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SYFY WIRE science fiction

Steven Spielberg "Flirted with" Visiting E.T.'s Home Planet in Unmade Sequel

There are some movies that just don't need sequels.

By Josh Weiss

There are some movies that just don't need sequels, and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is one of them.

When the film (now available to own from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment) ended up being a massive success upon its release in the summer of 1982, however, director Steven Spielberg briefly considered making a second movie called E.T. II: Nocturnal Fears.

The pitch saw the titular visitor from outer space springing into action to save Elliott (Henry Thomas) after the boy and his friends are abducted by a group of evil aliens. "There were a few sequel rumors circulating around in the early ‘80s, but I think Steven regards this as his classic film and his hallmark," Henry Thomas told SYFY WIRE in 2022. "I don't think he wants to tarnish that."

Spielberg further opened up about the unmade sequel and why it never got made over the weekend while in conversation with E.T. cast member Drew Barrymore (Gertie) at the TCM Classic Film Festival: New York Pop-Up x 92NY event.

Steven Spielberg talks unmade sequel to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial and Steven Spielberg

“I just did not want to make a sequel," he said (via The Hollywood Reporter). "I flirted with it for a little bit — just a little bit to see if I [could] think of a story — and the only thing I could think about was a book that was written by somebody that wrote the book for it called The Green Planet, which was all going to take place at E.T.’s home,” he said. “We were all going to be able to go to E.T.’s home and see how E.T. lived. But it was better as a novel than I think it would have been as a film."

The book in question was 1985's The Book of the Green Planet, written by William Kotzwinkle and illustrated by David Wiesner (the former also penned the official novelization of the film).

"When we first discussed The Book of the Green Planet, Spielberg was thinking of filming a sequel, but then he changed his mind," Kotzwinkle said in 2023. "There were just a few things he wanted in the book and one of them was a character who 'looked like a bunch of floppy socks.' This set the tone, which was playful, and let me invent some remarkable extraterrestrial characters. I saw Spielberg’s spark at work when I was on the E.T. set. The art director came up to him and said, excitedly, 'Steven, I know what the ship looks like. It’s like a teardrop of mercury.' Without missing a beat, and seeming to pull it right out of the sky, Spielberg said, 'No, it looks like a Victorian Christmas tree ornament.' I suspect that’s the first time he’d given it a thought, but it was perfect, and that’s how I described it in the book."

Based on the director's comments, it's unclear whether the visit to E.T.'s home world was part of the Nocturnal Fears pitch or completely separate. In any case, a sequel was never made, though fans did eventually get to visit the alien's place of origin on Universal Orlando's E.T. Adventure ride.

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is now available to own from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

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