E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

***E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial*** is a 1982 American science fiction movie produced and directed by Steven Spielberg, and written by Melissa Mathison. It follows an alien, who is stranded on Earth. A boy and his family keep it hidden from the group of government agents, while bringing it home.

Filming took place from September to December 1981 on a budget of $10.5 million (equivalent to $25 million in 2019 dollars).

Released on June 11, 1982, by Universal Pictures, _E.T._ was an immediate blockbuster, surpassing _Star Wars_ to become the highest grossing movie that anyone had made yet—a record it held for 11 years until _Jurassic Park_, another Spielberg movie, surpassed it. _E.T._ was widely acclaimed by critics and is considered to be one of the greatest movies of all time. It was re-released in 1985, and again in 2002, to celebrate its 20th anniversary, with altered shots and additional scenes.

## Cast

- Henry Thomas as Elliott, a ten-year-old boy who forms a bond with E.T..
- Robert MacNaughton as Michael, Elliott's brother.
- Drew Barrymore as Gertie, Elliott's sister.
- Dee Wallace as Mary, Elliott's mother. She does not notice the alien's presence in her household.
- Peter Coyote as "Keys", one of the government agents.
- K. C. Martel, Sean Frye and C. Thomas Howell as Greg, Steve and Tyler, Michael's friends.
- Erika Eleniak as the girl whom Elliott kisses.

Having worked with Cary Guffey on _Close Encounters of the Third Kind_, Spielberg felt confident in working with a cast of mostly child actors.

The major voice work for E.T. was Pat Welsh, an elderly woman who lived in Marin County, California. Welsh smoked two packets of cigarettes a day, which gave her voice a quality that sound effects creator Ben Burtt liked. Burtt also recorded 16 other people and various animals to create E.T.'s "voice". These included Spielberg; Debra Winger; Burtt's sleeping wife, who had a cold; a burp from his USC movie professor; and raccoons, sea otters, and horses.

Doctors working at the USC Medical Center were recruited to play the doctors who try to save E.T. Spielberg felt that actors in the roles, performing lines of medical talking, would come across as unnatural.

## Reception

The movie was first shown at the closing gala of the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. It started in the United States on June 11, 1982. It opened at number one with a gross of $11 million.  The movie was re-released in 1985 and 2002.

On September 17, 1982, the movie was shown at the United Nations, and Spielberg received the U.N. Peace Medal.

The movie was nominated for nine Oscars at the 55th Academy Awards, including Best Picture. _Gandhi_ won that award, but its director, Richard Attenborough, declared "I was certain that not only would E.T. win, but that it should win. It was inventive, powerful, [and] wonderful. I make more mundane movies." It won four Academy Awards: Best Original Score, Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing, and Best Visual Effects.  At the 40th Golden Globe Awards, the movie won Best Picture in the Drama category and Best Score; it was also nominated for Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best New Male Star for Henry Thomas.  The Los Angeles Film Critics Association awarded the movie Best Picture, Best Director, and a "New Generation Award" for Melissa Mathison. The movie won Saturn Awards for Best Science Fiction Film, Best Writing, Best Special Effects, Best Music, and Best Poster Art, while Henry Thomas, Robert McNaughton, and Drew Barrymore won Young Artist Awards. Composer John Williams won a Grammy and a BAFTA for the score.  It was nominated for a BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay.

In 1994, _E.T._ was selected to keep in the U.S. National Film Registry.

## Other websites

- Asogian on Wookiepedia

## Infobox (movie)

- **name**: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
- **image**: ET logo.svg
- **caption**: Original 1982 Theatrical Poster by John Alvin
- **director**: Steven Spielberg
- **producer**: Steven Spielberg
Kathleen Kennedy (film producer), Kathleen Kennedy
- **writer**: Melissa Mathison
- **starring**: Henry Thomas
Dee Wallace-Stone, Dee Wallace
Peter Coyote
- **music**: John Williams
- **cinematography**: Allen Daviau
- **editing**: Carol Littleton
- **studio**: Amblin Productions
- **distributor**: Universal Studios
- **released**: May 26, 1982 (Cannes)
 June 11, 1982 (United States)
- **runtime**: 114 minutes
- **country**: United States
- **language**: English
- **budget**: $10.5 million
- **gross**: $792.9 million