'Independence Day' set for two sequels

Two sequels to 1996 movie 'Independence Day' are to be filmed, it has been announced.

The 1996 movie - which starred Will Smith as the saviour of earth after an alien attack - could get the follow-ups thanks to the success of James Cameron's 3-D sci-fi epic 'Avatar', which was released by 20th Century Fox, the same studio that distributed 'Avatar'.

According to movie news website IESB.net, the films would see Smith return as Captain Steve Hiller and would be shot back-to-back as early as 2011.

Director Roland Emmerich and writer Dean Devlin already have a story for the first sequel.

Fox co-chairman Tom Rothman has previously confirmed he wants to make a sequel to the sci-fi movie, which took more than $800m (€594.9m) at the box office when it was released in 1996.

Smith has not starred in a film since 2008's 'Seven Pounds', although he has worked in a producer capacity on the recently completed 'The Karate Kid', which stars his son Jaden Smith, 11.