Steven Spielberg recently discussed why he didn’t want to make a sequel to his iconic movieE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. The story ofE.T. the Extra-Terrestrialfollows Elliot, a young boy who becomes friends with an alien stranded on Earth. Throughout the movie, Elliot and his friends help E.T. find a way home.E.T. the Extra-Terrestrialis often regarded as one ofSteven Spielberg’s best moviesand has an extremely impressive score of 99% on Rotten Tomatoes. The cast ofE.T.includes Dee Wallace, Henry Thomas, Robert MacNaughton, and Drew Barrymore.
As reported byThe Hollywood Reporter, Spielberg appeared at the TCM Classic Film Festival: New York Pop-Up x 92NY event on June 24, 2025 and spoke with Barrymore about why he didn’t want to make a sequel toE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. He explained that he didn’t have the rights toE.T.so he couldn’t prevent a sequel from being made. He even admitted he explored the idea of anE.T.sequel for a little bit, but ultimately decided it wouldn’t work. Therefore,Spielberg had to fight to not make a sequel toE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Read Spielberg’s full comments below:
That was a real hard-fought victory because I didn’t have any rights. BeforeE.T., I had some rights, but I didn’t have a lot of rights. I kind of didn’t have what we call ‘the freeze,’ where you’re able to stop the studio from making a sequel because you control the freeze on sequels, remakes and other ancillary uses of the IP. I didn’t have that. I got it afterE.T.because of its success.
I just did not want to make a sequel. 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 calledThe Green Planet, which was all going to take place at E.T.’s home. 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.
A Sequel To E.T. Was Briefly In Development
E.T.’s Sequel Would Have Been Much Darker
Upon its release,E.T.was a massive success and even became the highest-grossing movie of all time before being dethroned by another Spielberg film, 1993’sJurassic Park. Therefore, it is understandable why Universal Pictures, who distributedE.T., would want a sequel. At one point, asequel toE.T.was actually in development and Spielberg was working on a script with writer Melissa Matheson, who wrote the first movie.
The sequel would have been much darker than the original movie and would have featured several evil aliens.
The sequel even had the working title ofE.T. II: Nocturnal Fears. Reportedly, the sequel would have been much darker than the original movie and would have featured several evil aliens. These aliens would have come to Earth and kidnapped Elliot and his friends, who would’ve tried to contact E.T. to come and save them. However, as Spielberg states in the above comments,the director ultimately knew that a sequel toE.T.didn’t need to be made.
Our Take On Steven Spielberg’s Comments About A Sequel To E.T.
E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial Doesn’t Need A Sequel
Spielberg has made a few sequels throughout his career, such asIndiana Jones and the Temple of DoomandThe Lost World: Jurassic Park. However, he has mostly avoided making sequels to his most iconic movies.E.T. the Extra-Terrestrialremains one of Spielberg’s best movies. Theending ofE.T.is perfect and doesn’t require a continuation. Therefore, Spielberg was right not to make a sequel toE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Cast
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, directed by Steven Spielberg, follows a young boy named Elliot who befriends an alien accidentally left on Earth. As the task force searches for the extraterrestrial, Elliot, his siblings, and their newfound friend form a deep connection while attempting to return the visitor home.
