Vivica A. Fox is opening up about the disappointment of Independence Day: Resurgence, the 2016 sequel to the Will Smith-starring 1996 film.
During an interview with the A.V. Club, Fox admitted Independence Day 2 paled in comparison to its predecessor due to the absence of Smith, who in the past claimed he didn't sign off on Resurgence due to scheduling conflicts.
"I just didn’t feel like it was good and it lived up to the first one,” Fox shared in the video below. “I really feel we missed out…by not bringing Will Smith back.”
Fox continued by admitting that despite bringing back the majority of the original stars—including herself, Jeff Goldblum, Judd Hirsch, and Bill Pullman—the sequel fell short because Will wasn't there.
“We had most of the original cast on, but I think the one true link that was missing to the success of Independence Day 2, was that we missed—that Will Smith wasn’t there,” Fox said, elaborating on the moment she realized this. “And I’m gonna tell you, I’m gonna keep it real. I was at the premiere and I was like, 'Mm, mm, mm—let’s see how the fans are gonna feel about this.' And sure enough on Twitter, they blew me up.”
The movie came from returning director Roland Emmerich and co-writer Dean Devlin. The year it released, Smith spoke with BBC Radio about why he wasn't reprising his leading role.
“It was one of those things—I had a couple of films lined up, I had Concussion and Suicide Squad, and so it was a decision, timing-wise, between Independence Day and Suicide Squad,” Smith explained. “They were sending pictures from the set, and I was like, ahh.”
He continued, “The world is in a place of nostalgia right now. Specifically in entertainment, there’s such a pull for nostalgia, so it was just the perfect opportunity and it didn’t work out.”
Elsewhere in Vivica A. Fox's A.V. Club interview, she spoke on landing her role in SZA's Kill Bill-referencing music video for the SOS track of the same name—a cameo she believes almost went to Uma Thurman instead.
