National Film RegistryLibrary of Congress · Inducted 1994
“Written by Melissa Mathison and directed by Steven Spielberg, this film chronicles the relationship between a young boy (Henry Thomas) and a benevolent alien who is stranded on Earth and trying to find his way back to his home planet. The film's masterful blending of hopeful innocence with excitement and humor made it both a critical and popular success.”
Universal Pictures · Amblin Entertainment · 115 min
Box office
$792.9M worldwide on a $10.5M budget
Honors
Academy Awards — 4 wins, 9 nominationsGolden Globe Awards — 2 wins, 4 nominationsLos Angeles Film Critics Association — 2 winsBritish Academy Film Awards — 1 win, 8 nominationsAll 20 wins · 27 nominations on record
Academy Awards: Best Visual Effects
Academy Awards: Best Original Score
Academy Awards: Best Sound Editing
Academy Awards: Best Sound
Golden Globe Awards: Best Motion Picture – Drama
Golden Globe Awards: Best Original Score
Los Angeles Film Critics Association: Best Film
Los Angeles Film Critics Association: Best Director
British Academy Film Awards: Best Original Music
Japan Academy Film Prize: Outstanding Foreign Language Film
David di Donatello: Best Foreign Director
National Board of Review: National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
Saturn Award: Best Special Effects
Saturn Award: Best Writing
Saturn Award: Best Science Fiction Film
Saturn Award: Best Music
Saturn Award: Best Classic Film DVD Release
National Society of Film Critics Award: Best Director
Boston Society of Film Critics Award: Best Director
Grammy Award: Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
Scholarship
Named in the title of 28 peer-reviewed works
Examples
E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial — 100 Science Fiction Films, 2013
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial — A K Peters/CRC Press eBooks, 2010
E.T. the extra-terrestrial — Open Research Exeter (University of Exeter), 1982
Sources: Wikidata · Library of Congress · OpenAlex. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
FILM NOTES
Universal Pictures released E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in the summer of 1982, and Steven Spielberg's story of a stranded alien and the boy who befriends him became a defining touchstone of the era, blending suburban family life with genuine wonder. It was the highest-grossing film of its time, praised for its emotional honesty and technical achievement, and it remains a benchmark for how a blockbuster can be both intimate and universal in scope. The film's legacy endures across generations, cementing its place among Hollywood's most cherished works.
This cell centers on Elliott, the film's young protagonist whose bond with E.T. anchors the entire narrative. Collectors seek frames bearing his name because he represents the human heart of the story, the audience's entry point into a tale of friendship and loss. A cell marked simply with his name suggests a moment belonging to his personal arc, distinct from the ensemble or spectacle sequences that surround it. For 35mm collectors, such a piece holds value as a direct artifact of the character study that made the film resonate, a quiet counterpart to its more celebrated visual set pieces.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm optical release print of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges; spacing appears even and the punched edges look clean with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
Two variable-area optical tracks run along the bottom edge of the strip, consistent with a stereo optical print.
Edge print
Not visible in this capture at sufficient resolution to read manufacturer text or key numbers.
Base & colour
Base shows a slight warm-amber tint typical of older acetate safety stock; dye image appears warm but not strongly red-shifted or faded.
Projection history
Light longitudinal scratches are visible running along the length of the strip, consistent with a projected print.
Picture
Positive colour image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, consistent with a release print of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982).
Era check
The dual variable-area optical soundtrack, warm acetate base tint, and positive colour image are all consistent with a 1982-era theatrical release print predating digital soundtrack formats.
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000062657
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
