Why Steven Spielberg Changed His Mind About Making An ‘E.T.’ Sequel

Steven Spielberg and Drew Barrymore recently had a mini E.T. reunion at the TCM Classic Film Festival: New York Pop-Up  x  92NY, which raised a question many of us have had: When E.T. was released in 1982, it became the highest-grossing movie of all time … so why wasn’t there a sequel? At the event, Spielberg revealed that he once thought about making a sequel, but ultimately decided against it — and even stopped the studio from making one.