ⓘ Details

Movie TitleLabyrinth

Release DateJune 27, 1986 — United States theatrical release

Tagline“Where everything seems possible and nothing is what it seems.”

Runtime101 minutes

DirectorJim Henson

Screenplay Written ByTerry Jones

Based OnOriginal story by Jim Henson and Dennis Lee, with creature and world designs by Brian Froud.

Is It a Remake?No. Labyrinth is an original fantasy film, though it draws on fairy-tale, mythic, and coming-of-age adventure traditions.

BudgetApproximately $25 million

Box OfficeApproximately $13.6 million in tracked theatrical grosses, with some sources reporting worldwide totals closer to $34 million when broader international grosses are included.

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👥 Main Cast

David BowieJareth, the Goblin King

Jennifer ConnellySarah Williams

Toby FroudToby Williams

Shelley ThompsonIrene, Sarah’s stepmother

Christopher MalcolmRobert, Sarah’s father

Shari Weiser / Brian HensonHoggle / Hoggle voice

Ron Mueck / Rob MillsLudo / Ludo voice

David Goelz / David ShaughnessySir Didymus / Sir Didymus voice

Frank Oz / Michael HordernThe Wiseman

Kevin ClashFirey performer / voice work

Charles AuginsFirey performer / voice work

Danny John-JulesFirey performer / voice work

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🏆 Awards

⭐ 1987 BAFTA Awards — Nominated for Best Special Visual Effects

⭐ 1987 Saturn Awards — Nominated for Best Fantasy Film

⭐ 1987 Saturn Awards — Nominated for Best Costumes, Brian Froud and Ellis Flyte

⭐ 1987 Hugo Awards — Nominated for Best Dramatic Presentation

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📖 Short Plot Summary

Labyrinth is a musical fantasy adventure about Sarah, a dramatic and imaginative teenager who accidentally wishes her baby brother Toby into the hands of Jareth, the Goblin King. Given only 13 hours to solve a massive, magical maze, Sarah must navigate strange creatures, shifting rules, temptations, and her own immaturity to rescue him. It is part fairy tale, part coming-of-age story, part puppet-fueled fever dream — and one of the most beloved cult fantasy films of the 1980s.

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❝ Key Quotes

“You have no power over me.” — Sarah

“You remind me of the babe.” — Jareth

“I move the stars for no one.” — Jareth

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💡 Trivia

Director

Labyrinth was the final feature film directed by Jim Henson before his death in 1990.
Henson developed the film after The Dark Crystal, again collaborating with fantasy illustrator Brian Froud to create a visually rich world filled with goblins, creatures, and surreal designs.
George Lucas served as executive producer, giving the film a unique mix of Henson puppetry, Lucasfilm fantasy, and 1980s music-video energy.
Monty Python’s Terry Jones received sole screenplay credit, though AFI notes that the script went through multiple drafts and contributions from other writers.

Cast / Casting

David Bowie was cast as Jareth in part because Henson wanted a major musical star who could bring charisma, danger, theatricality, and original songs to the role.
Jennifer Connelly was a teenager when she played Sarah, giving the film its coming-of-age center opposite Bowie’s much more theatrical Goblin King.
Toby, the baby in the film, was played by Toby Froud, son of conceptual designer Brian Froud.
Many creature roles required separate body performers and voice actors, a classic Henson-style production approach blending puppetry, mime, animatronics, and vocal performance.

Soundtrack / Score

The film’s music is credited to David Bowie and composer Trevor Jones.
Bowie wrote and performed songs for the movie, including “Underground,” “Magic Dance,” “As the World Falls Down,” and “Within You.”
“Chilly Down” is associated with Bowie’s soundtrack work, but the lead vocals in the film are performed by the Firey voice actors rather than Bowie himself.
The soundtrack helped turn Labyrinth into a cult favorite long after its original box office run, especially among Bowie fans and fantasy-movie kids who wore out the VHS tape.

Location

Much of the fantasy world was filmed on elaborate sets at Elstree Studios in Hertfordshire, England.
The opening real-world scenes include locations in New York’s Rockland County area, including Upper Nyack, Piermont, and Haverstraw.
West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire, England, was also used for exterior material connected to the film’s opening sequence.
The mix of American suburbia, English locations, and studio-built fantasy sets gives the film its dreamlike, storybook atmosphere.

Behind-The-Scenes

The film’s creatures were created by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, with Brian Froud providing the distinctive goblin and fantasy-world designs.
The owl in the opening title sequence is often noted as an early example of a photo-realistic computer-generated animal in a feature film.
The climactic staircase sequence was inspired by M. C. Escher’s impossible architecture, especially the famous lithograph Relativity, which is also visually referenced in Sarah’s room.
The film was not a major U.S. box-office success during its original release, but its reputation grew significantly through home video, television, music, and Henson/Bowie nostalgia.

Nostalgia

Labyrinth is one of those movies that reached a generation through VHS, cable reruns, sleepovers, and “wait, was that movie real or did I dream it?” childhood memories.
The film blends puppets, practical effects, glam rock, fantasy adventure, and teenage melodrama in a way that could only have escaped from the 1980s.
For many fans, Sarah’s final confrontation with Jareth became the movie’s emotional thesis and a surprisingly powerful coming-of-age moment.
It also introduced many young viewers to David Bowie in a very specific form: magical, musical, mysterious, and dressed like a bedtime-story threat.

Easter Eggs

Many characters Sarah meets in the Labyrinth are foreshadowed by toys, books, posters, and objects visible in her bedroom at the beginning of the film.
The “babe” call-and-response in “Magic Dance” echoes a comic exchange from the 1947 Cary Grant and Shirley Temple film The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer.
The Escher-style staircase finale is set up earlier by the Escher print hanging in Sarah’s room.
Jareth’s look mixes rock-star glam, fairy-tale villain, romantic Gothic hero, and theatrical fantasy influences — basically Bowie weaponized as a goblin bedtime story.

Misc.

Labyrinth was produced by Henson Associates and Lucasfilm and distributed in the United States by Tri-Star Pictures.
The film received mixed reviews and underperformed at the U.S. box office during its initial run, but it has since become a major cult fantasy favorite.
Its legacy includes anniversary screenings, soundtrack reissues, collectibles, books, comics, and a fanbase that treats the movie like sacred goblin scripture.
Your 3 Guys and a Flick ratings page lists Labyrinth as Episode 263 with an overall rating of 1.80.

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