Heaven Can Wait

Play trailer

Heaven Can Wait

PG

1978

1h 41m

Comedy

Fantasy

Romance

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

82%

Tomatometer

51 Reviews

69%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty), quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams, is killed in an auto accident. In the afterlife, Joe discovers that his guardian angel (Buck Henry) has taken him from his body prematurely, and he is due many more years on earth. Unable to return to his body, Joe assumes the form of greedy multimillionaire industrialist Leo Farnsworth. As Farnsworth, Joe attempts a return to football and falls in love with environmental activist Betty Logan (Julie Christie).

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

A throwback to the high-gloss screwball comedies of the 1940s, Heaven Can Wait beguiles with seamless production values and great comic relief from Charles Grodin and Dianne Cannon.

Read Critics Reviews

Pauline Kael

The New Yorker

09/18/2023

The film has no desire but to please, and that’s its only compulsiveness; it’s so timed and pleated and smoothed that it’s sliding right off the screen.

Go to Full Review

Nicholas Wapshott

The Times (UK)

07/13/2020

Beatty can carry off this sort of whimsy by playing it straight and keeping the ludicrous premise credible. But the film is dogged by the nagging vision of what might have been.

Go to Full Review

Judith Martin

Washington Post

08/30/2016

This is a very sweet movie to watch, the pleasant cinematic equivalent of light summer reading.

Go to Full Review

Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

Apr 14

6/10

In its 100-plus minutes, I get the feeling that it's a fantasy comedy that lacks a certain celestial charm and suffers from narrative inconsistencies, even with the chemistry between Warren Beatty and Julie Christie. [Full review in Spanish]

Go to Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

07/15/2025

3/10

Far more detrimental than the general blandness of the body-swapping, career-swapping, and woman-swapping is the humor, which remains pitifully minimal.

Go to Full Review

Danielle Solzman

Solzy at the Movies

02/02/2024

5/5

Heaven Can Wait holds up as one of the best films of 1978 and remains a timeless classic.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

Diane M

@RT16029453 Mar 7

I've watched it about 10 times and still love it

See more

Mark P.

@Beachhut Jan 26

Fun, lighthearted sports movie for late teenagers , plus.

See more

Ed .

@RT01276001 Aug 22

When Heaven Can Wait came out in the theaters, I couldn't wait to see it, and thought it was very funny. When I viewed it again some years later, I thought it was charming. Watching it again today, I realize how silly this movie is. I'm not an athlete nor an industrialist, but I have at least a basic level of common sense. A quarterback who may never have taken any business classes nor had any related experience still has a sharp sense of thinking, planning and strategizing. I find it hard to believe any QB would act so childish as Warren Beatty's character. What I ignored as an 11 yr old and rationalized as a young adult cannot be swept aside any longer. However, Dyan Cannon is just as fantastic. If you watch this movie, watch it for her scenes.

See more

Stephen C

@bob25009 07/08/2025

Funny in 1 hour and 41 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dubbed and subtitled in worldwide studios!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Filmed on June 28th, 1978, in color!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Celebrating 50 years in 2028!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Copyright 1978-2025 by Paramount Pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

See more

Carlos I

@carlosFibarra 07/02/2025

Warren Beatty is simply captivating in Heaven Can Wait. His charm, paired with the movie's entertaining (if outlandish) high-concept plot, ensures a genuinely good time. It's a well-executed and memorable remake.

See more

Petro B

@allilomis 06/05/2025

Didnt quite age well for me. Plot of the lovestory is obvious and filmic sequences are rusty.

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Warren Beatty

Director

Buck Henry

Director

Warren Beatty

Joe Pendleton

Julie Christie

Betty Logan

Jack Warden

Max Corkle

James Mason

Mr. Jordan

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - Deja Vu

1:52

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - How Heaven Works

1:53

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - He's Not There

0:46

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - Heaven Can Wait

1:01

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - An Airplane Dream

1:53

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - Anxious Conspirators

1:07

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - I Don't Frighten Anybody

0:38

Heaven Can Wait: Official Clip - Picking a New Body

0:47

View more videos

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

27%

51%

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

Watchlist

Citizens Band

100%

66%

Citizens Band

Watchlist

Teen Wolf

46%

52%

Teen Wolf

Watchlist

Teen Wolf Too

8%

17%

Teen Wolf Too

Watchlist

Delirious

27%

39%

Delirious

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Synopsis

Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty), quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams, is killed in an auto accident. In the afterlife, Joe discovers that his guardian angel (Buck Henry) has taken him from his body prematurely, and he is due many more years on earth. Unable to return to his body, Joe assumes the form of greedy multimillionaire industrialist Leo Farnsworth. As Farnsworth, Joe attempts a return to football and falls in love with environmental activist Betty Logan (Julie Christie).

Director: Warren Beatty, Buck Henry
Producer: Warren Beatty
Screenwriter: Elaine May, Warren Beatty
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 28, 1978, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2017
Runtime: 1h 41m
Sound Mix: Stereo
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings