Independence Day 2 Getting a Script Rewrite

We recently learned that Will Smith has officially declined involvement in Independence Day 2, which has naturally left 20th Century Fox scrambling for a way to make the decades-later sequel work without him. And it seems they may have finally found that way, in the form of a new writer. Read on for the latest!

Variety reports that Fox has brought Carter Blanchard on board to re-write the first draft of the script, penned by James Vanderbilt. Blanchard previously wrote a couple episodes of the TV series “Good vs. Evil,” and is currently working on Oculus director Mike Flanagan’s thriller Diver.

No plot details have been revealed for the sequel, tentatively titled ID Forever: Part 1.

Roland Emmerich is still attached to direct with Dean Devlin set to produce. Emmerich will also produce along with Harald Kloser.

The 1996 blockbuster Independence Day hit theaters on July 3, 1996, and went on to gross a still-impressive $817 million worldwide.

Look for the new flick in theatres on July 1, 2016 — or almost exactly 20 years after the original hit the big screen.