19. His Childhood Experiences Largely Inspired E.T.
Spielberg claimed that E.T. wasn’t about a lost alien but about a lost little boy who found the friend that he needed in an otherworldly visitor, based on his own imaginary friend that he created following his parents’ divorce. It won four Academy Awards and launched the career of another Hollywood legend, Drew Barrymore, who played Elliot’s younger sister. Ultimately, the movie became the highest-grossing film of all time.