Independence Day (1996)
The question of whether or not we are alone in the universe has been answered.
Strange phenomena surface around the globe. The skies ignite. Terror races through the world's major cities. As these extraordinary events unfold, it becomes increasingly clear that a force of incredible magnitude has arrived. Its mission: total annihilation over the Fourth of July weekend. The last hope to stop the destruction is an unlikely group of people united by fate and unimaginable circumstances.
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| Type | Movie |
|---|---|
| Released | 2 July 1996 |
| Genre | Action, Adventure, Science Fiction |
| Director | Roland Emmerich |
| Starring | Will Smith, Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum |
| Runtime | 145 min |
| Rated | PG-13 |
| Scores | Rotten Tomatoes (average) 6.6/10 · Rotten Tomatoes 67% · Metacritic 59/100 · IMDb 7.0/10 · TMDB users 6.9/10 |
| Budget | $75 million |
| Box office | $817 million worldwide |
Where to watch Independence Day
Independence Day is streaming on Fubo in the US.
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Rent or buy
You can rent Independence Day on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, Fandango at Home and Spectrum On Demand. It is also for sale on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube and Fandango at Home.
Where to watch Independence Day in 60 other countries
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| Argentina | Disney+ $15599 ARS |
| Australia | Disney+ $17.99 AUD |
| Austria | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Belgium | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Belize | Disney+ |
| Bolivia | Disney+ |
| Brazil | Disney+ R$49.90 |
| Bulgaria | Disney+ €9.99 |
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| Chile | Disney+ $10990 CLP |
| Colombia | Disney+ $36900 COP |
| Costa Rica | Disney+ |
| Croatia | Disney+ €9.99 |
| Czechia | Disney+ 219 Kč |
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| Dominican Republic | Disney+ |
| Ecuador | Disney+ $11.49 |
| El Salvador | Disney+ |
| Finland | Prime Video €6.99, Disney+ €11.99 |
| France | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Germany | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Gibraltar | Prime Video |
| Greece | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Guatemala | Disney+ |
| Guernsey | Prime Video |
| Honduras | Disney+ |
| Hong Kong | Disney+ HK$88 |
| Hungary | Disney+ 2990 Ft |
| India | Jiohotstar |
| Ireland | Prime Video €6.99, Disney+ €11.99 |
| Italy | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Jamaica | Disney+ |
| Japan | Disney+ ¥1250 JPY |
| Liechtenstein | Disney+ |
| Luxembourg | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Mexico | Disney+ $259 MXN |
| Netherlands | Disney+ €10.99 |
| New Zealand | Disney+ $18.99 NZD |
| Nicaragua | Disney+ |
| Norway | Prime Video 79 kr NOK, Disney+ 129 kr NOK |
| Panama | Disney+ $12.49 |
| Paraguay | Disney+ |
| Peru | Disney+ S/49.90 |
| Poland | Prime Video 25.99 zł, Disney+ 34.99 zł |
| Portugal | Disney+ €10.99 |
| Romania | Disney+ 34.99 lei |
| San Marino | Disney+ |
| Singapore | Disney+ $18.98 SGD |
| Slovakia | Disney+ €9.99 |
| South Korea | Disney+ ₩9900 |
| Spain | Disney+ €10.99 |
| St. Lucia | Disney+ |
| Sweden | Prime Video 69 kr SEK, Disney+ 129 kr SEK |
| Switzerland | Disney+ CHF16.90 |
| Taiwan | Disney+ NT$285 |
| Trinidad & Tobago | Disney+ |
| Türkiye | Disney+ ₺449.90 |
| United Kingdom | Disney+ £11.99 GBP |
| Uruguay | Disney+ about $U522 |
| Venezuela | Disney+ |
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What kind of watch this is
Roland Emmerich’s 1996 film runs 145 minutes and treats the end of the world as a summer blockbuster spectacle. The hook is simple: aliens arrive, cities burn, and the United States responds with a speech that somehow works. Will Smith pilots a fighter jet, Bill Pullman delivers that speech, and Jeff Goldblum spots the incoming threat. It is loud, earnest, and completely committed to the scale of its own destruction. The tagline asks if we are alone in the universe; the movie answers with an explosion.
What the critics said
Rotten Tomatoes sits at 67% as of 2022, with an average rating of 7.2/10 from 154 critics. Metacritic is more reserved, landing on 59 out of 100 based on 19 reviews. The consensus calls it a proudly goofy invasion epic. Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle went further, calling it the apotheosis of the genre. Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave it a B+, noting the script is witty. Not everyone agreed. Roger Ebert found the spaceship designs lacking in imagination. It is a film that asks for applause, then delivers a White House explosion.
How it did with audiences
It cost $75 million and took in $817 million worldwide, a margin that suggests the aliens were more than a little helpful. On TMDB, users rate it 6.9 out of 10. IMDb gave it a 7.0/10 weighted average as of July 2026. It was the highest-grossing film of 1996, beating Twister and Mission: Impossible. The numbers are strong. The rating is fine.
Awards
It won 8 awards from 14 nominations. Clay Pinney took the Oscar for Best Visual Effects, which seems reasonable given the scale of the destruction. Roland Emmerich got the Saturn for directing. Vivica A. Fox snagged the MTV Best Kiss, a category that exists specifically for this. The rest of the haul is a mix of sci-fi and kids' prizes.
What came next for the cast
Will Smith stepped from a sitcom and a buddy cop film into a string of blockbusters, a trajectory that reads less like a career arc and more like a rocket launch. Jeff Goldblum, meanwhile, seemed to exist in a different dimension, drifting from Jurassic Park to The Grand Budapest Hotel. Mary McDonnell traded military dramas for quirky indie roles, a shift that suggests the 1996 summer hit did not dictate her next move. The credits simply record what followed, not what caused it.
Where it left its mark
The CGI budget got a permanent raise. Writers point to the 1996 disaster pair, Twister and Independence Day, as the hinge where Hollywood stopped fearing mass destruction on screen. Once the tech caught up, wiping out cities became standard set dressing. Dante’s Peak and Volcano followed in 1997, then Deep Impact and Armageddon in 1998. The trend cooled but never died, resurfacing in the mid-2000s and 2010s. Emmerich’s own catalog, from The Day After Tomorrow to 2012, kept the skyline in peril. So did Transformers and The Avengers. Skyscrapers are now mostly for demolition.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched Independence Day.
Read more: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Sources
- Independence Day on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q105387 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “Independence Day (1996 film)” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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