‘Independence Day: Resurgence’ News: Why Will Smith Wasn’t In The Movie

“Independence Day: Resurgence,” which is currently in theaters, comes after the release of “Independence Day” 20 years ago. The latter movie starred Will Smith, and it was his biggest break as a box office star. However, he’s not part of the sequel in this new film despite most of the original players like Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum returning.

According to War of 1996, Steve Hiller, the character played by Will Smith in the hit movie, died while testing an alien aircraft.  But the real story behind the actor’s absence was because the role was  role was no longer central to “Independence Day: Resurgence.”

The studio wanted to focus on a young cast, which means Steve Hiller was no longer the star pilot in the movie. Thus, his character was scrapped out of the script. But Will Smith believes that it was also because of conflicts in his schedule.

Filming for “Independence Day: Resurgence” overlapped with his committments to “Suicide Squad,” which incidentally would also be out this summer. He chose to be on “Suicide Squad” than do the sequel. “It was just the perfect opportunity and it didn’t work out,” said the actor in a radio interview.

Meanwhile, “Independence Day: Resurgence” opened to not-so-great reviews and box office numbers, according to The Wrap. “Finding Dory” is still the number one movie for this week. Critics say that Will Smith’s absence might have affected its box office standing and the movie could no longer sustain its predecessor after a long time.