Sony has been slowly moving forward on developing a sequel to their 1996 blockbuster Independence Day and the studio has shifted that into high gear by announcing a release date for the film. Well, we always new that it would be sometime around July 4, but the studio has stated that Independence Day 2 will be in theaters on July 3, 2015.
The name is a bit different from the ones director Rolland Emmerich was touting last year – Independence Day Forever Part One and Part Two – when he was stating that they actually had two films in development. It’s not clear if the plan is still to do two films and Sony is trying to keep that under wraps, the studio wants to see how a second film does before greenlighting a third or if the two sequel plan has been scrapped altogether in favor of a single-film story.
It does seem to hint that the brass at Sony are thinking that Emmerich’s White House Down, which is set to open next Friday, will do big business and want to make sure that his next film is with them.
It is not known if any of the original film’s cast will be back. Star Will Smith could certainly use something that looks like a sure-fire hit after his latest, After Earth, tanked at the box office. Previously, Sony has shown an indication that it would proceed with or without the actor.
