Steven Spielberg clarifies whether E.T. was slimy or dry

Steven Spielberg answered a long‑running internet debate about his 1982 film E.T. on an episode of The New York Times Daily podcast. He said the alien was “a little moist but never slimy” and only dry when the creature was sick, contrasting it with the slime‑covered alien from Ridley Scott’s Alien.

The comment came while promoting Spielberg’s newest movie, Disclosure Day, which follows a whistleblower exposing a government cover‑up of extraterrestrial contact. The film stars Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor and Colin Firth and has received positive early reviews.