Editing Burt Reynolds (section)

===''Smokey and the Bandit'' and career peak===
[[file:Red Bandit Jacket.jpg|thumb|upright|Reynolds in 1980 wearing the Bandit jacket used in ''[[Smokey and the Bandit II]]''.]]
Reynolds had the biggest success of his career with the car-chase film ''[[Smokey and the Bandit]]'' (1977), directed by [[Hal Needham]] and co-starring [[Jackie Gleason]], [[Jerry Reed]] and [[Sally Field]].

He followed it with a comedy about football players, ''[[Semi-Tough]]'' (1977), featuring [[Jill Clayburgh]] and [[Kris Kristofferson]], and produced by [[David Merrick]]. He directed his second film ''[[The End (1978 film)|The End]]'' (1978), a dark comedy, playing a role originally written for [[Woody Allen]].<ref>{{Cite news|title='I'm a Star in Spite of My Movies': Burt Reynolds|first=Robert|last=Lindsey|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=January 15, 1978|page=D11}}</ref>

More popular was a comedy that he made with Needham and Field, ''[[Hooper (film)|Hooper]]'' (1978), in which he played an aging [[stunt performer|stunt man]].

"My ability as an actor gets a little better every time," he said about this time. "I'm very prolific in the amount of films I make—two-and-a-half or three a year—and when I look at any picture I do now compared to ''Deliverance'', it's miles above what I was doing then. But when you're doing films that are somewhat similar to each other, as I've been doing, people take it for granted."<ref name="end">{{Cite news|title='The End' is just the beginning|author1=McBride, Joseph|author2=Riley, Brooks|work=Film Comment|location=New York|volume=14|issue=3 (May/Jun 1978)|pages=16–21}}</ref>

For ''[[California Suite (film)|California Suite]]'' (1978), Reynolds declined a leading role, which went to [[Alan Alda]].<ref name="end"/>

Reynolds said, "I'd rather direct than act. I'd rather do that than anything. It's the second-best sensation I've ever had." He added that [[David Merrick]] had offered to produce two movies that Reynolds would direct without having to act in them.<ref name="end"/>

Reynolds tried a change of pace with ''[[Starting Over (1979 film)|Starting Over]]'' (1979), a romantic comedy, co-starring Jill Clayburgh and [[Candice Bergen]]. The film is co-written and produced by [[James L. Brooks]]. Reynolds plays a jewel thief in ''[[Rough Cut (1980 film)|Rough Cut]]'' (1980) produced by Merrick, who fired and rehired director [[Don Siegel]] during filming.

Reynolds had two huge successes with more car films directed by Needham: ''[[Smokey and the Bandit II]]'' (1980) and ''[[The Cannonball Run]]'' (1981). He starred in [[David Steinberg]]'s film ''[[Paternity (film)|Paternity]]'' (1981) and directed himself in an action film, ''[[Sharky's Machine]]'' (1981).

Reynolds wanted to try a musical again, and agreed to do ''[[The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (film)|The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas]]'' (1982). It was a box-office success, as was ''[[Best Friends (1982 film)|Best Friends]]'' (1982) with [[Goldie Hawn]]. In 1982, Reynolds was voted the most popular actor in the US for the fifth year in a row.{{citation needed|date=February 2025}}

Around that time, he stated:
<blockquote>
The only thing I really enjoy is this business, and I think my audience knows that. I've never been able to figure out exactly who that audience is. I know there have been a few pictures even my mother didn't go see, but there's always been an audience for them. I guess it is because they always know that I give it 100 percent, and good or bad, there's going to be quite a lot of me in that picture. That's what they're looking for. I don't have any pretensions about wanting to be Hamlet. I would just like to be the best Burt Reynolds around.<ref name="way">{{Cite news|title=HE'S MAKING MOVIES HIS WAY|author=Norbom, Mary Ann|work=[[The Philadelphia Inquirer]]|date=4 Aug 1983|page=D.1}}</ref>
</blockquote>