• Kramer vs. Kramer
  • Apocalypse Now
  • The China Syndrome
  • Manhattan
  • Norma Rae

• Breaking Away
  • 10
  • Being There
  • Hair
  • The Rose

• Dustin Hoffman – Kramer vs. Kramer as Ted Kramer
  • Jack Lemmon – The China Syndrome as Jack Godell
  • Al Pacino – ...And Justice for All. as Arthur Kirkland
  • Jon Voight – The Champ as Billy Flynn
  • James Woods – The Onion Field as Gregory Powell

• Sally Field – Norma Rae as Norma Rae Webster
  • Jill Clayburgh – La Luna as Caterina Silveri
  • Lisa Eichhorn – Yanks as Jean Moreton
  • Jane Fonda – The China Syndrome as Kimberly Wells
  • Marsha Mason – Promises in the Dark as Dr. Alexandra Kendall

• Peter Sellers – Being There as Chance
  • George Hamilton – Love at First Bite as Count Dracula
  • Dudley Moore – 10 as George Webber
  • Burt Reynolds – Starting Over as Phil Potter
  • Roy Scheider – All That Jazz as Joe Gideon

• Bette Midler – The Rose as Mary Rose Foster
  • Julie Andrews – 10 as Samantha Taylor
  • Jill Clayburgh – Starting Over as Marilyn Holmberg
  • Shirley MacLaine – Being There as Eve Rand
  • Marsha Mason – Chapter Two as Jennie MacLaine

• Melvyn Douglas – Being There as Benjamin Rand
• Robert Duvall – Apocalypse Now as Lt. Col. Bill Kilgore
  • Frederic Forrest – The Rose as Huston Dyer
  • Justin Henry – Kramer vs. Kramer as Billy Kramer
  • Laurence Olivier – A Little Romance as Julius

• Meryl Streep – Kramer vs. Kramer as Joanna Kramer
  • Jane Alexander – Kramer vs. Kramer as Margaret Phelps
  • Kathleen Beller – Promises in the Dark as Elizabeth (Buffy) Koenig
  • Candice Bergen – Starting Over as Jessica Potter
  • Valerie Harper – Chapter Two as Faye Medwick

• Francis Ford Coppola – Apocalypse Now
  • Hal Ashby – Being There
  • Robert Benton – Kramer vs. Kramer
  • James Bridges – The China Syndrome
  • Peter Yates – Breaking Away

• Kramer vs. Kramer – Robert Benton
  • Being There – Jerzy Kosinski
  • Breaking Away – Steve Tesich
  • The China Syndrome – James Bridges, T. S. Cook and Mike Gray
  • Norma Rae – Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr.

• Apocalypse Now – Carmine Coppola and Francis Ford Coppola
  • 10 – Henry Mancini
  • Alien – Jerry Goldsmith
  • The Amityville Horror – Lalo Schifrin
  • The Black Stallion – Carmine Coppola
  • A Little Romance – Georges Delerue
  • Star Trek: The Motion Picture – Jerry Goldsmith

• "The Rose" (Amanda McBroom) – The Rose
  • "Better Than Ever" (Marvin Hamlisch, Carole Bayer Sager) – Starting Over
  • "The Main Event" (Paul Jabara, Bruce Roberts) – The Main Event
  • "Rainbow Connection" (Paul Williams, Kenny Ascher) – The Muppet Movie
  • "Through the Eyes of Love" (Marvin Hamlisch, Carole Bayer Sager) – Ice Castles

• Ricky Schroder – The Champ as Timothy Joseph ("T.J.") Flynn
  • Dennis Christopher – Breaking Away as Dave Stoller
  • Justin Henry – Kramer vs. Kramer as Billy Kramer
  • Dean Paul Martin – Players as Chris
  • Treat Williams – Hair as George Berger

• Bette Midler – The Rose as Mary Rose Foster
  • Susan Anton – Goldengirl as Goldine
  • Bo Derek – 10 as Jenny Hanley
  • Lisa Eichhorn – Yanks as Jean Moreton
  • Lynn-Holly Johnson – Ice Castles as Alexis "Lexie" Winston

• La Cage aux Folles (France)
  • The Europeans (United Kingdom)
  • The Marriage of Maria Braun (West Germany)
  • Soldier of Orange (Netherlands)
  • Till Marriage Do Us Part (Italy)

• Backstairs at the White House
• Centennial
• Dallas
• The Rockford Files
• Roots: The Next Generations

Taxi (TIE)

• The Associates
• The Love Boat
• M*A*S*H

• Richard Chamberlain - Centennial as Alexander McKeag
• Erik Estrada - CHiPs as Officer Francis Llewellyn 'Ponch' Poncherello
• James Garner - The Rockford Files as Jim Rockford
• John Houseman - The Paper Chase as Professor Charles W. Kingsfield, Jr.
• Martin Sheen - Blind Ambition as John Dean
• Robert Urich - Vega$ as Dan Tanna
• Robert Wagner - Hart to Hart as Jonathan Hart

• Barbara Bel Geddes - Dallas as Miss Ellie Ewing
• Kate Mulgrew - Mrs. Columbo as Kate Columbo
• Stefanie Powers - Hart to Hart as Jennifer Hart
• Sada Thompson - Family as Kate Lawrence

• Judd Hirsch - Taxi as Alex Reiger
• Wilfrid Hyde-White - The Associates as Emerson Marshall
• John Ritter - Three's Company as Jack Tripper
• Robin Williams - Mork & Mindy as Mork

• Penny Marshall - Laverne & Shirley as Laverne DeFazio
• Donna Pescow - Angie as Angie Falco
• Jean Stapleton - All in the Family as Edith Bunker
• Loretta Swit - M*A*S*H as Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan (Penobscott)

Vic Tayback - Alice as Mel Sharples (TIE)

• Jeff Conaway - Taxi as Bobby Wheeler
• Andy Kaufman - Taxi as Latka Gravas
• David Doyle - Charlie's Angels as John Bosley

• Loni Anderson - WKRP in Cincinnati as Jennifer Marlowe
• Marilu Henner - Taxi as Elaine O'Connor Nardo
• Beth Howland - Alice as Vera Gorman Novak
• Linda Kelsey - Lou Grant as Billie Newman

• Elvis
• Friendly Fire
• Like Normal People
• The Miracle Worker