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Steven Spielberg Believes in Aliens

2026-06-16 Science & Technology
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Go to https://ground.news/startalk to stay fully informed on the latest Space and Science news. Save 40% off through our link for unlimited access to the Vantage plan this month. Order Take Me to Your Leader here 👇 https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Take-Me-to-Your-Leader/Neil-deGrasse-Tyson/9781668249970 Have aliens already secretly visited us? Neil deGrasse Tyson sits down with legendary director Steven Spielberg and screenwriter David Koepp to discuss their new film Disclosure Day, the science and psychology of alien contact, and why Spielberg believes there’s more out there than meets the eye. Why does Spielberg have so many alien movies? Spielberg reflects on a career defined by the unknown, from his very first film to Close Encounters, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and War of the Worlds. He traces his renewed fascination with UFOs to a 2017 New York Times article. Is there enough evidence of aliens out there? If the government were to find aliens, should they tell us? We explore how smartphones have turned the entire population into a crowdsourced surveillance network, and whether the timing of government file releases around the film's debut is really just a coincidence. David Koepp then joins to pull back the curtain on the craft of screenwriting. We learn about the delicate line between science and fiction in writing science fiction. Would alien disclosure remedy conflict on Earth? Are we projecting our own colonial history onto the evil alien trope? And could aliens exist entirely outside our sensory perception? Neil reminds us that we've invented instruments to extend our senses before and that the universe is almost always stranger than we imagine. Thanks to our Patrons GrassCobra, Donnie Foos, Ms Fattahipour, Nick, Sean Van Dommelen, Wendy, Jennifer Cramer, Marce Marie, Wooderpy the Wise, Ryan Taggart, McKenna, Leroy McReA, joseph, Lauren Katz, Chance Brandt, Cierra Baker, John Haney, Gogov, Silent, Cory Ford, Gary Flugge, Dylan Jennings, Sarah Perfetto, Kenneth, Alia Over The Years, Paul Gale, Sean McCallum, Alana Heyser, William Rinear, Prashanth Vissapragada, Łukasz Nyczkowski, Thorsten Rock, Pete Checchia, Marike Kreeftmeijer, Marilyn Geer Rivera, Ryan Pickhardt, Chad Chadwell, jlparques, Jack Yantz, Peter Magnusson, victoria, Abel, Daniel C Schlack, LabratMatt, Vishal Shankaran, Chris M, Brian Trudeau, Amrita A, Alexandra Swanson, Halvy, Ethan Murray, Emily Zelaya, ArdyMcHardy, Daniel Almada, kartik goswami, Kurt Blumeyer, hunter nash, Ryan Greer, johntravolta88, Cody, wackerow, Akash Gaur, Anthony Dannucci, Chelbie Hinton, Ron Hooper, Neil Smallwood, Elderbobo, BigBodyBimmer, ghost with a thought, and Pablo Giles Sanz for supporting us this week. Timestamps: 00:00 - Introduction: Steve Spielberg 02:43 - The Role of Eyes 04:57 - Disclosing the Aliens 08:38 - Spielberg’s Signature 09:53 - Empathy as a Theme 11:00 - Do We Have A Right to Know? 13:13 - Will Aliens be Evil? 15:23 - Does Everyone Want the Government to Disclose Aliens? 19:10 - Introduction: David Koepp 20:37 - The Role of the Screenwriter 22:34 - Balancing Science and Fiction 27:43 - Primal Fears 35:05 - Motivating Villans 34:18 - Aliens Are People Too 37:48 - Are We the Evil Aliens? 39:35 - Doing the Right Thing 41:39 - The Day the Earth Stood Still 44:20 - Would Aliens Bring People Together? 47:22 - Speaking Alien 50:58 - We Want to Know the Truth Check out our second channel, @StarTalkPlus Get the lates StarTalk book, 'To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery' on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PL0NFn Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/startalkradio FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE to StarTalk: Twitter: http://twitter.com/startalkradio Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StarTalk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/startalk About StarTalk: Science meets pop culture on StarTalk! Astrophysicist & Hayden Planetarium director Neil deGrasse Tyson, his comic co-hosts, guest celebrities & scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Keep Looking Up! #StarTalk #NeildeGrasseTyson

Top Comments (10)

@CoreyLansdellArt 2026-06-16

This guy shaped a generation with his film making. Seriously.

619 52 replies
@DocLivius 2026-06-16

Spielberg on StarTalk it's just perfect 🎉

462 36 replies
@foundations 2026-06-17

Imagine the government having a press conference and showing us these aliens… then five minutes later we’re back to scrolling on our phones and watching a World Cup. Hahaha

450 53 replies
@DaBigOmega 2026-06-16

Seeing Steven Spielberg and Neil deGrasse Tyson geeking out about the unknown and the role of empathy in storytelling is just pure gold. What an incredible conversation! Definitely adding 'Disclosure Day' to my must-watch list.

393 35 replies
@StarTalk 2026-06-16

Who's seen Disclosure Day already? And if you have what is your SPOILER FREE take on it?

254 278 replies
@worldbuildingfilms 2026-06-16

I COULD NOT HAVE CLICKED ON THIS FASTER EVEN IF YOU HAD SHOT ME OUT OF A CANNON

234 14 replies
@Chris.starfleet 2026-06-16

Tommy Jones's character "K" in the movie "Men in Black" said it best ... "a person is smart but people are dumb and panicky ..."

206 14 replies
@emmetbrown7228 2026-06-16

Spielberg is an absolute legend.

193 11 replies
@cl4777 2026-06-16

Message received. We need to be better humans!

176 13 replies
@amitm5135 2026-06-17

Knowing what we know about Neil's position on the existence of aliens and their probable lack of interest in our human-centric civilization, it's amazing how professional, courteous and patient he is with this director and his imaginative perspective.

134 48 replies

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