[This trailer contains MILD SPOILERS for Independence Day: Resurgence.]
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Filmmaker Roland Emmerich is releasing the sequel to his 1996 alien invasion blockbuster, titled Independence Day: Resurgence, in time to commemorate the original film’s twentieth anniversary. The Independence Day followup picks up in real time after the events of its predecessor, with the people of Earth having spent the last two decades preparing for another extraterrestrial invasion by using the aliens’ technology to build a global defense system; not to mention, a military base on the moon meant to serve as the initial line of defense. However, when the next wave of extraterrestrial spaceships make their way to our planet, even twenty years of preparation may not be enough to ensure that humanity will emerge victorious over their would-be conquerers a second time.
The two “big ideas” behind the Independence Day sequel - an alternate version of Earth shaped by the aliens’ technology and the arrival of an even bigger second fleet of space invaders - are covered in greater depth in the nearly five-minute long “extended” trailer for Resurgence that 20th Century Fox has now released online. You can give it a watch, above.
Resurgence brings back every main character from the original Independence Day that survived to the end of the film - save for Will Smith as Steven Hiller, whose demise in the Independence Day universe between movies is alluded to during the extended trailer featured above - and even reveals that Dr. Brakish Okun (Brent Spiner) managed to survive being used as a mouthpiece for the aliens in the first installment, too. This is something to keep in mind, since the extended trailer for Resurgence shows former U.S. president Thomas J. Whitmore (Bill Pullman) allowing himself to be used as a means of communication between the aliens and humans too; whether or not Whitmore will make it out of that situation alive remains to be seen, but at least Dr. Okun surviving proves that there’s hope for Whitmore yet (fleeting it may be, especially given that Resurgence appears to revolve around the idea of one generation of Independence Day movie characters “passing the torch” to another).
In addition, Fox has released a new TV spot for Independence Day: Resurgence that further highlights the film’s cast - which includes series newcomer Maika Monroe (It Follows) - and provides additional proof that David Levinson’s (Jeff Goldblum) observation that the second alien invasion is “bigger than the last one” has multiple layers of meaning. You can watch that promo, above.
Last, but not least, Empire has debuted a fresh Resurgence-themed magazine cover, in addition to new images from the Independence Day sequel. Among the newcomers to the Independence Day franchise pictured below are Liam Hemsworth (The Hunger Games), Jessie Usher (Survivor’s Remorse), and Sela Ward (CSI: NY). These images also provide a closer look at the humans’ military base on the moon, along with one of the aliens who’s wearing the “bio-suit” from the original Independence Day. You can also read the official synopsis for Independence Day: Resurgence, below:
We always knew they were coming back. After INDEPENDENCE DAY redefined the event movie genre, the next epic chapter delivers global spectacle on an unimaginable scale. Using recovered alien technology, the nations of Earth have collaborated on an immense defense program to protect the planet. But nothing can prepare us for the aliens’ advanced and unprecedented force. Only the ingenuity of a few brave men and women can bring our world back from the brink of extinction.
Independence Day: Resurgence opens in U.S. theaters on June 24th, 2016.
Source: Empire (2), 20th Century Fox
