Photo: Instagram
He was kept in jail for a day.
By Elizabeth Ward — Written on Oct 27, 2019
Henry Thomas, best known as Elliott in the 1982 film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, was arrested Monday night in Oregon. A bystander reported a suspicious-looking vehicle that was stopped in the Portland suburb Tualatin, Jennifer Massey, public information officer for the town's police department told CNN.
Thomas, 48, was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of intoxicants and was taken to the Washington County Jail, according to CNN. He was released Tuesday morning on his own recognizance. It is unknown if Thomas has had any previous DUIs on his driving record.
Thirty years after the release of the famous Spielberg movie, he admitted the film’s success brought him bad times as well as good, according to the Mirror. Nonetheless, Thomas has managed to sustain a successful career in acting and his latest work can be seen in the Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House. Today he lives in Los Angeles with his wife Annalee and their children Hazel, Evelyn and Henry.
Who is Henry Thomas? Read on for all the details.
1. Officers had to wake him up
According to TMZ, officers had to wake Thomas up. They noted signs of intoxication and immediately arrested him. He was charged with a misdemeanor DUI. According to USA Today, police officers also gave Henry a sobriety test, which he did not pass. Officers then immediately took him into custody at the Washington County Jail and kept him in jail overnight.
2. He won an award for 'E.T.'
E.T. was this actor’s biggest breakthrough film. Following the release of Spielberg’s cult-classic, Thomas won the Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles at the 1983 British Academy Film Awards. He was also nominated for a Golden Globe, People’s Choice Award, in the same year, according to IMDB.
3. His role in 'E.T.' changed his childhood
Although Henry credits his fame to his biggest role in E.T., he said it definitely impacted the type of childhood he had, according to Mirror. “My world went completely crazy. I was that stupid kind of famous, where you can’t go anywhere," he said. “It was like that for the first six months after E.T. was in cinemas. I’d go out and get mobbed. I was a shy kid, and being approached by adults all the time just freaked me out... so I stopped leaving the house. I became an 11-year-old hermit.”
4. After his breakout fame from 'E.T.' Henry decided to go back to his old school in Texas
After Henry's immense success from the Spielberg movie, his parents decided to send him back to school so he could try to be a normal kid. "Going back was strange, and perhaps stranger for the other students," he said according to Mirror. "I was an easy target. Everybody tried to flush my head down the toilet. Perhaps it was jealousy, perhaps it was just kids being kids. They were like, ‘what the f*** are you doing back here? Who do you think you are?’” However, he also mentioned that his stardom did help him with getting girls, which he said he enjoyed.
5. His next big hit was in 1994
Another big hit Henry Thomas became well-known for was 12 years after E.T., in 1994, when he starred in the movie Legends of the Fall as Samuel Ludlow. His fellow castmates included Brad Pitt and Aidan Quinn. The film did so well that it won critical acclaim, as well as an Academy Award for Best Cinematography, according to Biography.com.
6. He's had steady work as an actor
Thomas has worked in film since 1982. His most recent and recurrent gig is on the Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House, which earned him a 2019 Saturn Award for Best Actor in a Streaming Presentation, according to NY Daily News.
Elizabeth Ward is a writing student finishing her bachelor’s at the University of Louisville. She covers news, entertainment, relationships and everything in between.