Stranded on Earth - by Max Evry (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

As featured in Entertainment Weekly, SyFy, Nerdist, IGN, Gizmodo, MovieMaker and more!

Steven Spielberg's E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial is one of the most beloved films ever made--but its origins are far more surprising than most audiences realize.

Following his acclaimed bestseller A Masterpiece in Disarray: David Lynch's Dune, author and film journalist Max Evry returns with Stranded on Earth: How Night Skies Became E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, the in-depth chronicle of the extraordinary creative journey that transformed an abandoned science-fiction horror film into a cultural phenomenon.

Tracing Spielberg's lifelong fascination with extraterrestrials--from his teenage feature Firelight through the groundbreaking success of Close Encounters of the Third Kind--Evry uncovers the remarkable story behind Night Skies, a dark alien invasion project inspired by alleged UFO encounters. As the ambitious production unraveled amid creative disagreements and shifting studio priorities, Spielberg found the emotional story that would become E.T.--a film that forever changed popular cinema.

Drawing on new interviews with Spielberg collaborators, actors, artists, effects technicians, and other key insiders, Stranded on Earth reveals the untold stories behind the making, unmaking, and rebirth of one of Hollywood's most celebrated productions. Along the way, it also explores how the DNA of Night Skies survived in films including Poltergeist and Gremlins, influencing an entire generation of science fiction and horror cinema.

Lavishly illustrated with more than 100 rare images and illustrations, Stranded on Earth is an engrossing work of film history and an essential companion for movie lovers, Spielberg fans, E.T. devotees, and anyone fascinated by the creative process behind one of Hollywood's most enduring cinematic achievements.

Review Quotes

"Max Evry's Stranded on Earth: How Night Skies Became E.T. dives headfirst down the rabbit hole, and doesn't look back. The book features brand-new interviews with a plethora of primary sources who were present for the development of both pictures, and ultimately serves as a fascinating and thoroughly exhaustive exploration into one of the greatest what-if stories to ever come out of Hollywood. Warts and all!"

-- SyFy

"For a sci-fi/horror movies that never was, Night Skies holds quite a story, and Stranded on Earth is here to tell it. [Author Max Evry] covers every aspect of the failed project, from creative to business. Overflowing with information, this hardcover tome is genre filmmaking geekdom at its finest."
-- Rue Morgue

About the Author

MAX EVRY is the author of A Masterpiece in Disarray: David Lynch's Dune (2023), praised by Empire, SFX, The Hollywood Reporter, The A.V. Club, and The Wall Street Journal, among others.

As a film journalist, he has worked as a writer, interviewer, graphic designer, video creator, and managing editor for outlets including Wired, MTV, IGN, Box Office Pro, and Den of Geek. He has also contributed audio commentaries and featurettes for home video companies including Arrow, Kino Lorber, and Vinegar Syndrome, covering classic and contemporary films such as Foul Play, Blackhat, and the Best Picture Oscar winner Marty.