1981 Oscar-Nominated Hit Ranked the 'Top Movie Song of All Time'

Arguably, a film can become more memorable by having its very own thematic song. In 2024, Billboard released a list of the "top 75 movie songs of all time." The ranking's top five tunes featured Irene Cara's "Flashdance… What a Feeling" from Flashdance (1983), "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor from Rocky III (1982), Bryan Adams' "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" from 1991's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and "How Deep Is Your Love" by the Bee Gees from Saturday Night Fever (1977).

Billboard reported that Diana Ross andLionel Richie's song, "Endless Love," from the 1981 film Endless Love, was the "top movie song of all time." Billboard noted that the 1981 love song spent nine weeks at number 1 on the Hot 100.

Lionel Richie Shared Details About Recording 'Endless Love' in a 2021 Interview

In a 2021 interview on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, Richie discussed writing "Endless Love," which was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Song at the 1982 Academy Awards. He said he never expected that song to be number 1 for 9 weeks.

"Let me tell you, it was the song of my life. Every once in a while, you get one of those songs. I had no idea it was going to have that impact. And of course, once the movie came in and of course, the Oscars, it had a life of all its own," said the singer in the 2021 interview.

Richie also shared that the song wasn't originally written as a duet. However, movie executives requested him to write one verse for a female vocalist. Richie said after he finished said verse, he was told Ross would be singing the part.

"From that point on, they said to me, 'Hmmm, we're going to have a duet. We're going to get Diana Ross to sing. Who do you think the person should be to sing with her?' Excuse me? And the answer was [me]," recalled the 76-year-old musician.

In addition, Richie revealed recording the hit "was a nightmare in terms of logistics."

"Diana couldn't come to L.A., she was playing in [New York]. I couldn't go to New York, and the problem was where can we record this thing? And she had one night off. It was Toronto, Canada. We came in, we recorded the song at three in the morning, after she had done her show that night. And the rest is history," said the "Hello" singer.

Copyright 2026 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 5:14 PM.