Barrymore, now 49, shared how E.T. shaped her life. “I think E.T., for me, is the one I'm the most proud of because it's the one that changed my life,” she said. “Everything in my life is about how I got believed in by one human being, and that is the life I try to honor every day.”
Spielberg, 78, admitted the film had a profound impact on him as well. “Up until that point, I was just making movies. But making E.T. made me want to be a father for the first time,” he revealed.
Barrymore jokingly asked, “I didn’t ruin that for you?” Spielberg replied warmly, “The opposite.”
Spielberg, who now has seven adult children and six grandchildren, shared that E.T. remains a favorite in his household. “I’ve probably watched it more than any other movie I’ve directed, partly because I’ve shown it to all my kids,” he said, adding that he carefully introduces it to his younger grandchildren.
The director also reflected on how the film was inspired by his parents’ divorce. Speaking at a 40th-anniversary event in 2022, Spielberg explained, “A divorce creates great responsibility, especially if you have siblings. What if Elliott needed to become responsible for a life form to fill the gap in his heart?”
Spielberg credited Barrymore and the young cast with awakening his desire to be a parent. “I didn’t want kids. It never occurred to me until halfway through E.T.,” he said. “I started thinking, ‘Maybe this could be my real life someday.’”
He concluded, “In a way, a director is a parent. I was feeling protective of Drew, who was only six years old, and the rest of the cast. That experience opened my heart to fatherhood.”