A closer look
Steven Spielberg included aliens from George Lucas's Star Wars universe in the galactic senate scene of The Phantom Menace, officially connecting the two iconic sci-fi franchises in a shared cinematic continuity. This collaborative easter egg confirms that the beloved, wrinkly protagonist from the nineteen eighty two film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is canonically aware of the Jedi order, which perfectly explains why the little creature recognized a child dressed up as Yoda on Halloween. Taking this totally absurd intergalactic lore to its logical conclusion, E.T. possesses incredible telekinetic powers precisely because he is a force sensitive being who crash landed in a suburban California neighborhood. Thus, the heartwarming story of a boy and his alien friend is technically just a rogue Jedi survival narrative where a lost padawan uses the light side of the force to levitate bicycles and phone home across the galaxy
