| Rank | Release
| Weekly | Weekend | % of Week | Weekdays | % of Week | Theaters | Week | Distributor
| New This Week
| Estimated
|
|---|
| 1 | Tootsie | $5,649,177 | $4,349,058 | 77% | $1,300,119 | 23% | 1,221 | 12 | Columbia Pictures | - | false |
| 2 | Gandhi | $3,254,649 | $2,349,892 | 72.2% | $904,757 | 27.8% | 766 | 13 | Columbia Pictures | - | false |
| 3 | The Lords of Discipline | $2,322,057 | $1,727,582 | 74.4% | $594,475 | 25.6% | 800 | 3 | Paramount Pictures | - | false |
| 4 | 48 Hrs. | $2,149,056 | $1,807,448 | 84.1% | $341,608 | 15.9% | 800 | 13 | Paramount Pictures | - | false |
| 5 | Vigilante | $2,062,940 | $1,588,464 | 77% | $474,476 | 23% | 250 | 1 | Film Ventures International (FVI) | - | false |
| 6 | Sophie's Choice | $2,060,000 | $1,507,447 | 73.2% | $552,553 | 26.8% | 519 | 13 | Universal Pictures | - | false |
| 7 | Lovesick | $1,924,850 | $1,532,301 | 79.6% | $392,549 | 20.4% | 712 | 3 | Warner Bros. | - | false |
| 8 | The Verdict | $1,531,425 | $1,124,537 | 73.4% | $406,888 | 26.6% | 626 | 13 | Twentieth Century Fox | - | false |
| 9 | E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial | $1,324,968 | $1,014,451 | 76.6% | $310,517 | 23.4% | 610 | 39 | Universal Pictures | - | false |
| 10 | The Year of Living Dangerously | $1,199,284 | $932,370 | 77.7% | $266,914 | 22.3% | 290 | 7 | Warner Bros. | - | false |
| 11 | The Man from Snowy River | $1,173,402 | $886,012 | 75.5% | $287,390 | 24.5% | 500 | 18 | Twentieth Century Fox | - | false |
| 12 | They Call Me Bruce | $1,025,842 | $769,404 | 75% | $256,438 | 25% | 291 | 17 | Film Ventures International (FVI) | - | false |
| 13 | My Tutor | $601,927 | $435,188 | 72.3% | $166,739 | 27.7% | 96 | 1 | Crown | - | false |
| 14 | Tender Mercies | $67,096 | $46,977 | 70% | $20,119 | 30% | 3 | 1 | Universal Pictures | - | false |
| 15 | Baby It's You | $17,744 | $12,420 | 70% | $5,324 | 30% | 1 | 1 | Paramount Pictures | - | false |
| - | Joysticks | - | $1,431,065 | - | - | - | - | 1 | Jensen Farley Pictures | - | false |
| - | The Sting II | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | Universal Pictures | - | false |
| - | Without a Trace | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | Twentieth Century Fox | - | false |
| - | The Entity | - | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | Twentieth Century Fox | - | false |
| - | Local Hero | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | Warner Bros. | - | false |
