⏱️ 9 min read

When Steven Spielberg’s beloved extraterrestrial phoned home in 1982, audiences worldwide fell in love with the wrinkled, big-eyed creature at the heart of the story. What most viewers didn’t realize while watching E.T. waddle across the screen, extend his glowing finger, or embrace young Elliott was that the alien character wasn’t brought to life by a single performer, but rather by a carefully coordinated team of actors, mimes, and technicians working in concert to create movie magic.

Quick Facts

• E.T. was performed by at least three different actors throughout the film, including a mime, a 12-year-old boy born without legs, and a woman with dwarfism.
• The alien’s hands were operated separately by mime Caprice Rothe, who spent hours rehearsing delicate finger movements.
• Matthew DeMeritt, born with sacral agenesis, wore the E.T. costume for many walking scenes due to his unique physical proportions.
• Pat Bilon, a professional little person performer, operated the costume for certain upright scenes requiring specific movements.
• More than $1.5 million was spent creating three separate E.T. mechanical suits and electronic versions for the production.

The Team Behind the Beloved Extraterrestrial

Creating a believable alien character in 1982 required innovative practical effects combined with human performance. Carlo Rambaldi, the Italian special effects artist who had previously won Oscars for King Kong (1976) and Alien (1979), designed and built the E.T. creature. However, bringing that creation to life on screen demanded the skills of multiple performers, each chosen for their unique physical characteristics and talents.

The primary performer inside the E.T. suit was Matthew DeMeritt, who was just 12 years old during filming. Born with sacral agenesis—a condition affecting the development of the lower spine—DeMeritt’s body proportions uniquely suited him for the role. His shorter legs and different walking gait gave E.T. the distinctive waddle that became iconic. DeMeritt operated the costume for most scenes requiring the alien to walk or move around the set, spending long hours in the heavy foam latex suit that restricted his vision and movement.

For scenes requiring E.T. to stand more upright or perform specific actions, professional actor Pat Bilon took over. Bilon, who stood 2 feet 10 inches tall, had experience performing in costume work and brought precision to scenes demanding particular physical comedy or interaction with the child actors. The coordination between these performers was essential—Spielberg needed to maintain visual consistency while capturing the range of movements his story required.

The Art of Alien Hand Acting

While bodies brought E.T. to life below the neck, the alien’s expressive hands told their own story. Mime artist Caprice Rothe spent months perfecting the delicate, otherworldly movements of E.T.’s elongated fingers. The production team recognized that the hands would convey much of the character’s emotion and intelligence, particularly in the famous “E.T. phone home” scene and the glowing finger moment that became the film’s most iconic image.

Rothe worked separately from the main costume performers, operating mechanical hand puppets designed by Rambaldi’s team. These hands featured sophisticated cables and controls that allowed for surprisingly nuanced movements—pointing, grasping, and even the gentle touch on Elliott’s forehead that bookended their friendship. The mime training Rothe brought to the role proved invaluable; she understood how to make non-human appendages appear to think and feel.

In some close-up shots, additional hands were used. According to production notes, Spielberg himself occasionally operated E.T.’s hands for specific shots, and other crew members lent their hands when particular angles or movements were needed. This collaborative approach meant that E.T.’s signature gesture—the extended glowing finger—might have been performed by several different people throughout the film’s 115-minute runtime.

The Technology Behind the Magic

The E.T. suits themselves represented cutting-edge animatronics for 1982. Rambaldi’s team constructed three separate mechanical versions of the alien, each designed for different types of scenes. The most sophisticated version featured radio-controlled facial movements, with approximately 85 points of articulation allowing the creature’s face to form expressions ranging from joy to fear to illness. This version required multiple technicians operating controls off-camera, coordinating eye movements, head tilts, and the opening and closing of the mouth.

A second suit was designed as the walk-around costume that DeMeritt and Bilon wore. This version had limited facial articulation but allowed for full-body movement and interaction with the environment. The interior was reportedly cramped and hot, with performers relying on off-camera assistants to guide them through complex blocking since visibility was severely restricted. DeMeritt later recalled in interviews that he could see primarily through E.T.’s neck area and had to memorize his movements carefully during rehearsals.

The third version consisted of various partial puppets and insert pieces used for extreme close-ups of eyes, hands, or facial features. These pieces could be manipulated with greater precision than the full-body versions and were often composited with wider shots in editing to create seamless performances.

Voice and Personality: The Final Layer

While multiple performers created E.T.’s physical presence, the alien’s voice added yet another layer to this collaborative creation. Pat Welsh, a retired California woman whom sound designer Ben Burtt discovered working in a camera store, provided the primary voice for E.T. Welsh was a heavy smoker whose raspy, two-pack-a-day voice gave the alien its distinctive vocal quality. Burtt recorded Welsh saying various phrases, then manipulated and layered her voice with other sounds.

The complete vocal performance actually incorporated contributions from Burtt himself, actress Debra Winger (who provided some emotional vocalizations), Spielberg, producer Kathleen Kennedy, and others on the production team. Burtt mixed these human elements with animal sounds and mechanical effects to create the final otherworldly voice. The famous “E.T. phone home” line, however, was primarily Welsh’s performance, slightly processed to sound more alien.

This approach to voice work mirrored the physical performance philosophy—no single human could embody everything Spielberg envisioned for his alien character, so the director drew from multiple sources, blending them into a cohesive whole that transcended any individual contribution.

The Oscar-Winning Result

The collaborative effort paid off spectacularly. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial became the highest-grossing film of all time upon its release, holding that record until Spielberg’s own Jurassic Park surpassed it in 1993. The film earned nine Academy Award nominations, winning four including Best Visual Effects for Rambaldi and his team. Critics and audiences praised E.T. as one of the most believable non-human characters ever created for film.

The success vindicated Spielberg’s decision to use practical effects and multiple performers rather than attempting to have a single actor portray the alien. Each performer brought specific skills—DeMeritt’s natural gait, Bilon’s professional timing, Rothe’s expressive hand work, Welsh’s distinctive voice—that combined into something greater than the sum of its parts. The character felt real precisely because real human performers, each contributing their unique talents, brought different aspects of the creature to life.

Modern audiences accustomed to CGI characters might find the practical effects approach charmingly old-fashioned, but many filmmakers and effects artists still point to E.T. as a masterclass in character creation. The tangible, physical presence of the creature—the weight when Henry Thomas carried him, the texture of the skin in close-ups, the authentic way the costume interacted with light and shadow—gave actors something real to respond to and audiences something genuine to believe in.

Legacy of Collaborative Character Creation

The multi-performer approach used for E.T. influenced how Hollywood created non-human characters for decades. Similar techniques were employed for characters like Yoda in the original Star Wars trilogy (where Frank Oz provided both voice and puppet performance), the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the 1990 film, and various creatures in fantasy films throughout the 1980s and 1990s.

Even in the modern era of motion-capture technology, multiple performers sometimes contribute to creating a single character. Andy Serkis’s groundbreaking performance as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, while primarily his work, still required voice processing and digital artists to complete the character. The principle established by E.T.—that creating believable non-human characters requires combining the best talents available—remains relevant in contemporary filmmaking.

For the performers who brought E.T. to life, the experience represented a unique moment in their careers. Matthew DeMeritt went on to work in various capacities in the entertainment industry, occasionally discussing his time as the alien in interviews. Caprice Rothe continued her work as a mime and movement coach. Pat Bilon maintained a steady career in Hollywood, appearing in various films requiring actors of short stature. Each could claim a piece of cinema history, having contributed to one of the most beloved characters ever created for the screen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who was the main person inside the E.T. costume?

Matthew DeMeritt, a 12-year-old boy born with sacral agenesis, performed most of the walking and full-body movements for E.T. throughout the film. His unique body proportions gave the alien its distinctive waddle and movement style.

How many people were involved in operating E.T. during filming?

At least a dozen people contributed to bringing E.T. to life, including three main costume performers (Matthew DeMeritt, Pat Bilon, and others), mime artist Caprice Rothe for the hands, multiple voice actors, and numerous technicians operating the animatronic facial features. Some scenes required coordinating five or more people simultaneously to create a single shot of E.T.

Was E.T. entirely a costume or were there robotic versions?

The production used three different E.T. versions: a sophisticated animatronic with 85 points of facial articulation for close-ups, a wearable costume suit for walking scenes, and various partial puppets for extreme close-ups. The most advanced version cost approximately $500,000 to build and required multiple off-camera operators.

Who provided the voice for E.T. the alien?

Pat Welsh, a retired woman from California with a distinctive raspy voice from smoking, provided the primary voice recordings. Sound designer Ben Burtt then mixed her voice with recordings from actress Debra Winger, Steven Spielberg, and others, plus various sound effects, to create E.T.’s final otherworldly voice.

Key Takeaways

• E.T. was a truly collaborative creation requiring at least three costume performers, a dedicated hand mime, multiple voice actors, and numerous technicians—proving that sometimes the most believable characters come from combining many talents rather than relying on a single performer.
• Carlo Rambaldi’s team spent over $1.5 million creating three distinct versions of E.T., each designed for specific types of scenes, representing cutting-edge practical effects work that won the 1983 Academy Award for Best Visual Effects.
• The multi-performer approach pioneered for E.T. influenced decades of creature creation in Hollywood and established principles still relevant in modern motion-capture and digital character work.
• Matthew DeMeritt’s natural walking style, born from his unique physical condition, combined with Caprice Rothe’s mime-trained hand movements and Pat Welsh’s distinctive voice to create the iconic character that made E.T. one of the highest-grossing films of all time.