1981 (production)

Events

January

• 6 January – Jenna Z. Wilson is born.
• 26 January – Akihiro Haga is born.
• Marvel TOS #10: "Domain of the Dragon God!" is published.
• Kit Conners is born.

February

• 1 February – Lauren Kim is born.
• 4 February – Christine Ebadi is born.
• 5 February – Jack F. Lilly dies.
• 11 February – Kermit Murdock dies.
• 20 February – Early draft of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is completed under the working title of Star Trek: The Omega System.
• 22 February – Justin Rodgers Hall is born.
• Marvel TOS #11: "... Like a Woman Scorned!" is published.

March

• 2 March – Willow Greer is born.
• 4 March – Torin Thatcher dies.
• 12 March – Lisa Auguste is born.
• Marvel TOS #12: "Eclipse of Reason" is published.

April

• 10 April – Working draft of Star Trek II is completed under the now-working title of Star Trek: The Genesis Project.
• 13 April – Kevin Derr is born.
• 16 April – Anne Marley is born.
• Death's Angel by Kathleen Sky is published by Bantam Books.
• Marvel TOS #13: "All the Infinite Ways" is published.

May

• 7 May – Eddie Davenport is born.
• 18 May – Richard Hale dies.
• 23 May – Tim Robinson is born.
• 29 May – Chris Violette is born.
• Star Trek: The Motion Picture is released on VHS in the UK.

June

• 13 June – Andreas Maaninka is born.
• 17 June – Phillip Boutte, Jr. is born.
• 23 June – Joe Taslim is born.
• Pocket TOS #2: The Entropy Effect by Vonda N. McIntyre is published.
• Marvel TOS #14: "We are Dying, Egypt, Dying!" is published.

July

• 12 July – Dan Crawley is born.
• 18 July – Working draft of Star Trek II is completed under the now-working title of Star Trek: The Worlds That Never Were.
• 29 July – Scottie Hulin is born.

August

• 17 August – Barry Trivers dies.
• 24 August – K.L. Smith dies.
• 24 August – Early draft of Star Trek II is completed under the now working title of The New Star Trek.
• Marvel TOS #15: "The Quality of Mercy" is published.

September

• 4 September:
• Drafting begins on Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country, the working title of the film that is eventually renamed Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Work on this draft is not completed until 14 April 1982.
• Star Trek: The Motion Picture premieres in Iceland.
• 21 September – Walt Davis dies.
• 29 September – Shay Astar is born.

October

• 23 October – Matt and Mike Perfetuo are born.
• 26 October – Star Trek: The Motion Picture premieres in Turkey.
• 27 October – John Warburton dies.
• Pocket TOS #3: The Klingon Gambit by Robert E. Vardeman is published.
• Marvel TOS #16: "There's No Space Like Gnomes'!" is published.

November

• 2 November – Paul K. Daniel is born.
• 6 November – Daniel D. Lee is born.
• 11 November – Filming begins on Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
• 29 November – Kimberly Cullum is born.

December

• 3 December – Brian Bonsall is born.
• 7 December – Cory L. McNeill is born.
• 14 December – Byron Abalos is born.
• 16 December – Ante Dekovic is born.
• 21 December – Nicole Malgarini is born.
• Pocket TOS #4: The Covenant of the Crown by Howard Weinstein is published.
• Marvel TOS #17: "The Long Night's Dawn!" is published.

Unknown month

• Reynolds is born.
• Cinema International Corporation is reorganized to become United International Pictures. CIC Video becomes a joint venture of Paramount Home Video and MCA/Universal Home Video.