| 100% | PUNS | 4 | The salon names To Dye For and Best Little Hairhouse (both real!), e.g. |
| 31% | MAX | 3 | Good name for somebody living life to the fullest? |
| 31% | DEVIL | 5 | What Beelzebub and The Tempter are both names for |
| 30% | PUNS | 4 | The real coffee shop names Freudian Sip and Brewed Awakening, e.g. |
| 30% | NNW | 3 | Up and a little to the left, for short |
| 29% | SALOP | 5 | Former name for both the county of Shropshire and the town of Shrewsbury |
| 29% | ANTHONYHOPKINS | 14 | Best Actor Oscar winner for both "The Silence of the Lambs" and "The Father": 2 wds. |
| 29% | AMY | 3 | First name for both, actress Schumer and her character Townsend from the movie "Trainwreck" |
| 29% | SAM | 3 | First name for both, actor Rockwell and his character Bell from the movie "Moon" |
| 29% | KATIE | 5 | First name for both, actress Holmes and her character Burke from the movie "Abandon" |
| 29% | SIDNEY | 6 | Actor and director Poitier, the first black person to win an Oscar for best actor |
| 29% | JACK | 4 | First name for both, actor Nicholson and his character Torrance from the movie "The Shining" |
| 29% | ROBERT | 6 | First name for both, actor Downey Jr. and his character Merivel from the movie "Restoration" |
| 28% | ULLMANN | 7 | Liv —, Best Actress in a Leading Role Oscar nominee for Face to Face and The Emigrants |
| 28% | INTRO | 5 | Exchange names or greetings, for short (e.g. "Say hello to my little friend!") |
| 28% | FREDDIEMERCURY | 14 | Better-known name of Farrokh Bulsara, who had both royal and heavy metal affiliations throughout the '70s and '80s |
| 28% | BEDSPREAD | 9 | Quilt, e.g. ... and a hint to the circled letters |
| 28% | JERRY | 5 | First name for both, actor Lewis and his character Langford from the movie "The King of Comedy" |
| 28% | EMILY | 5 | First name for both, actress Blunt and her character Charlton from the movie "The Devil Wears Prada" |
| 28% | RYAN | 4 | Name common to both the lead actors of "Barbie" and "Deadpool" |
| 28% | GOLDENAGEOFTV | 13 | Name applied to both a period following the Second World War and a period in the early twenty-first century |
| 28% | AER | 3 | Name of the large veil used to cover the bread and wine for the Eucharist in the Eastern Orthodox Church |
| 27% | LALALAND | 8 | 2016 Best Picture (no, wait; it wasn't!) ... and a fitting place for the answers to starred clues? |
| 27% | DANIEL | 6 | First name for both, actor Day-Lewis and his character Plainview from the movie "There Will Be Blood" |
| 27% | MOVIEELEMENTS | 13 | Plot, character, lighting, e.g., and a hint to the starred answers |
| 27% | PLANA | 5 | The first thing to try (and hope for the best) |
| 27% | DOUBLEDAY | 9 | Big name in American book publishing for 120+ years ... and a hint to the answers to the starred clues |
| 27% | JLO | 3 | She said, "I'm like a little roach. You think I'm gone for good ... But then you go to get a glass of water in the middle of the night, and boom! I got an album." |
| 27% | SHAPESHIFTER | 12 | Werewolf, e.g. ... or the one responsible for 20-, 34- and 41-Across? |
| 26% | PERFORMER | 9 | Contortionist, e.g., and, read syllable by syllable, a hint to the starred answers |