National Film Vault

FILM NOTES

Universal Pictures released E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in June 1982, with Steven Spielberg directing at the height of his commercial and artistic powers. The film became the highest-grossing release of its time, displacing Star Wars, and remains a defining work of American cinema — a story of childhood, longing, and connection that resonated across generations and cultures. Its score by John Williams and its visual language became instantly iconic.

This cell, titled E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial Title Card, captures the film's celebrated main title sequence on 35mm, presenting the silhouetted image of Elliott and E.T. on their bicycle crossing the face of the moon against a black sky — the single image that came to represent the film to the world.