Independence Day Coming Back to Theatres in 3D

Posted by on June 1st, 2012   Filed under: Action, Sci-fi
Source: Coming Soon

Just one day after it topped Film Junk’s poll of Will Smith movies, Fox has announced that Roland Emmerich’s Independence Day will be heading back to theatres next summer in 3D. Truth be told, when I first read the headline I thought that the long-rumoured back-to-back ID4 sequels were confirmed, but alas this is not the case. It’s just the same mid-’90s sci-fi movie we all know and love to quote at weddings, but with an extra dimension added. Still, it doesn’t seem like a stretch to assume that this might be the first step towards getting a sequel greenlit after all.

According to a press release from 20th Century Fox, Independence Day 3D will hit theatres on July 3rd, 2013. That will allow them to maintain the built-in U.S. holiday-themed marketing, but it will also put it up against Despicable Me 2 and Disney’s The Lone Ranger, two very heavy hitters. Can a 3D re-release hope to compete with next year’s summer blockbusters?

We’ve been seeing a lot of 3D re-releases lately, although somehow Independence Day doesn’t feel like it is quite on the same level as such blockbusters like Star Wars: Episode I and Titanic. Then again, Independence Day did make $817 million worldwide, which was the second highest worldwide gross back in 1996. I think the movie is probably well-suited for a 3D conversion, I’m just not sure how much interest there is in seeing such a thing. Would you pay to see Independence Day in 3D? Do you still want to see an Independence Day sequel?



  • Maopheus

    If there is one, Will Smith (assuming he is cast in the sequel) will be making a habit of being in long-gestating sequels. At this point, so long after the original, there seems little point. I’m sure, like with any sequel-less blockbuster movie, there are people who would like to see a re-visit to the original’s characters, setting and storyline. What exactly they will cover is of course completely unknown. It can certainly go in any direction. But with so much time having passed, it would certainly have to be set nearly 20 years after the events of the original. In that case, would be about the aftermath, how humanity rebuilds? Or, do we go find the alien home planet and kick ass? If there was going to be a sequel, wouldn’t there be one by now? Interestingly, Roland Emmerich films have rarely been made in sequels. I’m excluding Stargate (It was adapted into a TV series) and Universal Soldier (It’s sequels shouldn’t count.). He seems to create scenarios in his films that don’t set up well for sequels, mainly because the world tends to be completely destroyed at the end.

  • Hugo Van Nor

    If you anyone goes to see this. It should be law you have to be tazed before seeing it.

  • Dave

    Fuck the 3-D. Call me nostalgic, but I’d go back to a theater to see this in 2-D.

  • rjdelight

    ID4 II, one of the biggest missed opportunities of the 90s.

  • Kamen Liew

    I don’t seem to remember anything in ID4 that leaps out at you in 3D.

  • Derek McFarland

    This movie was awesome when it came out….but I have to admit, it feels a bit outdated and over the top. I wouldn’t mind seeing a sequel, especially if some of the original characters, Like Jeff Goldblum, and Will Smith, come back.

  • Ozymandias

    Coincidence? I think yes.