Harrison Ford and Steven Spielberg, two movie legends, forged a lasting friendship after collaborating on the hit film “Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark.” By the early 1980s, Ford was at the height of his career, having played not only fearless archaeologist Indiana Jones, but also charismatic smuggler Han Solo in “Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.” Surprisingly, however, Ford made a brief appearance in another Spielberg-directed cinematic masterpiece: “ET the Extra-Terrestrial.”
For lovers of this cult film, the news that Harrison Ford filmed a scene for “ET” could be surprising, since his presence in the final version of the film is conspicuous by its absence. They are only available in extended versions of the film on DVD or Blu-ray.
So what happened to Ford’s involvement in the film, and why was his appearance cut? Find out below.
HARRISON FORD’S CAMEO IN “ET”
Harrison Ford’s cameo in “ET” is very brief and subtle. Ford plays the principal of Elliot’s school, but his face is never shown on screen, he is only seen from behind. This is explained because Steven Spielberg recorded the film from the point of view of children and almost no adult face appeared, except for the mothers of the protagonists in the last part.
In the scene, Ford is scolding Elliot. Coincidentally, when he turns around, ET causes the boy’s chair to inexplicably begin to levitate. However, when Elliot’s mother walks in, everything is back to normal, the principal looks at them again, and no one realizes what has happened.
THE STORY OF HARRISON FORD’S CAMEO IN “ET”
The story behind this cameo is truly fascinating. In an interview with Steven Spielberg and actor Henry Thomas, it was revealed how this brief but memorable appearance in the film came to be.
It turns out that Thomas was a big fan of “Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Therefore, when he met the director, he had the illusion of also meeting Harrison Ford. However, the actor was not on the original cast list for the film.
“When I met Steven, the first thing out of my mouth was I thought, ‘I love Raiders of the Lost Ark,’ and my hero was Harrison Ford. Basically I was excited to meet Steven hoping to meet Harrison”, explained the protagonist.
His break came thanks to real-life coincidences: Ford was dating Melissa Mathison, the “ET” screenwriter, at the time. When Ford was asked to do a small cameo in the film, she agreed.
THEY DELETED HARRISON FORD’S SCENE ON “ET”
Harrison Ford’s scene in “ET” was ultimately cut because it didn’t add much to the film’s main plot. It was more of a fun scene that was filmed with Ford to fulfill the dreams of young Thomas.
Spielberg explained: “That was the scene we deleted. But that’s where (Henry) had the chance to meet Harrison.”.