Steven Spielberg Reveals the Struggle to Prevent E.T. Sequel: ‘A Real Hard-Fought Victory’

There was almost a sequel to E.T., but thankfully, Steven Spielberg stepped in to make sure it didn’t happen.

We all know that sequels rarely live up to their originals. Sometimes they manage to surprise us, and on a few extraordinary occasions, they might even surpass their predecessors. However, more often than not, you’re better off leaving a great film alone, sparing us from potential disappointment. E.T. is one of those movies where a sequel just doesn’t seem fitting. Yet, there was a time when executives considered turning that idea into reality. Spielberg shared this during the TCM Classic Film Festival: New York Pop-Up x 92NY event, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter. He mentioned, “That was a real hard-fought victory because I didn’t have any rights.”

“In those days, before E.T., I had a few rights, but not many. I wasn’t really in control of what they call ‘the freeze,’ the ability to prevent a studio from making sequels, remakes, or using the IP in other ways. It wasn’t until after E.T.’s success that I gained that control,” Spielberg explained. He was adamant about not wanting to pursue a sequel.

“I toyed with the idea very briefly,” he admitted. “I thought maybe I could come up with a story, and the only concept that crossed my mind was a book titled ‘The Green Planet,’ which envisioned E.T.’s home. It would’ve allowed us to visit E.T.’s world, seeing how he lived. But in the end, it seemed more suitable as a novel rather than a film.”

Imagine the cinematic landscape if a sequel had been made—we might’ve been left with an entirely different legacy. Fortunately, Spielberg’s vision prevailed. Anyway, with E.T. once being the highest-grossing film of all time, I think it did just fine without a follow-up.