50 Movies Like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) You Need to Watch Next
An alien is left behind on Earth and saved by the 10-year-old Elliott who decides to keep him hidden in his home. While a task force hunts for the extra-terrestrial, Elliott, his brother, and his litt
Updated June 2026
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Spielberg's 1982 phenomenon befriends a stranded alien to a lonely boy, whose family hides him from the adults closing in. Tender, magical and quietly heartbreaking about childhood and belonging, it's the definitive family fantasy. If its wonder and emotion moved you, seek out heartfelt family adventures and coming-of-age fantasies where the extraordinary visits ordinary suburban life.
If you loved E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) by Steven Spielberg, here are 50 movies that share its content DNA. iRankMovies measures real similarity using cosine similarity across eight weighted dimensions — genre (50%), tone (12%), pace (10%), structure (8%), era (7%), theme (6%), audience (4%) and narrative perspective (3%) — not just the rating. The closest matches according to our analysis are Zathura: A Space Adventure, Spaceman, Project Hail Mary. Every title is ranked by how closely it matches and backed by the iRank Score, a composite of IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Metacritic and TMDb across 12,000+ analysed titles.
50 Movies Similar to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Zathura: A Space Adventure
2005 · Jon Favreau
After their father is called into work, two young boys, Walter and Danny, are left in the care of their teenage sister, Lisa, and told they must stay inside. Walter and Danny, who anticipate a boring
In common: Adventure · Family · Science Fiction
Spaceman
2024 · Johan Renck
Six months into a solo mission, a lonely astronaut confronts the cracks in his marriage with help from a mysterious creature he discovers on his ship.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Project Hail Mary
2026 · Phil Lord
Science teacher Ryland Grace wakes up on a spaceship light years from home with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. As his memory returns, he begins to uncover his mission: solve the rid
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Independence Day
1996 · Roland Emmerich
Strange phenomena surface around the globe. The skies ignite. Terror races through the world's major cities. As these extraordinary events unfold, it becomes increasingly clear that a force of incredi
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
John Carter
2012 · Andrew Stanton
John Carter is a war-weary, former military captain who's inexplicably transported to the mysterious and exotic planet of Barsoom (Mars) and reluctantly becomes embroiled in an epic conflict. It's a w
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Monsters vs Aliens
2009 · Conrad Vernon
When Susan Murphy is unwittingly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk on her wedding day, she mysteriously grows to 49-feet-11-inches. The military jumps into action and captures Susan, secr
In common: Adventure · Family
Independence Day: Resurgence
2016 · Roland Emmerich
We always knew they were coming back. Using recovered alien technology, the nations of Earth have collaborated on an immense defense program to protect the planet. But nothing can prepare us for the a
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Avatar: Fire and Ash
2025 · James Cameron
In the wake of the devastating war against the RDA and the loss of their eldest son, Jake Sully and Neytiri face a new threat on Pandora: the Ash People, a violent and power-hungry Na'vi tribe led by
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Paul
2011 · Greg Mottola
For the past 60 years, a space-traveling smart-ass named Paul has been locked up in a top-secret military base, advising world leaders about his kind. But when he worries he’s outlived his usefulness
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Jurassic Park
1993 · Steven Spielberg
A wealthy entrepreneur secretly creates a theme park featuring living dinosaurs drawn from prehistoric DNA. Before opening day, he invites a team of experts and his two eager grandchildren to experien
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl
2005 · Robert Rodriguez
Everyone always knew that Max had a wild imagination, but no one believed that his wildest creations -- a boy raised by watchful great white sharks and a girl with the force of a volcano -- were real.
In common: Adventure · Family · Science Fiction
Jurassic World
2015 · Colin Trevorrow
Twenty-two years after the events of Jurassic Park, Isla Nublar now features a fully functioning dinosaur theme park, Jurassic World, as originally envisioned by John Hammond.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Transformers
2007 · Michael Bay
Young teenager Sam Witwicky becomes involved in the ancient struggle between two extraterrestrial factions of transforming robots – the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons. Sam holds the clue to
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Transformers: Age of Extinction
2014 · Michael Bay
As humanity picks up the pieces after the battle of Chicago, a shadowy group reveals itself in an attempt to control the direction of history…while an ancient, powerful new menace sets Earth in its cr
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Star Trek Into Darkness
2013 · J.J. Abrams
When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
2009 · Michael Bay
Sam Witwicky leaves the Autobots behind for a normal life. But when his mind is filled with cryptic symbols, the Decepticons target him and he is dragged back into the Transformers' war.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
2023 · Steven Caple Jr.
When a new threat capable of destroying the entire planet emerges, Optimus Prime and the Autobots must team up with a powerful faction known as the Maximals. With the fate of humanity hanging in the b
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets
2017 · Luc Besson
In the 28th century, Valerian and Laureline are special operatives charged with keeping order throughout the human territories. On assignment from the Minister of Defense, the two undertake a mission
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
I Am Number Four
2011 · D.J. Caruso
A teenage fugitive with an incredible secret races to stay one step ahead of the mysterious forces seeking destroy him in this sci-fi action thriller. With three dead and one on the run, the race to f
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Elio
2025 · Domee Shi
Elio, a space fanatic with an active imagination, finds himself on a cosmic misadventure where he must form new bonds with eccentric alien lifeforms, navigate a crisis of intergalactic proportions and
In common: Adventure
Predator
1987 · John McTiernan
A team of elite commandos on a secret mission in a Central American jungle come to find themselves hunted by an extraterrestrial warrior.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Captain Marvel
2019 · Ryan Fleck
The story follows Carol Danvers as she becomes one of the universe’s most powerful heroes when Earth is caught in the middle of a galactic war between two alien races. Set in the 1990s, Captain Marvel
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
The Tomorrow War
2021 · Chris McKay
The world is stunned when a group of time travelers arrive from the year 2051 to deliver an urgent message: Thirty years in the future, mankind is losing a global war against a deadly alien species. T
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Eternals
2021 · Chloé Zhao
The Eternals are a team of ancient aliens who have been living on Earth in secret for thousands of years. When an unexpected tragedy forces them out of the shadows, they are forced to reunite against
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
War of the Worlds
2005 · Steven Spielberg
Ray Ferrier is a divorced dockworker and less-than-perfect father. Soon after his ex-wife and her new husband drop off his teenage son and young daughter for a rare weekend visit, a strange and powerf
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Green Lantern
2011 · Martin Campbell
For centuries, a small but powerful force of warriors called the Green Lantern Corps has sworn to keep intergalactic order. Each Green Lantern wears a ring that grants him superpowers. But when a new
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Superman Returns
2006 · Bryan Singer
Superman returns to discover his 5-year absence has allowed Lex Luthor to walk free, and that those he was closest to felt abandoned and have moved on. Luthor plots his ultimate revenge that could see
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
The 5th Wave
2016 · J Blakeson
16-year-old Cassie Sullivan tries to survive in a world devastated by the waves of an alien invasion that has already decimated the population and knocked mankind back to the Stone Age.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
AVP: Alien vs. Predator
2004 · Paul W. S. Anderson
When scientists discover something near Antarctica that appears to be a buried Pyramid, they send a research team out to investigate. Little do they know that they are about to step into a hunting gro
In common: Adventure
After Earth
2013 · M. Night Shyamalan
One thousand years after cataclysmic events forced humanity's escape from Earth, Nova Prime has become mankind's new home. Legendary General Cypher Raige returns from an extended tour of duty to his e
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Pacific Rim: Uprising
2018 · Steven S. DeKnight
It has been ten years since The Battle of the Breach and the oceans are still, but restless. Vindicated by the victory at the Breach, the Jaeger program has evolved into the most powerful global defen
In common: Adventure
Treasure Planet
2002 · Ron Clements
When space galleon cabin boy Jim Hawkins discovers a map to an intergalactic "loot of a thousand worlds," a cyborg cook named John Silver teaches him to battle supernovas and space storms on their jou
In common: Adventure · Family
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
2005 · Garth Jennings
Mere seconds before the Earth is to be demolished by an alien construction crew, Arthur Dent is swept off the planet by his friend Ford Prefect, a researcher penning a new edition of "The Hitchhiker's
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
2017 · James Gunn
The Guardians must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mysteries of Peter Quill's true parentage.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Alienoid
2022 · Choi Dong-hoon
Gurus in the late Goryeo dynasty try to obtain a fabled, holy sword, and humans in 2022 hunt down an alien prisoner that is locked in a human's body. The two parties cross paths when a time-traveling
In common: Adventure
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
1977 · Steven Spielberg
After an encounter with UFOs, an electricity linesman feels undeniably drawn to an isolated area in the wilderness where something spectacular is about to happen.
In common: Science Fiction
Alienoid: Return to the Future
2024 · Choi Dong-hoon
Ean has a critical mission to return to the future to save everyone. However, she becomes trapped in the distant past while trying to prevent the escape of alien prisoners who are locked up in the bod
In common: Adventure
Battle: Los Angeles
2011 · Jonathan Liebesman
When once distant UFOs become a terrifying threat and an alien invasion force begins attacking Earths major costal and riverside cities, a U.S Marine staff sergeant and his team are sent into battle o
In common: Science Fiction
Outlander
2008 · Howard McCain
During the reign of the Vikings, a man from another world crash-lands on Earth, bringing with him an alien predator. The man must fuse his advanced technology with the weaponry of the vikings to fight
In common: Science Fiction
Lilo & Stitch
2025 · Dean Fleischer Camp
The wildly funny and touching story of a lonely Hawaiian girl and the fugitive alien who helps to mend her broken family.
In common: Family · Science Fiction
Nope
2022 · Jordan Peele
Residents in a lonely gulch of inland California bear witness to an uncanny, chilling discovery.
In common: Science Fiction
Okja
2017 · Bong Joon Ho
A young girl named Mija risks everything to prevent a powerful, multi-national company from kidnapping her best friend - a massive animal named Okja.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
The Great Flood
2025 · Kim Byung-woo
When a raging flood traps a researcher and her young son, a call to a crucial mission puts their escape — and the future of humanity — on the line.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
A.I. Artificial Intelligence
2001 · Steven Spielberg
David, a robotic boy—the first of his kind programmed to love—is adopted as a test case by a Cybertronics employee and his wife. Though he gradually becomes their child, a series of unexpected circums
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Tomorrowland
2015 · Brad Bird
Bound by a shared destiny, a bright, optimistic teen bursting with scientific curiosity and a former boy-genius inventor jaded by disillusionment embark on a danger-filled mission to unearth the secre
In common: Adventure · Family
Greenland 2: Migration
2026 · Ric Roman Waugh
Having found the safety of the Greenland bunker after the comet Clarke decimated the Earth, the Garrity family must now risk everything to embark on a perilous journey across the wasteland of Europe t
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Predator: Badlands
2025 · Dan Trachtenberg
Cast out from his clan, a young Predator finds an unlikely ally in a damaged android and embarks on a treacherous journey in search of the ultimate adversary.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Jurassic World Rebirth
2025 · Gareth Edwards
Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, covert operations expert Zora Bennett is contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world's t
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Avatar
2009 · James Cameron
In the 22nd century, a paraplegic Marine is dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission, but becomes torn between following orders and protecting an alien civilization.
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction
Dune: Part Two
2024 · Denis Villeneuve
Follow the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while on a path of revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his
In common: Adventure · Science Fiction