

WarGames
Is it a game, or is it real?
High school student David Lightman has a talent for hacking. But while trying to hack into a computer system to play unreleased video games, he unwittingly taps into the Department of Defense's war computer and initiates a confrontation of global proportions. Together with his friend and a wizardly computer genius, David must race against time to outwit his opponent and prevent a nuclear Armageddon.
TMDB
7.1/10
2,281 votes
IMDb
Not rated yet
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- Status
- Released
- Budget
- $12M
- Box office
- $124.6M
- Language
- English
- artificial intelligence (a.i.)
- computer
- government
- hacker
- video game
- cold war
- fbi
- prosecution
- norad
- nuclear threat
- paranoid
- political thriller
Top billed cast














Behind the camera
Director
Music
Produced in
United States of America
Where to watch
All optionsAvailability for India. Provided by JustWatch through the TMDB API.
Gallery












Videos
Release dates
United StatesUS
- TheatricalPG3 Jun 1983
- PhysicalPG23 Jul 1996
- TheatricalPGRe-release24 Jul 2008
United KingdomGB
- TheatricalPG18 Aug 1983
United Arab EmiratesAE
- PhysicalBlu-ray7 Jan 2013
AustraliaAU
- TheatricalPG4 Aug 1983
CanadaCA
- PhysicalDVD1 Apr 2003
ArgentinaAR
- Theatrical7 Jul 1983
BelgiumBE
- Theatrical (limited)16Gent15 Dec 1983
BrazilBR
- Theatrical9 Jan 1984
ColombiaCO
- Theatrical5 Apr 1984
DenmarkDK
- Theatrical117 Oct 1983
EgyptEG
- PhysicalDVD8 May 2021
FinlandFI
- TheatricalK-124 Nov 1983
Frequently asked questions
WarGames was released on 3 June 1983.
Audience reviews
3- J7/10
John Chard
4/26/2020
Wanna play Global Thermonuclear War? It was with much interest to me to revisit this early 80s hacker piece armed with the knowledge of just how the advent of change in the computer world had evolved. With that in mind the film could quite easily be classed as a bit clunky due to the now almost Neanderthal toys, games and computers used in the movie, but casting aside the nostalgia feelings I had with it, it still…
- G10/10
GenerationofSwine
1/13/2023
Ally Sheedy, whatever happened to her. When I was a little kid, I mean REALLY little she was one of the few stars I could name...and then she disappeared save for a couple memorable appearances in Psych. It's a shame. Anyway, my fiance is a Millennial and I've been trying to introduce her and her friends to some classic films. This one was a fail. They sat through it, but really only to mock the technology. Mockin…
- C7/10
CinemaSerf
6/20/2025
When the young computer whizz-kid “David” (Matthew Broderick) is showing off to his girlfriend “Jennifer” (Ally Sheedy) about how he can improve her grades and book them on a first class trip to Paris, he inadvertently dials a telephone number that wants to play a game. A game of thermonuclear war! Next day, the news is full of stories about the mobilisation of American defence capabilities and his phone rings again.…
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