ET is looking a little worse for wear nowadays.
The iconic puppet was the main star of the 1982 film that charmed audiences and featured Drew Barrymore, Henry Thomas, Robert Macnaughton, Dee Wallace and many more famous faces. However, the lovable alien hasn’t aged as well as his co-stars.
There were 13 puppets used in the film, some of which included mechanical versions, costumes for actors and a larger head piece created for close up shots. Back in 2018, the figures were unboxed from storage where they had been kept since Steven Spielberg stopped filming back in the 80s.
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The Mirror spoke to special effects artist Carlo Rambaldi’s daughter Daniela about how E.T.’s skin disintegrated over the years. After restoration began, she said: “We have been trying to stop the decay of these materials that for the 80s were advanced, but today are fragile as a flower.
(Image: Carlo Rambaldi Foundation Archive)
“The skin was decaying, when you touched it, it was like touching a petal crumbling in your hand.” Another special effects expert Leonardo Cruciano also told them: “The latex was very dry and when you touched it, it would fall apart.
“When we excavated the boxes we used very soft gloves and pillows. The unboxing alone took a week. The unpacking of the head took three days. At any moment we could have lost it all.”
(Image: Corbis via Getty Images)
According to The Mirror, parts of E.T. were “initially sprayed with a latex fixative” before they were “cleaned of dust, rust and oils”. They were later “consolidated again with another compound” and were “pieced back together”.
Leonardo admitted that the process had “been a puzzle” and the crew have “needed a lot of patience” while working on the alien’s reconstruction. “Some pieces have been impossible to save, or lost. It has been like restoring a Mummy.”
Sadly, they were only able to save four of his fingers as they were so delicate. E.T. fans will remember the iconic scene – arguably one of the most legendary moments in Hollywood history – in which E.T. extends his finger out which emits light from the tip.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
