Do Aliens Exist? Steven Spielberg Believes They Do

About this episode

<p>Almost 50 years ago, Steven Spielberg directed “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” the story of an average man who discovers that humanity may not be alone in the universe. Over the decades, Spielberg has directed several movies about what would happen if humanity made contact with aliens. Would the aliens be kind like the title character in “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial”? Would they be cruel like the murderous aliens of “War of the Worlds”? And regardless of what the aliens were like, would we humans be ready to receive them?</p> <p>Spielberg returns to the question of whether we’re alone in the universe, and what it might mean if we’re not, with his new film “Disclosure Day.” Today, he sits down with Rachel Abrams, a host of “The Daily,” to talk about the film, and about what he has learned over five decades of making movies about aliens.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>On Today’s Episode</strong></p> <p>Steven Spielberg, director of “Disclosure Day.”</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Background Reading</strong></p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/11/movies/disclosure-day-review-steven-spielberg.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">‘Disclosure Day’ Review: Spielberg Plays His Greatest Cosmic Hits</a></p> <p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/07/magazine/steven-spielberg-movie-theater-disclosure-day.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">What Steven Spielberg Taught Me About Fear, Catharsis, and Being Human</a></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Photo credit: </strong>Paolo Pellegrin/Magnum, for The New York Times</p> <p><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily"><strong>nytimes.com/thedaily</strong></a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. </p><p> </p><p>Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.</p></p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>