Yes, no, maybe: those are the three answers Will Smith has given to 20th Century Fox about returning for “Independence Day 2” aka “ID Forever” over the past few years. But now it seems he’s made up his mind. Almost.
Deadline reports that Smith won’t be starring in the sequel that is set for a 2016 release, but they add that they were “told not to set this in stone, because Smith has been back and forth before on whether to make the movie.” That said, they do believe he’ll be letting director Roland Emmerich know shortly that he won’t be coming back. But this is why you always plan ahead. Indeed, Emmerich told us last fall that two scripts were being written by James Vanderbilt—one centered on Smith, one without him—to cover their bases whenever he got around to deciding what he was going to do.
So, where will the filmmakers turn to next? At least one producer stated they want Michael B. Jordan to join the movie, but they won’t be throwing the baby out with the bathwater entirely, as Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman are expected to return. So, there you go: the nearly definitive answer on Smith’s non-involvement with this sequel. “Independence Day 2” drops on July 1, 2016.
