15 Devilishly Clever Movie Secrets You Probably Missed

8. E.T. Takes Place In The Star Wars Universe

ET Star Wars
LucasFilm

This sci-fi cross-over seems far more bizarre than the one that placed a little earlier on the list - unlike the Alien and Predator franchises, the Star Wars franchise, has always taken itself very seriously, in particular the Prequels. However, this didn't stop George Lucas from inserting a strange little Easter egg in Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

In a wide shot of the senate scene in which Queen Amidala pleads her case and requests a call to action against the Trade Federation, three aliens can be seen on a platform who look strikingly similar to E.T. from Steven Spielberg's film of the same name.

Apparently, this cameo was included as a gesture of good faith to Lucas' old friend Spielberg, who included a Yoda doll and multiple other references to Star Wars in E.T. It was too late to return the favor in the third Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi (released less than a year after E.T.), but Lucas found a way to repay his debt almost 20 years later.

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Contributor

Oren Soffer is currently a Junior majoring in Film/Television production at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. He has been harboring and fostering a love and passion for cinema since early childhood. Though he mainly focuses on making movies these days, he still enjoys writing about them as well.