Will Smith’s Classic Alien Sci-Fi Movie To Begin Streaming on Netflix Soon

A classic sci-fi movie starring Will Smith is heading to Netflix soon. Independence Day is one of the many films dropping on the streamer next month. Originally released in 1996, the film became the highest-grossing film of the year and played a big role in the resurgence of large-scale disaster films and science fiction. It also became the second-highest-grossing release at the time.

Furthermore, it earned two Oscar nominations, one for Best Visual Effects and the other for Best Sound, winning the former. Notably, the film spawned a sequel, Independence Day: Resurgence, released in 2016.

Independence Day arriving on Netflix next month

Independence Day, starring Will Smith, reportedly starts streaming on Netflix on February 1, 2026.

Following its release in 1996, Independence Day grossed $306.1 million domestically and $817.4 million globally against a budget of $75 million (via Box Office Mojo). When adjusted for inflation, the former amount equates to approximately $631.9 million, while the latter equates to a staggering $1.687 billion.

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film boasts a decent critical score of 69% and a robust audience score of 75%. Meanwhile, Metacritic has given the film a Metascore of 59 and a user score of 7.0, the former indicating “mixed or average” reception and the latter denoting “generally favorable” reception.

The film’s story takes place in 1996, the same year the film was released, and in a span of three days, beginning on July 2 and concluding on Independence Day or July 4. It follows multiple groups of people who come together in the Nevada desert following a devastating attack by aliens. Teaming up with other people from around the world, they launch a counterattack to repel the aliens.

Roland Emmerich directed the film from his and Dean Devlin’s screenplay, while Devlin also produced the film. Meanwhile, Karl Walter Lindenlaub handled the film’s cinematography, while David Arnold composed the film’s music and David Brenner edited it. 20th Century Fox and Centropolis Entertainment are the production companies behind the film, with the former also distributing it in theaters.

In addition to Will Smith, Independence Day also stars Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Mary McDonnell, Judd Hirsch, Robert Loggia, and Randy Quaid, among many others.

Source: Comingsoon.net