New Delhi: As Steven Spielberg’s new movie Disclosure Day is set to release in India on June 12, the renowned director appears more convinced than ever about the possibility of extraterrestrial existence. But Spielberg’s fascination with extraterrestrial life is no secret to cinema enthusiasts.
From being accused of getting “too inspired” by Satyajit Ray’s short story Bankubabur Bandhu (1967) for his iconic film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), exploring alien encounters in Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Spielberg has long been associated with stories about the other life.
“When I made Close Encounters in 1976, the evidence about alien life just wasn’t there. It’s there now, and it’s compelling, and it’s convincing,” said Spielberg in an interview with The Daily, reflecting on how his views have evolved over the past 50 years.
When he made Close Encounters (1976) the idea of alien life was largely based on speculation and circumstantial evidence. Today, however, he believes there is enough material to take the subject more seriously.
Speaking about the themes of Disclosure Day (2026), Spielberg emphasized that the film is not merely about aliens. It explores faith, belief and humanity’s search for something greater, he said. The movie follows a man who uncovers the possibility that humans are not the only living beings in the universe, a truth allegedly hidden by the government. The trailer also features glimpses of a weather reporter, played by Emily Blunt, who travels back in time in an attempt to set things right.
The story appears to draw loose inspiration from the 1947 Roswell incident, a long-standing conspiracy theory that claims the United States government concealed information after metallic debris was recovered near the Roswell Army Air Field.
For Spielberg, the film is also an opportunity to revisit ideas he first explored in Close Encounters (1976), this time with a plethora of visuals related to extra-terrestrial encounters documented over the past 50 years.
Recalling one such study on alien life, Spielberg referenced Harvard psychiatrist John E. Mack, who investigated the 1994 incident at the Ariel School in Zimbabwe. At the time 65 students reported seeing a craft and beings coming out of it.
“They described their eyes as hypnotic and wraparound, like Ray-Ban sunglasses,” he said.
(Edited by Janaki Pande)