Seven fun facts about ET
What’s ET short for? Because he’s got little legs.
Okay, now that classic dad joke from my boss is out of the way because tragically it made me laugh, let's get down to business.
ET has long been a family favourite since its release in 1982 from genius director Steven Spielberg.
The much-loved cinematic creation tells the story of a young boy Elliott, who becomes friends with an alien, also known as ET.
Almost 40 years since it hit our screens, there are some exciting fun facts you didn't know about the movie.
Below are seven of the most surprising facts from ET.
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The woman behind ET's voice was discovered in a camera store
The film’s sound designer was at a camera store when he heard the woman speak. Her name was Pat Walsh, and she reportedly smoked two packs of cigarettes a day, which gave ET the raspy voice.
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The doctors you see in the movie are all real
Steven Spielberg wanted to make the movie as real as possible and hired real doctors and nurses to feature in the film.
He asked them to treat ET as if it were a human patient.
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The movie was shot in chronological order
Spielberg wanted Henry Thomas, the actor who played Elliot, and Drew Barrymore, who played Gertie, to have authentic reactions when they saw ET.
He knew that filming the movie in chronological order was the only way to achieve this.
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ET broke a record by staying in theatres for so long
The movie was released on June 11, 1982 and remained in theatres for over a year.
It also comes as Spielberg did not want the movie released on home video to avoid it being pirated.
Then five years later, the studio released ET on video tape and it sold a massive 15 million copies in its first year.
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Drew Barrymore ad libbed one of her most memorable lines
The first time Gertie saw ET, she said “I don’t like his feet”. The line was not scripted but Spielberg loved it so much that he decided to keep it in the film.
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Henry Thomas didn’t like being famous
The actor that played Elliot did not like being famous and felt like he was a circus freak. He did however go on to star in Gangs of New York and The Haunting of Hill House.
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ET’s name was due to be revealed in the second movie
Steven Spielberg and writer Melissa Mathison wrote a nine-page sequel titled ET 2: Nocturnal Fears.
The sequel would tell the story of Elliot and his friends being abducted by aliens. ET’s real name would also be revealed… which is Zrek!
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