The Breakfast Club is a 1985 American independent teen coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes. The ensemble cast includes Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy. The narrative follows five high school students from different social cliques who spend a Saturday in detention under the supervision of a strict vice principal, gradually revealing their inner struggles and forming unexpected bonds.

Hughes completed the screenplay in 1982 and moved forward with casting following the success of Sixteen Candles (1984). Principal photography took place from March to May 1984 at the shuttered Maine North High School in Des Plaines, Illinois, which served as the film’s primary location.

The film premiered in Los Angeles on February 7, 1985, and was released theatrically by Universal Pictures on February 15. It emerged as a commercial success, grossing $51.5 million against a $1 million budget. Critics widely praised the film’s script, performances, and emotional resonance, and it is often cited as one of Hughes's most defining works. The prominence of the main cast contributed to their collective designation as members of the "Brat Pack," a term popularized in the media.

In 2015, The Breakfast Club was digitally remastered and re-released in 430 theaters to mark its 30th anniversary. The following year, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." The film is widely regarded as one of the greatest teen films ever made and a quintessential work of 1980s American cinema.