Steven Spielberg was asked whether he believes in the real-life existence of aliens in the run up to his new UFO movie Disclosure Day.
“I don’t know any more than any of you do, but I have a very strong suspicion that we are not alone here on Earth right now — and I made a movie about that,” said the legendary 79-year-old filmmaker during a keynote interview at the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival in Austin, Texas on Friday.
Elaborating on his view, the filmmaker noted that when he heard former President Barack Obama’s recent viral comment that aliens are “real,” his first thought was, “Oh, my God, this is so great for Disclosure Day!”
“And two days later, he stepped it back to to say what he believed was in life in the cosmos — which, of course, everybody should believe in,” he continued. “Because no one should ever think that we are the only intelligent civilization in the entire universe. So I’ve been thinking as a kid that we were not alone. So that just goes without saying. The big question is: Are we alone now? And have we been alone over the last 80 years? Have we been alone over the last few thousand years?”
The filmmaker said he was “reinvigorated” into making his first UFO movie since 1977’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind by The New York Times‘ 2017 story about a secret government program tracking UFOs, as well as the congressional hearings in recent years featuring government whistleblowers. Yet filmmaker said he’s never seen a UFO himself — thought desperately wishes he had.
“I made a movie called Close Encounters of the Third Kind — I haven’t even had a close encounter or the first or second kind!” he said. “Why haven’t I seen anything? Half of my friends have seen UFOS or UAPs. Where’s the justice of that? If you’re listening out there …
“I’m not afraid of any aliens,” he added. “I have no fears about that whatsoever. I think our movie does take into consideration that social dislocation that could occur. If it was announced there is interaction [with aliens] that have been going on for decades, it’s going to cause a disruption in a lot of belief systems. But I don’t think it is a lethal disruption at all.”
Spielberg was appearing on a keynote panel, “The Big Picture with Steven Spielberg Live from SXSW” for a moderated conversation with podcaster Sean Fennessey.
The director also gave a passionate defense of the moviegoing experience and original filmmaking — while taking a playful shot at Timothée Chalamet, whose jabs about opera and ballet have taken over the internet in recent days.
“If we’re just not making the same sequel over and over and over again, and it’s not the same Marvel title over and over and over again, we all get a real chance to experience something which is precious,” he said. “I look out at this auditorium with everybody here, and we’re all together. We don’t know each other, and we probably agree with each other more than we disagree with each other. But the one thing I know is when we’re all watching something — it could hit us all independently, individually, in different ways — there is a collective impulse from a good story that hits all of us at the same time in exactly the same way. There is something about community and communication and getting along with each other — and that happens in full movie theaters, and not sitting around living rooms watching on television. Netflix is a great company to work with, but the real experience comes when we can influence a community to congregate in a strange, dark space … It happens in movies. It happens at concerts. And it happens in ballet and opera!”
Spielberg also reflected on making Close Encounters of the Third Kind, which is suspected to be a prequel to Disclosure Day (before the panel, a musician came onstage and played moody music that repeatedly included the iconic five notes from Close Encounters).
“Nobody would let me make Close Encounters because it was on the fringes of science and mythology, and so no one really got it. When I said, ‘I want to make a UFO movie,’ everybody thought, ‘You want to make a movie about The National Enquirer?’ You want to make a movie about the crackpot reporting of things that aren’t really occurring? You want to make a completely crazy fantasy film about something that isn’t happening?” he recalled.
On other topics, Spielberg revealed he has a Western in development, which would fulfill his career-long desire to shoot a film in that genre. “And [the project] kicks ass,” he said. “There will be no stereotypes and no tropes.”
Spielberg also said he still rewatches Lawrence of Arabia every year. “The reason I watch that film is it keeps me humble,” he said. “It reminds me that: ‘You will never be as good as [director] David Lean.’”
Asked if there’s a film he’s made that he thinks is underrated, he cited the 1989 Richard Dreyfuss fantasy Always.
The director was also asked about his famous ability to improvise his shots on the fly. “I didn’t have a single story board on Schindler’s List. I didn’t have a single story board on Saving Private Ryan.
When I get to the set in the morning there is something that happens that is beautiful. There is an entire day of possibility yet undiscovered. What possibility will I choose first?”
Spielberg also confirmed that he has no plans of slowing down anytime soon — let alone retiring. “I never want to quit,” he declared.
Universal’s Disclosure Day stars Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor and Colin Firth. The film chronicles a global panic and societal upheaval when humanity receives undeniable proof that aliens exist.
The film is one of several current projects that are taking a “serious” look at UFO lore in the wake of recent congressional hearings and media reports on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs). The film has resulted in some confusion online given a documentary last year titled Age of Disclosure, which interviewed former government officials about UAPs, with some wondering if Spielberg’s fictional movie is part of some larger conspiratorial effort on the topic.
Disclosure Day opens June 12.
Mia Galuppo contributed to this report.