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SYFY WIRE E.T.

New video goes behind the making (and Easter eggs) of Xfinity's charming E.T. sequel

By Josh Weiss
E.T. Comcast ad

Comcast won this year's Thanksgiving by dropping a legit sequel to E.T. with Steven Spielberg's blessing. In it, Elliott (Henry Thomas returns to play the iconic role), now grown up and with a family of his own, reunites with the lovable alien for the holidays 37 years after they parted ways in the classic 1982 film.

We're sure many tissues were used once people started watching the heartfelt Xfinity ad, but the childlike magic doesn't end there because there's now a "making-of" video that goes behind-the-scenes of the heartfelt commercial. You can now see Thomas, Lance Acord (the ad's director), Alan Scott (animatronic effects supervisor), and others offer up their thoughts on what it was like to create a follow-up to one of the most beloved movies of all time.

"I think in all of Spielberg's films, he's not afraid to really go to a place that's sentimental, that's emotional," says Acord in the six-minute featurette. "So, I think, really, the homage would be, 'Can we create an emotional story in this abbreviated telling?'"

Take a look below:

Wanting to recreate the vibe of the original, the production opted to use a practical E.T. puppet that they could enhance with CGI later on. Having an actual object to react to was better for the actors playing Elliot's children. From certain lighting choices, to a basketful of Easter eggs, this ad was very much meant to evoke the early '80s and stir up feelings of nostalgia.

"There's always been talk of sequels and things like that and it's really funny because it's Steven Spielberg's baby," says Henry Thomas in the video. "He's very particular about this film, so I've always viewed any attempt at revamping the character or showing it in a different context as a thing that's never gonna happen. Then they said, 'Well, Steven signed off on the story, he loves it.' And I said, 'WHAT?!'"

Comcast actually broke down all of the Easter eggs in this Facebook video.