The film is now being remastered and re-released.
As Steven Spielberg’s sci-fi masterpiece Close Encounters of the Third Kind celebrates its 40th anniversary, the film’s young star is all grown up and says people still recognize him.
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"Every once in a while, someone will recognize me,” Cary Guffey told Inside Edition. “I actually do still get fan mail."
Guffey, now 45, charmed audiences in the megahit movie about UFOs descending on planet Earth. He was only 3 years old when he got the part opposite Richard Dreyfuss.
Guffey, who made his film debut with Close Encounters, lived on in cinematic history with the iconic scene of him walking up to a glowing door inside his small Indiana home.
Close Encounters is being remastered and re-released to theaters in 4K resolution this weekend, and the film’s star is stunned by it.
"I was a little surprised that they're electing to put it back in theaters, but obviously pleased,” he said.
The former child star now lives in Birmingham, Ala., where he lives with his wife, Michelle, and two kids. He gave up acting decades ago and now works as a financial adviser.
He still enjoys reliving his days as a child star, saying his fondest memories involve being on the set with legendary director Steven Spielberg, who had a trophy made for him when filming wrapped in 1976.
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Guffey says he has absolutely no regrets about stepping away from his close encounter with fame.
"I’m very fortunate that Close Encounters was a part of my past but I’m more interested in the present and what I can do in the future,” he said.
