Steven Spielberg Shot E.T. In A Highly Unconventional Way That Made The Movie Better

Most people know how the sausage is made. Feature films rarely shoot scene in the order in which they appear on-screen. Filmmakers typically have to arrange shooting schedules based on what sets or locations may be available, shooting scenes at hard-to-reach places all at once. Just as often, certain actors may only be available on particular weeks, so their schedules have to be accommodated. Then, of course, it's just efficient to film five, six, or even seven scenes on one set, allowing for minor changes in camera setups and/or lighting. An actor may film their death scene on one day and then their introductory scenes later. A movie is then assembled through the magic of editing. Most cineastes learn how filmmaking works early in their journey through the medium.

Some filmmakers, however, like to shoot their movies chronologically. That is, they like going through the script page by page and filming whatever scene comes next. This can be done for a variety of reasons, although one can see how it would give both the actors and the crew a stronger sense of cognitive continuity. The story of a film will be more easily grasped by filmmakers if they shoot a film in order. Indeed, "The Breakfast Club," "American Graffiti," "The Shining," and "9½ Weeks" were all shot chronologically. If shooting takes place largely outdoors and on location, chronological filmmaking will also allow actors and crew members to retain a sense of wild wilderness. Notably, Alejandro G. Iñárritu's "The Revenant" was filmed chronologically, as was Werner Herzog's "Aguirre, the Wrath of God" and Oliver Stone's "Platoon."

Steven Spielberg similarly filmed "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" chronologically. The sentimental sci-fi ultra-blockbuster starred a cast of young actors led by the 10-year-old Henry Thomas, the 14-year-old Robert MacNaughton, and the 6-year-old Drew Barrymore. To keep the movie clear for his young leads, and to make sure they became attached to the (not-so-horrifying) alien at the center of the movie, Spielberg filmed the story chronologically — something Thomas talked about in a 2022 interview with ComicBook.com.

According to Thomas, Spielberg tried his hardest to make everything line up during production on "E.T." with the way it did in the film's script. From what the actor recalled, this was done to ensure Thomas and his co-stars could spend more time with the E.T. puppet and develop a working relationship with it. Over the course of "E.T.," the movie's young characters do, in fact, grow closer to the titular alien, and Spielberg allowed that growth to be captured on-screen more organically. As Thomas noted:

"I've been on films where they tried to do it, with limited success, and 'E.T.' was pretty close to chronological order. [...] Although on the first day, we shot all of the school sequence, so it was a little out of sync. But all the emotional stuff was on track in terms of building a relationship with E.T."

The final scenes of "E.T." are deeply emotional, as the alien finally manages to contact his species and arrange for a ride home. By then, though, he and Thomas' character, the young Elliott, have psychically bonded. E.T. winds up being taken away by the U.S. government for a brief spell, and for a moment, it seems as if he has died. Fortunately, however, he is still alive and later uses his telekinetic powers to allow Elliott and his friends to fly through air on their bicycles as they flee the authorities, bringing their adventure together to a proper close. By the time E.T. is sailing off on his spaceship, it's a teary farewell, and Thomas' performance is that much more genuine because he, too, remembered filming their experiences. And if Elliott believed it, then the audience did too.

Spielberg has since filmed the bulk of his other movies in a more conventional fashion, having never worked quite this extensively with child actors in lead roles again. For "E.T.," though, it was a wise choice. That movie is still beloved to this day.