721
ROI to date (est.): 119%
ROI ranking: 861
Albert Brooks – Aaron Altman
Holly Hunter – Jane Craig
Robert Prosky – Ernie Merriman
Lois Chiles – Jennifer Mack
Joan Cusack – Blair Litton
Director(s)
James L. Brooks
Writer(s)
James L. Brooks
Producer(s)
James L. Brooks
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Nominated for 7 Oscars
15 wins & 24 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Nominees
All Critics (54) | Top Critics (13) | Fresh (53) | Rotten (1)
Albert Brooks and Holly Hunter perform with such vitality, such comic neuroticism, that they at least blur the edges of their stereotypes.
January 28, 2020
Sean French
Sight & Sound
TOP CRITIC
As the talented but professionally thwarted news writer, Brooks is sensational, both vain and vulnerable.
December 18, 2018
Duane Byrge
Hollywood Reporter
TOP CRITIC
Jane Craig is a feminist heroine in a way that few female romantic-comedy protagonists since have been, even the ones we consider strong and independent.
December 19, 2017
Jen Chaney
New York Magazine/Vulture
TOP CRITIC
James Brooks is too gifted a writer for that simple a story.
August 23, 2017 | Rating: 4/4
Gene Siskel
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
All the performers are tops.
February 2, 2009
Richard Corliss
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Enormously entertaining.
April 1, 2008
Variety Staff
Variety
TOP CRITIC
…interested in all the complication and resignation that comes with being an actual adult.
April 27, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4
Josh Larsen
LarsenOnFilm
Perceptive on several levels — particularly in its study of romantic entanglements, its take on the role of the media, and its commentary on style versus substance — this finds Holly Hunter delivering the best female performance of the 1980s.
October 6, 2021 | Rating: 4/4
Matt Brunson
Film Frenzy
I struggle to think of a safer, more charming film.
December 1, 2020
Chris Plante
Polygon
It achieves an unexpected flow in its development and an even more unexpected magic in certain moments. [Full Review in Spanish]
April 10, 2020
Ángel Fernández-Santos
El Pais (Spain)
Hunter shows us a woman who was never able to pretend she wasn’t smarter than the guys, and gives a performance of such springy naturalness that it hardly seems like a performance at all.
February 27, 2020
Molly Haskell
Vogue
Broadcast News is a slick and well- scripted comedy, witty and well-paced; it makes no points that haven’t been made before, but like its TV news team it makes them entertainingly.
March 1, 2019
Hilary Mantel
The Spectator…
Plot
Basket-case network news producer Jane Craig falls for new reporter Tom Grunnick, a pretty boy who represents the trend towards entertainment news she despises. Aaron Altman, a talented but plain correspondent, carries an unrequited torch for Jane. Sparks fly between the three as the network prepares for big changes, and both the news and Jane must decide between style and substance.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Holly Hunter delivers “the best female performance of the 1980s” according to one critic review on Fresh Kernels.
James-L.-Brooks.jpg
