E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

1982 · directed by Steven Spielberg · 115 min

28,377 feet · Prominence

5th of 24,106 films scored

The Rewatchables‘E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Mallory Rubin →

How this film scores

Draw88

Lifetime worldwide gross $797m, re-releases included; about $2.07bn in 2026 money.

Rank18 of 11,051In 19821 of 98

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise98

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics96 baseAwards92 signal → +2 lift

Oscars4 won Visual Effects, Original Score, Sound, Sound Editing5 nominated Picture, Director, Original Screenplay, Cinematography, Film Editing

Golden Globes2 won Motion Picture, Original Score3 nominated Director, Lead acting, Screenplay

BAFTAs1 won Original Music7 nominated Film, Direction, Screenplay, Sound, Special Visual Effects, Editing, Makeup and Hair

How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy90

Judged directly: Permanent icon of childhood cinema.

Verdict90 of 100IMDb7.9 from 469kWikipedia85k views a monthAge44 years

On the listsNational Film RegistryAFI 100evidence, not an input to the score

Scored beside it · 17 of 4,039 films judged

92Toy Story (1995)

92Alien (1979)

91Schindler's List (1993)

90The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)

90Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

90Apocalypse Now (1979)

90E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 88 praise 98 legacy 90averages 92, placing it at28,377 ft

How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

Whose apex this is

▲ Robert MacNaughton

In these careers — elevation for this film

Henry Thomas20,363 ft Drew Barrymore19,951 ft Peter Coyote18,327 ft Robert MacNaughton18,118 ft C. Thomas Howell17,784 ft Erika Eleniak17,739 ft Debra Winger17,685 ft Alex Daniels17,633 ft