10 Surprising Facts About Universal Orlando’s Nostalgic Opening Day Attraction

As an opening day attraction of Universal Studios Florida, E.T. Adventure holds a unique charm and special sense of nostalgia. Upon opening in 1990, the attraction exceeded Guest expectation with its ahead-of-its-time ride technologies and visual effects. Today, Guests are still eager to take a journey through space and help E.T. return to his home planet.

While there are many sights to be seen on this ride, there’s so much more under the surface. Join us as we dive into the rich history of E.T. Adventure and uncover 10 lesser known facts and details about this beloved Universal Orlando attraction.

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1. “E.T. Phone Home”

It’s not uncommon for theme park attractions to have sponsors. Sponsorships help provide funding for the creation of rides, their upkeep, and any upgrades that may need to be done. It’s also a great advertisement opportunity for the sponsors.

When E.T. Adventure opened up in 1990, it was very advanced for the time. It had interactive elements, impressive animatronics, and extreme theming. Because of this, it’s no surprise that a sponsor was needed for the ride.

But which company should sponsor the ride? Reese’s Pieces? That would be a fantastic fit since the candy was featured in the film and saw a huge increase in sales after the movie’s release. There were also E.T.-themed bags of Reese’s Pieces at the time, which featured a picture of E.T. on the front of the bag and also included a “magic motion sticker” on the inside! While this would have been a great option, Reese’s Pieces was not the sponsor for the attraction. Instead, it was AT&T.

AT&T was never specifically referenced in E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, but as we all know, E.T. was very interested in making a phone call. Multiple times throughout the film, E.T. can be heard saying “E.T. phone home”, which was his request to get in touch with his home planet. Because of this, it makes perfect sense that a phone company would be the sponsor for the E.T. ride!

AT&T’s logo could be seen at the beginning of the pre-show as well as on the TeleTickets and Adventure Passports that were used on the ride.

2. Spaceship or Bicycle?

After the pre-show, Guests make their way into the inner portion of the queue. Upon entering, you’ll feel as though you’ve entered the woods at nighttime. The dark forest area is filled with trees, the scent of pine, and some woodland creatures.

While in the woods, an animatronic of Botanicus appears, with lighting and fog effects. He speaks to Guests and asks for help finding E.T. and bringing him back safely so he can return to his home planet. During Botanicus’ request, we hear him say that we can bring E.T. back in a spaceship or bring him back on our bikes. This may seem a bit odd since none of us are traveling via spaceship. The only option that we have for our journey are bicycles.

However, this used to make sense because spaceships used to be a ride vehicle option when the attraction first opened. While most Guests did ride on the bikes, they weren’t ADA accessible. The spaceships were made available so Guests with disabilities were still able to enjoy E.T. Adventure.

Eventually, some of the bicycle ride vehicles were made accessible with the addition of benches and the spaceships were phased out. Now everyone is able to enjoy E.T. Adventure in the most cinematic way.

3. Is that Michael Jackson?

Did you know that the King of Pop loved E.T.? Michael Jackson felt a deep connection to the alien, which he shared in an interview with Ebony Magazine. He and E.T. shared the cover of the December 1982 issue, which shared information about the latest album that the singer worked on.

This, however, wasn’t one of Jackson’s charismatic pop albums. Instead, it was an audiobook recording of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, which Michael narrated. Steven Spielberg personally sought out Michael and asked that he and Quincy Jones create the companion audiobook album for the movie. The audiobook won Jackson a Grammy for “Best Recording for Children”.

Michael also reportedly owned one of the E.T. puppets, which had on display at Neverland Ranch.

To acknowledge his love for the friendly alien, there are a couple nods to the singer in E.T. Adventure. The first can be found in the wooded portion of the queue. At one point, you’ll come across a sign that reads “Jackson Springs”. While on the ride, make sure that you take a look inside of the police car. The policeman who’s driving the car (on the right hand side under the blue light) looks like Michael Jackson!

4. Remembering the Rabbit

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial opens up with a nighttime scene in a dark wooded area. We see a spaceship sitting in the woods and a number of aliens that exit the ship to explore our planet. At one point in the shot, we see a wild rabbit in the woods that seems to be studying one particular alien that’s taken interest in a sapling.

A reference to this rabbit can be seen in the indoor portion of the queue for E.T. Adventure. In the queue, which has the same dark, woodland feel, you can spot a small rabbit animatronic. Actually, there are two! One can be found right before you reach the large rock that Botanicas emerges from. You can spot this rabbit on your right hand side. The other can be seen at the end of the queue. It’s located on the rockwork that’s above the entrance of the Express Pass load platform.

5. The Last of its Kind

E.T. Adventure is an attraction that many Guests hold near and dear to their hearts. This is one of the few attractions at Universal Orlando that relies solely on physical props and hasn’t resorted to the heavy use of screens. It also has a very nostalgic feel to it. The main reason for this is because it’s the oldest ride at the park, opening in 1990. Not only is it the oldest, it’s the only opening day attraction that remains.

Other classic opening day attractions such as Jaws, Kongfrontation, and Earthquake: The Big One were all phased out due to a combination of continuous difficulties and the need to make room for newer, more popular IPs (intellectual properties). Diagon Alley now stands where the Jaws ride was, Revenge of the Mummy replaced Kongfrontation, and the Family now occupies the space of Earthquake: The Big One with Fast & Furious: Supercharged.

While E.T. may be considered outdated, and could most likely be easily replaced by a more current IP, its successful functionality undoubtedly played a huge part in its long life at the park. While Universal Studios Florida experienced a number of problems with its opening day attractions, E.T. Adventure was trustworthy and had minimal issues.

Now, its classic charm keeps Guests returning again and again. We hope that it stays around for many more years at Universal Orlando!

6. See Even More of E.T.

While everyone will be able to see E.T. during the ride, those in the front row will get a special view of an additional E.T. animatronic. In the movie, Elliot puts E.T. in his bike basket to help hide and protect him. To dodge the police and government officials, E.T. uses his powers to help lift the bike into the air, giving it the ability to fly.

Just like in the movie, E.T. is along for the ride on E.T. Adventure. In front of the first row of bikes, there is a basket that contains E.T. covered up by a blanket. To help us get to the Green Planet, E.T. uses his powers to make our bikes fly, just like he did for Elliot. Occasionally, you can see E.T. pop his head up out of the basket during the ride. If you want a good visual of this E.T., you’ll want to make sure to sit in the front row. Since he’s lower down, it’s difficult for those in the rows farther back to see him.

7. A Personalized Goodbye

In order to make your way to E.T.’s home, the Green Planet, you’ll need an Interplanetary Passport. These passports are handed out by team members at the attraction. Prior to entering the internal queue, you’ll supply a team member with your name and receive your Interplanetary Passport in return. Before riding your bike, you’ll hand your passport off to the team member in the loading area and they will scan the barcode on the back.

When you previously gave your name to the team member in the queue, they assigned your name to your specific barcode. When that barcode is scanned at the loading area, your name, along with the names of the others riding with you, are registered to the ride vehicle that you’re all in.

This is how E.T. knows what names to say as you pass by him at the end of the ride! The technology that is used allows E.T. to recognize over 20,000 names. That being said, he’s still from another planet. While he tries his best, he may not always pronounce your name correctly.

8. Wait.. Are We Really Flying?

In some ways, you can consider E.T. Adventure to be Universal’s version of Disney’s Peter Pan’s Flight. The attractions are very similar in regard to the suspended ride vehicles and the journey of flying away from Earth to a different world.

For those who have been on Peter Pan’s Flight, you’ll know the scene where Guests are whisked over the city of London. The small, moving, intricate details accurately depict what it’s like to view a city from the night skies. If you’ve been on an airplane at nighttime, you’ll know this visual well.

A similar scene takes place in E.T. Adventure. After E.T. gives our bikes the ability to fly, we soar over the city below into the night sky. Even though we aren’t actually high above a city, the forced perspective creates a believable feeling. As we make our way “up” into the sky, the buildings in the city below get smaller and smaller. If you keep a close eye, you can even see the cars moving!

9. We Have a Different Role

During the pre-show for E.T. Adventure, Steven Spielberg lets us all know that E.T. needs our help getting back to his home planet. The Green Planet is currently dying and only E.T.’s healing touch is able to help.

While not too much has changed about E.T. Adventure over the years, this pre-show has. When the ride originally opened, we weren’t tasked with a mission during the pre-show. Instead, Steven Spielberg let us know that we were being cast as actors in scenes inspired by E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. He then continues, as the director, to tell us about the storyline and the scenes that we’re going to be a part of.

In this pre-show, Steven also mentions the spaceship ride vehicles that we previously discussed. He lets us know that it’s our job to hop on a bike or one of E.T.’s spaceships and take E.T. home.

10. Inspiration for the Green Planet

Since our goal on E.T. Adventure is to get E.T. back to the Green Planet, we actually see the planet and its inhabitants for the first time ever. In E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, we don’t get a glimpse at this unique planet. However, it is described and beautifully illustrated in a book called E.T. The Book of the Green Planet, the sequel story to the E.T. film.

Throughout the book, we get an understanding of the colorful and unique planet. We also learn that E.T.’s alien species isn’t the only one to inhabit the planet. Other plant-like creatures, such as mushroom people and flower people, also live there.

The description and ideas from this book heavily inspired the quirky environment that we see on E.T. adventure. From the creatures, to the plants, and magical elements, this portion of the ride gives Guests an out-of-this-world experience on E.T.’s home planet.

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