costar

1 of 2

noun

co·​star ˈkō-ˌstär 

variants or co-star

plural costars or co-stars

: one of two or more main performers who star in a movie, play, etc.

… the star seems more relaxed and confident, and there's a bracing snap to the byplay between him and his costars.

—Mark Harris

costar

2 of 2

verb

variants or co-star

costarred or co-starred; costarring or co-starring

1

transitive : to employ or present (someone) as one of two or more leading performers in a movie, play, etc.

Directed by Lasse Hallström … and costarring a fine ensemble …

—Leonora Langley

2

intransitive : to appear with another star in a movie, play, etc.

Examples of costar in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The actress married her Pistol costar Thomas Brodie-Sangster in 2024. —Ariana Quihuiz, PEOPLE, 11 Nov. 2025

The Paper Chase was revived by Showtime within a few years, with Harford and several costars reprising their roles across three more seasons, which ran from 1983 to 1986. —Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Nov. 2025

Verb

The movie will also costar Rosanna Arquette, Kate Berlant, Jamie Demetriou, Arielle Dombasle, Rachel Sennott, Rish Shah and Alexander Skarsgard. —Tommy McArdle, PEOPLE, 12 Nov. 2025

O'Neill costars on All's Fair as the husband of Close's Dina. —Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1888, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1896, in the meaning defined at sense 2