E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial celebrates its 40th anniversary this summer, and star Drew Barrymore knows exactly how she is planning to celebrate the occasion; with godfather Steven Spielberg and her two daughters. The movie about an alien stranded on Earth who just wants to go home gave Barrymore her big break as a 7-year-old, and also starred Henry Thomas as her brother Elliot and Dee Wallace as their mother. Forty years later the film still stands as one of the most-loved family films of all time and is just as effective now as it was on its release.

In an interview with People, Barrymore, who celebrates her 47th birthday today, revealed that while the milestone anniversary of the movie is something to celebrate in itself, Steven Spielberg pointed out to her that her daughters are now around the same age as she was when she starred in the movie, which is something the actress can’t quite manage to full comprehend. She said:

“I've actually been speaking with Steven Spielberg about it. He calls my girls who he held when they were babies, and he's known them throughout their lives. I do want to revel in this moment with them and include them and celebrate with Steven. He's a big father figure to me. So he's like, "We're not missing this moment with your kids." I'm like, "Okay. You're right. We can't. You're right." This is very emotional and full circle. My kids are very close to the age that I was when E.T. came out. Frankie actually is at the age. She is 7, and she will just be turning 8, and Olive is 9. She'll be turning 10. This is where I'm at, and they love Steven.”

Related: Steven Spielberg Recalls Thinking Jaws Theme Was a Joke

E.T. is One of the Greatest Movies of All Time and Is A Showcase of Quintessential Spielberg

E.T. - 1982

As the holder of a 99% approval rate on Rotten Tomatoes, E.T. is regarded as an all-time classic movie. In four decades there have been no talks to remake or reboot the movie, and even Spielberg himself backed away from making a sequel that he planned and wrote a treatment for shortly after the film was released. In his own words, Spielberg believed that a sequel “would do nothing but rob the original of its virginity.” While we have seen E.T. return to screens along with Henry Thomas for a 2019 Xfinity commercial, which was called a “short film sequel”, it is unlikely that anyone would attempt to make a sequel to the film now, and certainly not on Spielberg’s watch.

E.T. also managed to claim a number of accolades at the Academy Awards and Golden Globe Awards among others. While the movie won the Best Picture Golden Globe, it was beaten to the Oscar by Gandhi. Director of Gandhi, Richard Attenborough, said at the time that he believed E.T. should have won the award for being “inventive, powerful and wonderful” as opposed to the “mundane movies” he made. In addition to the award wins at the time of its release, the film has been named in Time Magazine’s Top 100 movies of all time, topped a UK poll by Channel 4 of the greatest family films ever, and is listed among the BFI’s list of 50 movies to see before the age of 14. While E.T. may have gone home in the movie, he certainly made a lasting impression in the real world.