21 Movie Trivia Questions to Test Your Knowledge

Movies have long played a major role in shaping popular culture. From memorable quotes and iconic characters to fashion and social trends, films influence how we think, speak, and even dress.

For many people, watching movies is simply a form of entertainment and escape. But for true film fans, movies are much more than that. Dedicated cinephiles follow every detail of filmmaking, from acting and directing to cinematography and sound design.

Whether a movie was a blockbuster hit, a cult classic, or a box office flop, devoted fans often remember the details. This trivia quiz puts your movie knowledge to the test with questions about famous films, iconic moments, and behind-the-scenes facts.

Think you know your movies? See how many of these trivia questions you can answer correctly.

Which film earned Tom Hanks his first Oscar nomination? Hint: His character gets a very unexpected taste of adulthood.

Tom Hanks earned his first Academy Award nomination for playing Josh Baskin in the 1988 comedy Big. Josh is a boy whose wish to become an adult comes true, leaving him to navigate a world he is nowhere near ready for.

Which 1927 film helped usher in the era of talking pictures? Hint: Its leading man was already a celebrated entertainer.

The Jazz Singer is remembered as a major breakthrough for synchronized dialogue in feature films. Although earlier movies had experimented with sound, this 1927 release helped convince Hollywood that audiences were ready to hear actors speak on screen.

Who is the sharply dressed villain who takes over Nakatomi Plaza in Die Hard? Hint: He spends much of the movie matching wits with John McClane.

Alan Rickman played Hans Gruber, the calculating leader of the group occupying Nakatomi Plaza in 1988's Die Hard. Gruber is after the building's valuables, but Bruce Willis's John McClane keeps turning his carefully laid plans into a disaster.

What unsettling sentence does Jack Torrance type over and over in The Shining? Hint: Wendy discovers page after page of the same words.

The repeated line is 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.' Wendy discovers that Jack has filled his manuscript with the sentence, one of the clearest signs that his isolation at the Overlook Hotel has taken a frightening turn.

Which film earned Steven Spielberg his first Academy Award for directing? Hint: It is a historical drama released in the early 1990s.

Steven Spielberg won his first Best Director Oscar for Schindler's List, the 1993 drama about Oskar Schindler and his efforts to save Jewish people during the Holocaust. The film also won Best Picture at the following year's Academy Awards.

In which film did Marlon Brando deliver the famous 'I coulda been a contender' line? Hint: It comes during a conversation between two brothers.

Brando delivered the line as Terry Malloy in the 1954 drama On the Waterfront. Speaking to his brother Charley, Terry reflects on his lost boxing career in a scene that remains one of the most celebrated moments in Brando's filmography.

Which movie has earned more at the worldwide box office than any other, without adjusting for inflation? Hint: Its director also made Titanic.

James Cameron's Avatar has remained at the top of the worldwide box-office rankings, thanks to its original theatrical run and later re-releases. Released in 2009, the science-fiction spectacle introduced audiences to Pandora and its Na'vi inhabitants.

Which song comes on Phil Connors's clock radio each morning in Groundhog Day? Hint: The recording is a well-known 1960s duet.

The song is Sonny & Cher's 'I Got You Babe.' Phil Connors wakes to it again and again as he relives February 2 in Groundhog Day. A cheerful pop hit becomes an increasingly irritating reminder that he is stuck repeating the same day.

Which Bob Seger song plays as Tom Cruise dances around the house in Risky Business? Hint: The scene involves sunglasses, a shirt, and very little else.

Tom Cruise's Joel Goodsen dances to Bob Seger's 'Old Time Rock and Roll' in one of Risky Business's most memorable scenes. The 1983 film helped turn the song into a fixture of movie montages, parties, and countless impersonations.

Which 2019 film about a comic-book villain became the first R-rated movie to make more than $1 billion worldwide? Hint: Its lead actor won an Oscar.

Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix, became the first R-rated movie to reach $1 billion worldwide and once held the category's box-office record. Deadpool & Wolverine passed it in 2024, and The Odyssey set a new record in 2026.

Which animated movie won the Academy's very first Best Animated Feature award? Hint: The hero is a decidedly untraditional fairy-tale character.

Shrek won the inaugural Best Animated Feature Oscar at the 2002 Academy Awards. The DreamWorks comedy beat fellow nominees Monsters, Inc. and Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, helping establish the category as a major part of the ceremony.

Which Best Picture winner is famous for running almost four hours in its original theatrical presentation? Hint: It takes place against the backdrop of the American Civil War.

Gone with the Wind won Best Picture for 1939 and remains the longest film to receive that award. Its original presentation runs about three hours and 58 minutes, including overture, intermission, and exit music. Even without those extras, it is unusually long.

What is the name of Quint's fishing boat in Jaws? Hint: The vessel shares its name with a powerful marine predator.

Quint's boat is the Orca, which carries Martin Brody, Matt Hooper, and Quint on their increasingly dangerous hunt for the great white shark. Its name refers to the killer whale, an ocean predator that can even hunt sharks.

What is the full name of Kate Winslet's character in Titanic? Hint: She later chooses a different surname.

Kate Winslet plays Rose DeWitt Bukater, a young first-class passenger aboard the doomed ocean liner. After surviving the sinking, Rose adopts the surname Dawson, a tribute to Jack Dawson and the life he encouraged her to embrace.

Which 2004 biblical drama, told largely in Aramaic and Latin, became an unexpected commercial blockbuster in the United States?

Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ depicts the final hours of Jesus's life and was filmed largely in ancient languages. It became a major U.S. box-office hit, although it is not the highest-grossing non-English-language film worldwide.

What is Jenny's last name in Forrest Gump? Hint: Think of the childhood friend Forrest never stops caring about.

Jenny's surname is Curran. Played as an adult by Robin Wright, Jenny Curran is Forrest's childhood friend and enduring love interest. Their lives take very different paths, but their relationship remains central to the film's story.

What is the name of the artificial-intelligence computer aboard the spacecraft in 2001: A Space Odyssey? Hint: Its calm voice and glowing red eye are hard to forget.

HAL 9000 is the shipboard computer aboard Discovery One in Stanley Kubrick's 1968 science-fiction film. Its unruffled voice, red camera lens, and increasingly troubling decisions made HAL one of cinema's most recognizable artificial-intelligence characters.

Which 1984 action movie was the first released in theaters with a PG-13 rating? Hint: Teenagers form a resistance group after their town is invaded.

Red Dawn opened in August 1984, shortly after the PG-13 rating was introduced. Starring Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen, the Cold War action film was the first movie released theatrically under the new classification.

Which 1969 drama won the Best Picture Oscar after originally receiving an X rating? Hint: Its two main characters try to survive on the streets of New York.

Midnight Cowboy won Best Picture for 1969 despite having been released with an X rating. The film, starring Dustin Hoffman and Jon Voight, was later reclassified R, but its original rating remains a notable part of Oscar history.

What is the name of the commercial towing spacecraft in Alien? Hint: It carries Ellen Ripley and the rest of a crew that encounters something they never expected.

The USCSS Nostromo is the commercial towing spacecraft in Ridley Scott's 1979 horror classic Alien. The crew's return journey takes a deadly turn after they investigate a mysterious transmission and bring an unwanted visitor aboard.

What is the name of the fictional island where the original Jurassic Park is located? Hint: The island is off the coast of Costa Rica.

Isla Nublar is the fictional island where John Hammond builds his dinosaur theme park in Jurassic Park. The attraction is supposed to showcase cutting-edge genetic engineering, but the security failures make for a rather disastrous opening tour.

Which Woody Allen film won the Academy Award for Best Picture? Hint: It is a 1970s romantic comedy centered on a relationship in New York.

Annie Hall won Best Picture for 1977, with Woody Allen also receiving the Oscar for directing. Starring Allen and Diane Keaton, the film follows the ups and downs of a relationship and became one of the defining romantic comedies of its era.

Who was the first Black woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress? Hint: The historic victory came for a performance in Monster's Ball.

Halle Berry made Oscar history when she won Best Actress for Monster's Ball at the 2002 ceremony. Her performance made her the first Black woman to receive the award, a milestone she acknowledged in an emotional acceptance speech.

What does the personalized license plate on Doc Brown's DeLorean say in Back to the Future? Hint: Read the letters together as a short phrase.

The plate reads OUTATIME, a playful shortened spelling of 'out of time.' It's a fitting detail for Doc Brown's DeLorean, the car that sends Marty McFly into the past and leaves him scrambling to get home.

Which three astronauts are portrayed aboard the troubled Moon mission in Apollo 13? Hint: An oxygen-tank failure changes everything about their journey.

Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert, and Fred Haise were the three astronauts on Apollo 13. An oxygen-tank explosion forced the crew to abandon its planned Moon landing and focus instead on getting back to Earth safely.