Director Roland Emmerich has confirmed in an interview with the NY Times that actor Will Smith will not be returning for the Independence Day sequel, which is slated for release July 3, 2015.
The reasons? Emmerich says that Smith would be “too expensive,” and also goes on to state that his marquee name status “would be too much.” Seems a little fishy to this Renegade Reporter. With news that Smith is planning an indefinite hiatus from blockbuster type films given the relative failure of After Earth, is it really Emmerich that’s calling the shots here? Ir seems like a big risk for a sequel 20 years in the making to not bring back its major star. Or is the Fresh Prince really walking away from big budget Hollywood?
So, who is returning? Emmerich says that about half of the original cast are set to come back, and both Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum have confirmed their participation. The director also confirmed that the film will be a direct sequel, and not some type of reboot or prequel. He calls plans for the ID4 sequel “something that’s totally unusual.” We’ll be keeping our ears to the ground for what, exactly, that may mean. Very interesting that Will Smith isn’t chomping at the bit to return (or is he?, as a homecoming to the role that catapulted him into film stardom would be a nice rebound relationship after this summer’s dismal After Earth experience. So, what the heck is really going on? Are Fox execs reluctant to spend the money or associate with the stink of Will and son’s recent failure? Is Smith hanging up his boots? With this being Hollywood we’ll likely all hear some reasons sooner or later…stay tuned.
Source: Ain’t It Cool News
