Apparently, Roland Emmerich is serious about making some Independence Day sequels, the first of which (currently saddled with the terrible title ID Forever Part 1) is scheduled to invade cinemas on July 1st, 2016. And while the films aren’t exactly high on our list of most-demanded or highly-anticipated sequels, the first movie was fun enough to keep us interested in the prospect of future instalments.
Today, we were given a small but significant update on the project, as Deadline reported that the script will undergo yet another rewrite. Emmerich and Dean Devlin wrote the first draft, which was then revised by Jamie Vanderbilt. Now, 20th Century Fox has hired newcomer Carter Blanchard to take a shot at the screenplay.
Blanchard has not yet had a script hit the big screen, though he recently penned Kindergarten Heroes for Fox and Spyhunter for Warner Bros. Perhaps a fresh pair of eyes is precisely what this film needs, especially since no one has been quite clear on whether or not all of the franchise’s original stars will be back. As of right now, Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum are expected to return, but Will Smith apparently won’t be punching any more aliens in the face.
For now, we’ll just have to wait and see what changes Blanchard makes to the script, which early reports suggested would take place twenty years after the original, in a world where humans have “learned to use the technology the aliens brought to Earth to help rebuild.” The trouble starts when alien reinforcements travel “across the galaxy to exact revenge on the humans.”
Emmerich is currently busy shooting his next film, Stonewall, and will likely jump on board ID Forever Part 1 when that project wraps production.
Tell us, are you excited about getting sequels for Independence Day? Or is this potential franchise past its prime? Sound off in the comments section below.
