As a child actor, Henry Thomas starred in one of Steven Spielberg’s greatest films. Decades later, he hit a crossroads – spiral into alcoholism and divorce or write his way out. Luckily, he picked up a pen instead of a bottle.
Now, the E.T. star has traded Hollywood scripts for epic fantasy novels, proving his storytelling days were far from over. Spielberg launched his career, but this next chapter was all him.
From sci-fi icon to fantasy scribe: Henry Thomas’ unexpected chapter
Some actors fade into Hollywood history. Others evolve. After decades in the industry, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial star Henry Thomas took an unexpected detour – into fantasy writing. Faced with long months on set in Romania, he saw two options. And the choice was obvious. He told Metro:
I’ve always been a fan of fantasy books growing up. I got a little bit disillusioned with the genre, because I felt it became so formulaic. I thought, ‘I can throw together a good fantasy story.’ … It’s either I become an alcoholic and get a divorce, or I write my novel.
Thomas, who shot to fame as Elliott in Spielberg’s sci-fi classic, never stopped working. While his former co-star Drew Barrymore battled personal demons, Thomas quietly built a career across TV and film. From Without a Trace and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation to Better Things, he stayed busy. But it was horror that became his true niche.
Stephen King fans may recognize him from Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep, while Netflix audiences know him as a staple in Mike Flanagan’s projects, including The Haunting of Hill House and Bly Manor. But even with a packed schedule, Thomas had another story to tell – this time, on the page.
His debut novel, The Window and the Mirror, published in 2019, delved into “an environmental-spiritual cataclysm” with protagonists fighting to save the world. A lifelong fantasy fan, Thomas wanted to shake up the genre, crafting an “archetypical high fantasy story with a few twists.”
From Hollywood sets to the pages of fantasy fiction, Henry Thomas proved reinvention isn’t just possible; it’s inevitable.
The Goonies return: Steven Spielberg-produced sequel in the works
The Goonies are back – almost 40 years later. Warner Bros. has greenlit a sequel, with Steven Spielberg producing and Potsy Ponciroli writing the script, per Variety. No director or plot details yet, but Goonies never say die, right?
The 1985 cult classic, directed by Richard Donner and written by Chris Columbus, followed a ragtag group of kids on a wild treasure hunt. It raked in $125 million worldwide and even landed a spot in the Library of Congress.
Original stars Josh Brolin, Sean Astin, Corey Feldman, Ke Huy Quan, and Martha Plimpton haven’t signed on yet, but Quan, fresh off Everything Everywhere All at Once, is ready. “I would love for it to happen,” he said. Feldman added, “Everybody’s looking good… and we’re all alive.”
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