‘Independence Day: Resurgence’ Star Jessie T. Usher on Playing a Character Whose Dad Saved the World
It’s been two decades since moviegoers flocked to see director Roland Emmerich’s 1996 alien invasion blockbuster Independence Day on America’s actual Independence Day weekend. Now, those pesky aliens are attacking Earth again in this weekend’s Independence Day: Resurgence, which picks up 20 years after the original film left off. That’s a long wait in between cataclysmic attacks, but Resurgence star Jessie T. Usher, 24, promises it’ll be worth it. “You’ll see some very close encounters and death defying stunts,” the actor tells Yahoo Movies about Emmerich’s long-in-the-works follow-up.
Related: ‘Independence Day’ Helped Make Will Smith a Superstar
Usher is at the center of the action as Dylan Hiller, the son of ace pilot Steven Hiller (Will Smith) who helped save the world in the original film. Dylan is now an experienced flyboy in his own right. Smith declined to return for the sequel, and, as his onscreen son describes, the elder Hiller’s absence is explained by the character’s death in a tragic training accident years before. “You’ll see that impact [on Dylan] throughout the film,” Usher says. “In the moments where he feels like ‘I have to step up,’ he kind of just wishes his dad was there to back him up.”
Usher remembers seeing the first Independence Day when he was around 12 years old and wanting to immediately find the real Area 51. That adventure never came to pass, but shooting Resurgence indulged his childhood fascination with aliens. Meanwhile, Dylan gets the chance to follow in his father’s world-saving footsteps. “It’s us or them, right? That’s what it comes down to: us or them to save the world or perish.”
Watch 15 questions with Jessie T. Usher:
