New York Magazine’s Vulture blog has gotten a scoop that’s been a long time coming: 20th Century Fox is planning two sequels to Roland Emmerich’s 1996 blockbuster INDEPENDENCE DAY. Emmerich and his old partner and co-writer Dean Devlin are putting the finishing touches on the screenplays and are expected to deliver them to the studio in December.
There isn’t much known about the plots of the flicks (although one could assume that those destructive extraterrestrials from the first film weren’t completely wiped out and are searching for some revenge), but apparently the plan is to shoot the sequels back-to-back. Vulture’s insider tell them: “They’re intended to be fulfilling movies onto themselves — you could see each separately and enjoy them — but they tell one big story.”
Whether or not Will Smith will be involved is up in the air; the star was evidently seeking $50 million to shoot the sequels when they were first proposed two years ago. As the old saying goes, that’s alotta cannolis! Fox is not going to pay that much when the budgets (as well as Emmerich’s payday) figure to be rather large. But, while there’s no question audiences would flock to an INDEPENDENCE DAY follow-up, Smith is one of the last bankable movie stars left, and there’s no doubt his presence will help sell the revival of ID4.
Read the whole article right HERE. If this turns out to be legit, expect to hear more on this ambitious plan in the next few months.
ID4 star Vivica A. Fox
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