Almost Famous

Almost Famous
Theatrical release poster
Directed byCameron Crowe
Written byCameron Crowe
Produced byCameron Crowe
Ian Bryce
Starring
CinematographyJohn Toll
Edited byJoe Hutshing
Saar Klein
Music byNancy Wilson
Production
companies
Distributed by
Release dates
  • September 8, 2000 (2000-09-08) (TIFF)
  • September 15, 2000 (2000-09-15) (United States)
Running time
122 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$60 million
Box office$47.4 million

Almost Famous is a 2000 American comedy drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, Patrick Fugit, and Philip Seymour Hoffman. It tells the story of a teenage journalist, played by Fugit, writing for Rolling Stone magazine in the early 1970s, touring with the fictitious rock band Stillwater, and writing his first cover story on the band. The film is semi-autobiographical, based on Crowe's experiences as a teenage writer for Rolling Stone.

The film performed poorly in theaters, grossing $47.4 million against a $60 million budget. It was widely acclaimed by critics and earned four Academy Award nominations, including a win for Best Original Screenplay. It also won the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media. Roger Ebert hailed it as the best film of the year and the ninth-best film of the 2000s. The film also won two Golden Globe Awards, one for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy and another for Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture for Hudson.

The film is regarded by some as a cult classic and in a 2016 international poll conducted by the BBC, Almost Famous was ranked the 79th-greatest film since 2000, while it was ranked as the 47th-best film of the 21st century in a 2025 poll by The New York Times. In a Hollywood Reporter 2014 list voted on by "studio chiefs, Oscar winners and TV royalty", Almost Famous was ranked the 71st-greatest film of all time. A stage musical adaptation of the film opened on Broadway in November 2022.