Roland Emmerich has confirmed a sequel for "Independence Day" but he says it's not sure whether there will be a third movie. He seems more certain about Will Smith not returning. He also quotes a release date for the alien invasion epic, but the disaster director admits it is not set in stone.

In a podcast with NY Daily News, Emmerich quipped on his reasons for not having Will Smith back: "Will Smith can not come back because he's too expensive, but he'd also be too much of a marquee name. We have like maybe half of the people that you know would know from the first film (in the script) and the other half people who are new." Bill Pullman will probably return, though.

The tentative release date is July 3, 2015 and the director from Germany emphasizes 'tentative.' In a podcast with Empire online, he elaborates: "You have to set a release date otherwise another film moves into it. Independence Day is my next movie, if I get the right script. I should get the script pretty soon, then I'll try to get it into good shape for one or two months, and if that happens, we'll announce it and start production."

Initial reports on the sequel has declared two sequels (a trilogy) but Emmerich has abandoned that approach, and will take it one movie at a time:  "We'll only do the first part because we want to have the audience decide if they want to see the second, otherwise it feels arrogant. But I'm pretty confident, with the right script..."

It's an intriguing prospect. Will "ID4 2" or "ID4-EVER" repeat the success of the original, even without Will Smith?