ET flops around the world

Steven Spielberg reunited wth original cast members

ET can go home because no-one will notice, as new figures show the new enhanced Steven Spielberg movie is not setting cinemas alight.

ET: The Extra Terrestrial has been re-released 20 years after it original became a massive worldwide hit, with takings of more than £500m.

ET was released in 1982

However latest figures from Hollywood show ET took just £4.6m in 26 countries over the Easter weekend, reports Screen Daily.

The movie took £1.5m in the UK alone over the weekend.

United International Pictures (UIP), who distribute the movie, admitted the figures were disappointing.

UIP chief Paul Oneile said that the figures were towards the bottom end of expectations but were in line with estimates, although the distributor was not expecting "massive" numbers.

'Fan base'

"One possibility is that re-releases need to be cult films," one rival distributor told Screen International.

"You need an in-built fan base. Just being a massive hit is not enough."

The changes introduced by the director include new scenes, digitally-engineered changes to some of the film's famous shots and a remixed soundtrack.

More than 140 shots were reworked or, in some cases, filmed again.

Spielberg has also used digital technology to remove guns from the hands of the police following ET, Elliott and his friends during the film's climactic chase sequence.

One of the movie's most memorable shots, of Elliot's flying bicycle silhouetted by the moon, was also reshot with a child replacing a figurine used in the original version.

And a bathroom scene featuring ET and Elliott - originally deleted - was reinstated and the range of ET's facial expressions widened.

ET: The Extra Terrestrial was originally released in June 1982, and after receiving nine Oscar nominations it won four.