The Deer Hunter is a 1978 American epic war drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino about a trio of Slavic-American steelworkers whose lives are upended by fighting in the Vietnam War. The soldiers are played by Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and John Savage, with John Cazale (in his final role), Meryl Streep and George Dzundza in supporting roles. The story takes place in Clairton, Pennsylvania (a working-class town on the Monongahela River south of Pittsburgh) and in Vietnam.
The film is based in part on an unproduced screenplay called The Man Who Came to Play by Louis A. Garfinkle and Quinn K. Redeker about Las Vegas and Russian roulette. Producer Michael Deeley, who bought the script, hired Cimino, who, with Deric Washburn, rewrote the script, taking the Russian roulette element and placing it in the Vietnam War. The film went over budget and over schedule, costing $15 million. Its production company EMI Films released it in other territories, while Universal Pictures handled its distribution in the United States and Canada.