The year 1962 in film involved some very significant events, with Lawrence of Arabia winning seven Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director.

The top ten 1962 released films by box office gross in North America are as follows:

• February – Warner Bros. buy the film rights for My Fair Lady for the unprecedented sum of $5.5 million plus 47¼% of the gross over $20 million.
• May – The Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards are officially founded by the Taiwanese government.
• June 18 – MCA Inc. finalize their merger with Decca-Universal.
• July 25 – Darryl F. Zanuck, one of the founders of 20th Century Fox, becomes president, replacing Spyros Skouras. Skouras becomes chairman of the board.
• August 5 – Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe is found dead of a drug overdose.
• September 7 – Filming of Sergei Bondarchuk's War and Peace begins and will continue for another 5 years.
• October 5 – Dr. No launches the James Bond series, the second longest-running film franchise of all time (next to Godzilla), still running 60 years later (No Time to Die, 2021). It also launches the career of Sean Connery.

Academy Awards:

Best Picture: Lawrence of Arabia – Horizon-Spiegel-Lean, Columbia

Best Director: David Lean – Lawrence of Arabia

Best Actor: Gregory Peck – To Kill a Mockingbird

Best Actress: Anne Bancroft – The Miracle Worker

Best Supporting Actor: Ed Begley – Sweet Bird of Youth

Best Supporting Actress: Patty Duke – The Miracle Worker

Best Foreign Language Film: Sundays and Cybele (Les dimanches de ville d'Avray), directed by Serge Bourguignon, France

Golden Globe Awards:

Drama:

Best Picture: Lawrence of Arabia

Best Actor: Gregory Peck – To Kill a Mockingbird

Best Actress: Geraldine Page – Sweet Bird of Youth

Comedy or Musical:

Best Picture − Comedy: That Touch of Mink

Best Picture − Musical: The Music Man

Best Actor: Marcello Mastroianni – Divorce Italian Style

Best Actress: Rosalind Russell – Gypsy

Other

Best Director: David Lean – Lawrence of Arabia

Best Supporting Actor: Omar Sharif – Lawrence of Arabia

Best Supporting Actress: Angela Lansbury – The Manchurian Candidate

Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):

Keeper of Promises (O Pagador de Promessas), directed by Anselmo Duarte, Brazil

Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival):

Family Diary (Cronaca familiare, Journal intime), directed by Valerio Zurlini, France / Italy

My Name is Ivan (Ivanovo detstvo), directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, USSR

Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):

A Kind of Loving, directed by John Schlesinger, United Kingdom

All of these films are from the United States unless stated.

United States unless stated

• Looney Tunes (1930–1969)
• Terrytoons (1930–1964)
• Merrie Melodies (1931–1969)
• Bugs Bunny (1940–1964)
• Yosemite Sam (1945–1963)
• Speedy Gonzales (1953–1968)

• January 4 – Michael France, American screenwriter (d. 2013)
• January 5 – Suzy Amis Cameron, American actress
• January 7 – Kiiri Tamm, Estonian actress
• January 9 - Conrad Goode, American actor, screenwriter, screenwriter, producer and musician
• January 10 – C. Martin Croker, American animator and voice actor (d. 2016)
• January 11 – Kim Coles, American actress, comedian and game show host
• January 16 - Peter Lurie, American voice actor, sports anchor and television personality
• January 17 – Jim Carrey, Canadian actor and comedian
• January 20 - Sophie Thompson, British actress
• January 21 - Marie Trintignant, French actress (d. 2003)
• January 22 - Piotr Polk, Polish actor and singer
• January 23 - Richard Roxburgh, Australian actor, writer, producer and director
• February 2 - Michael T. Weiss, American actor
• February 4
  • Jim O'Heir, American actor and comedian
  • Michael Riley, Canadian actor
• February 5 – Jennifer Jason Leigh, American actress
• February 7 - Eddie Izzard, English stand-up comedian, actor and writer
• February 8 - Martin Wuttke, German actor and director
• February 12 - Diane Franklin, American actress and producer
• February 13 – Michele Greene, American actress
• February 14 - Sakina Jaffrey, American actress
• February 16 - Alexa Kenin, American actress (d. 1985)
• February 17 – Lou Diamond Phillips, American actor
• February 18 - Julie Strain, American actress and model (d. 2021)
• February 22
  • Steve Irwin, Australian zookeeper, television personality, conservationist, actor (d. 2006)
  • Ethan Wayne, American actor
• February 27 – Adam Baldwin, American actor
• March 2 - Jon Bon Jovi, American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor
• March 8 – Cecilia Yip, Hong Kong actress
• March 10 – Jasmine Guy, American actress, singer, dancer and director
• March 11 - Jeffrey Nordling, American actor
• March 12
  • Julia Campbell, American actress
  • Chris Sanders, American actor, animator, director and voice actor
  • Titus Welliver, American actor
• March 18
  • Thomas Ian Griffith, American actor
  • Etsushi Toyokawa, Japanese actor
• March 20 – Stephen Sommers, American director, screenwriter and producer
• March 21
  • Matthew Broderick, American actor
  • Kathy Greenwood, Canadian actress and comedian
  • Rosie O'Donnell, American actress and comedian
• March 23 - Jenny Wright, American actress
• March 25 - Thom Bierdz, American actor
• March 26 - Marita Geraghty, American actress
• March 29 - Tyra Ferrell, American actress
• April 2 – Clark Gregg, American actor, director and screenwriter
• April 3 - Jennifer Rubin, American actress and model
• April 5 - Lana Clarkson, American actress and model (d. 2003)
• April 15 – Tom Kane, American actor and voice actor
• April 18 - Jeff Dunham, American ventriloquist, stand-up comedian and actor
• April 23 - John Hannah, Scottish actor
• April 24 - Jason Salkey, English actor
• April 27 – James LeGros, American actor
• May 5 - Manoj Sood, Indo-Canadian actor
• May 9 - Sean McNamara, American director, producer, actor and screenwriter
• May 12 – Emilio Estevez, American actor
• May 14 - Danny Huston, American actor, director and writer
• May 17 - Craig Ferguson, Scottish-American television host, comedian, author and actor
• May 18
  • Nathaniel Parker, English actor
  • Karel Roden, Czech actor
• May 26 – Bobcat Goldthwait, American actor, comedian and director
• May 29 - John D. LeMay, American former actor
• May 31 - Sebastian Koch, German actor
• June 5
  • Jeff Garlin, American comedian and actor
  • Ken Hudson Campbell, American actor
• June 6 - Todd Kimsey, American actor (d. 2016)
• June 7 - Lance Reddick, American actor and musician (d. 2023)
• June 10
  • Gina Gershon, American actress
  • Tzi Ma, Hong Kong-American actor
• June 13 – Ally Sheedy, American actress
• June 16 - Arnold Vosloo, South African actor
• June 19 – Paula Abdul, American singer
• June 22 - Nicholas Lea, Canadian actor
• June 23 - Billy Wirth, American actor and producer
• June 27
  • Emel Heinreich, Turkish-Austrian actress, author and film-director
  • Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Hong Kong actor
• June 30 - Predrag Bjelac, Serbian actor
• July 1 - Andre Braugher, American actor (d. 2023)
• July 2 - Doug Benson, American comedian, television host and actor
• July 3
  • Tom Cruise, American actor
  • Thomas Gibson, American actor
• July 4 - Neil Morrissey, English actor, voice actor, comedian, singer and businessman
• July 8 - Oreste Baldini, Italian actor and voice actor
• July 13
  • Michael Jace, American former character actor
  • Tom Kenny, American actor, voice actor, singer and comedian
• July 15 – Martin Roach, Canadian actor
• July 18 - Lee Arenberg, American actor
• July 19 – Anthony Edwards, American actor
• July 20 – Carlos Alazraqui, voice actor
• July 23 - Eriq La Salle, American actor, director, writer and producer
• July 29
  • Kevin Chapman, American actor
  • Kevin Spirtas, American actor
• July 31 – Wesley Snipes, American actor
• August 1 - Jesse Borrego, American actor
• August 6 – Michelle Yeoh, Malaysian actress
• August 12 - Miss Cleo, American television personality (d. 2016)
• August 13 – John Slattery, American actor
• August 14 - Steve Reevis, Native American actor (d. 2017)
• August 16 – Steve Carell, American actor, comedian, voice artist, producer, writer, director
• August 20
  • Geoffrey Blake, American actor
  • Ravil Isyanov, Russian actor (d. 2021)
• August 21 - Cleo King, American actress
• August 24 – David Koechner, American actor and comedian
• August 25 - Rusty Schwimmer, American character actress and singer
• August 27 – Vic Mignogna, American voice actor
• August 28 - David Fincher, American filmmaker
• August 29
  • Ian James Corlett, Canadian-American voice actor
  • Lycia Naff, American actress
• August 31 – Dee Bradley Baker, American voice actor
• September 1 - Michelle Meyrink, Canadian former actress
• September 8 – Thomas Kretschmann, German actor
• September 11 – Kristy McNichol, American actress
• September 12 - Amy Yasbeck, American actress
• September 15 – Scott McNeil, Australian-Canadian voice actor
• September 17
  • Paul Feig, American actor, director, comedian and filmmaker
  • Baz Luhrmann, Australian director
• September 21 - Mark Holden, Canadian actor, writer and producer
• September 22 - Rob Morrow, American actor and director
• September 24 – Nia Vardalos, Canadian-American actress and producer
• September 26 – Melissa Sue Anderson, American actress
• September 29 - Roger Bart, American actor and singer
• October 1
  • Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Nigerian-British actor and producer
  • Esai Morales, American actor
• October 2 – Jeff Bennett, American actor and voice actor
• October 5 - Ricky Harris, American producer, actor and comedian (d. 2016)
• October 6 - Joaquín Cosío, Mexican actor
• October 9 - Peter Hewitt, English director and writer
• October 11 – Joan Cusack, American actress
• October 12 – Deborah Foreman, American actress
• October 13
  • T'Keyah Crystal Keymáh, American actress and singer
  • Kelly Preston, American actress (d. 2020)
• October 14 - Trevor Goddard, English actor (d. 2003)
• October 15 - Simon Kunz, English actor
• October 16 - Christian Stolte, American character actor
• October 17 - Mike Judge, American actor, animator, filmmaker and musician
• October 20 - David Mickey Evans, American director and screenwriter
• October 22 - Bob Odenkirk, American actor, comedian, writer, director and producer
• October 26 – Cary Elwes, English actor
• October 27 - Brontis Jodorowsky, Mexican-French actor
• October 28
  • Jason Watkins, English actor
  • Daphne Zuniga, American actress
• November 1 - Brenda Chapman, American writer, storyboard artist and director
• November 7 - Tracie Savage, American actress and journalist
• November 9 - Rick Batalla, American actor
• November 11
  • Gerard Horan, English actor
  • Demi Moore, American actress
• November 14 – Harland Williams, Canadian-American actor and comedian
• November 18 - Tim Guinee, American actor
• November 19 – Jodie Foster, American actress and director
• November 28 – Jon Stewart, American actor and comedian
• November 29 – Andrew McCarthy, American actor
• December 6 - Janine Turner, American actress
• December 9 – Felicity Huffman, American actress^[3]
• December 10 - Scott Capurro, American comedian, writer and actor
• December 14 - Ginger Lynn, American pornographic actress
• December 18 - James Sie, American actor
• December 19 – Jill Talley, American actress
• December 22 – Ralph Fiennes, English actor
• December 23 - Peter Ramsey, American storyboard artist, story artist, director, writer and producer

• January 13 – Ernie Kovacs, 42, American comedian, actor, North to Alaska, Bell, Book and Candle
• January 28 – Hermann Wlach, 77, Austrian actor, The Pearl Maker of Madrid
• February 1 – Carey Wilson, American screenwriter, Mutiny on the Bounty
• February 19 – James Barton, American actor, Here Comes the Groom, Yellow Sky
• February 20 – Halliwell Hobbes, 84, British actor, Gaslight, That Hamilton Woman
• February 27 – Willie Best, 48, American actor, Nothing but the Truth, The Red Dragon
• February 28 – Chic Johnson, 70, American comedian, actor, Hellzapoppin'
• March 17 – Frank Orth, 82, American actor, Nancy Drew... Detective, Here Come the Girls
• April 10 – Michael Curtiz, 75, Hungarian-born director, Casablanca, The Adventures of Robin Hood
• April 15 – Clara Blandick, 85, American actress, The Wizard of Oz, Tom Sawyer
• April 17 – Louise Fazenda, 66, American actress, Tillie's Punctured Romance, Alice in Wonderland
• April 22
  • Angus MacPhail, 59, British screenwriter, Spellbound, The Wrong Man
  • Vera Reynolds, 62, American actress, The Night Club, Feet of Clay
• May 14 – Florence Auer, 82, American actress, The Bishop's Wife, State of the Union
• June 2 – Aeneas MacKenzie, 72, Scottish screenwriter, The Ten Commandments, Ivanhoe
• June 6 – Guinn "Big Boy" Williams, 63, American actor, Nevada, Southwest Passage
• June 19
  • Frank Borzage, 69, American director, actor, A Farewell to Arms, 7th Heaven
  • Will Wright, 68, American actor, Quantrill's Raiders, Alias Jesse James
• June 24 – Lucile Watson, 83, Canadian actress, Waterloo Bridge, Made for Each Other
• July 2 – Valeska Suratt, 80, American stage and screen actress, The Immigrant
• July 4 – Rex Bell, 58, American actor, Broadway to Cheyenne, Law and Lead
• July 13 – Jerry Wald, 50, American screenwriter and producer, Mildred Pierce, Peyton Place
• July 23 – Victor Moore, 86, American actor, It Happened on Fifth Avenue, Louisiana Purchase
• July 30 – Myron McCormick, 54, American actor, The Hustler, No Time for Sergeants
• August 5 – Marilyn Monroe, 36, American actress, Hollywood icon, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Some Like It Hot
• August 23 – Hoot Gibson, 70, American actor, Action, The Horse Soldiers
• September 7 – Louis King, 64, American director, Typhoon, Green Grass of Wyoming
• October 2 – Frank Lovejoy, 50, American actor, The Hitch-Hiker, Goodbye, My Fancy
• October 6 – Tod Browning, 82, American director, Dracula, Freaks
• October 26 – Louise Beavers, 60, American actress, Holiday Inn, The Jackie Robinson Story
• November 15 – Irene, American costume designer, Shall We Dance, Midnight Lace
• December 15 – Charles Laughton, 63, British actor, Spartacus, Witness for the Prosecution
• December 17 – Thomas Mitchell, 70, American actor, It's a Wonderful Life, Gone with the Wind
• December 21 – Syd Saylor, 67, American actor, The Lost Jungle, The Three Mesquiteers
• December 23 – Luis Alberni, 76, Spanish actor, Svengali, The Count of Monte Cristo
• December 28 – Kathleen Clifford, 75, American actress, When the Clouds Roll By, Richard the Lion-Hearted
• December 29 – Hugh Sinclair, 59, British actor, The Saint's Vacation, Judgment Deferred

• Erick Avari – Kanchenjungha
• Bernardo Bertolucci (director) – The Grim Reaper
• Peter Bowles – Live Now, Pay Later
• Jackie Chan – Big and Little Wong Tin Bar
• Julie Christie – Crooks Anonymous
• Tom Courtenay – Private Potter
• Charles Durning – The Password Is Courage
• Robert Duvall – To Kill a Mockingbird
• Samantha Eggar – Dr. Crippen
• Sally Field – Moon Pilot
• Paul Gleason – Panic in Year Zero!
• Sid Haig – The Firebrand
• John Hurt – The Wild and the Willing
• Ian McShane – The Wild and the Willing
• Arthur Malet – Convicts 4
• Sarah Miles – Term of Trial
• Sydney Pollack (actor) – War Hunt
• Jack Riley – Days of Wine and Roses
• W. Morgan Sheppard – Strongroom
• Tom Skerritt – War Hunt
• Terence Stamp – Term of Trial
• David Warner – We Joined the Navy
• William Windom – To Kill a Mockingbird