Actor Henry Thomas, who starred as Elliot in the film “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial,” pleaded no contest Monday to driving under the influence of intoxicants outside of Portland.

Thomas, 48, was ordered into a year-long diversion program by Washington County Circuit Court Judge Oscar Garcia and will be required to install a breathalyzer in his car, court records show.

Tualatin police said they found the actor, who lists a Portland address in court records, inside a car stopped in traffic near Lower Boones Ferry Road and Southwest 72nd Avenue around 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 21.

Thomas was passed out behind the wheel and had to be rousted awake by the officers, TMZ reported.

He told the officers that he was an actor and had starred in Steven Spielberg’s 1982 classic film, said Sgt. Nate Cooper, a Tualatin police spokesman.

Since his breakout role nearly 40 years ago as a lost alien’s human surrogate, Thomas has continued to work in film and television.

His recent appearance in Netflix’s “The Haunting of Hill House" earned him a Best Actor award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films.

Reached by phone Monday, Thomas declined to comment.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632

Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh

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