Steven Spielberg Regrets Editing Guns Out Of 'E.T.,' Pushes Back Against Editing Old Entertainment

Steven Spielberg thinks old entertainment should be left alone.

The legendary Hollywood visionary made the decision to edit guns out of "E.T.," and he now claims it's a decision he never made.

For some bizarre reason, people in the entertainment and writing industries believe old works should be edited to please people today. For example, Roald Dahl's old books will reportedly be updated and censored to eliminate words like "fat," "crazy" and "mad."

Steven Spielberg wishes he hadn't edited "E.T." (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

Yes, this is where we're now at in America. The works of a man who died more than three decades ago must now be changed. It's complete insanity, and the "E.T." director regrets previously engaging in the same behavior.

Spielberg said the following at the Time 100 Summit when talking about the edits, according to Yahoo!:

That was a mistake. I never should have done that. 'E.T.' is a product of its era. No film should be revised based on the lenses we now are, either voluntarily, or being forced to peer through. 'E.T.' was a film that I was sensitive to the fact that the federal agents were approaching kids with firearms exposed and I thought I would change the guns into walkie talkies… Years went by and I changed my own views. I should have never messed with the archives of my own work, and I don’t recommend anyone do that. All our movies are a kind of a signpost of where we were when we made them, what the world was like and what the world was receiving when we got those stories out there. So I really regret having that out there.

This is very refreshing from Steven Spielberg.

A lot of people hate admitting when they're wrong. It goes against human nature to admit you messed something up, but that's exactly what Steven Spielberg did.

No old film, book or TV show should ever be edited to appease the woke mob. It's art, and it shouldn't ever be messed with.

First off, federal agents having guns is not a big deal. It's comical Spielberg would think it was. At least he admits the mistake, but it's a mistake that was self-inflicted for no reason.

Steven Spielberg pushes back against editing old entertainment. (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for TCM)

Unfortunately, he's far from alone. There are plenty of examples of old works being changed or completely hidden.

Hulu took down several episodes of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" because black face was portrayed in a fashion meant to mock people who think it's acceptable. You can't even parody some things anymore without getting in hot water. It's absurd.

Steven Spielberg regrets editing "E.T." (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for TCM)

Trying to change and purge things from the past is something that would have made Stalin and Mao very proud. It should be rejected at every turn. It's a shame Steven Spielberg ever dabbled in it to begin with, but at least he's admitting his mistakes. Hopefully, we can slam the brakes on this train of woke insanity before it gets worse.