8 Reasons Independence Day Is The 90s' Star Wars

For all the thematic links, what's going to make Independence Day a latterday Star Wars was success, and boy did it get that. It was the highest grossing movie of 1996 by almost $300 million, making $817 million worldwide to Twister's (yes, Twister) $494 mil. Its reviews weren't as overwhelmingly positive as Star Wars' contemporary assessments were (probably because it isn't as good a film), but the audience response was phenomenal.

It's got a strong following and, while Emmerich's later films are by-and-large dismissed as empty spectacle, this one has stuck around in the public mindset. The White House destruction is iconic and Bill Paxton's speech has cycled from cliché to genius and back again multiple times. It cemented Will Smith as a movie star and, now we're all in love with Jeff Goldblum again, David Levinson is elevated also.

Try and find another 90s movie with the same impact. Titanic? Bigger, but it's had a backlash. The Lion King, sure, but animation is its own little bubble. The Matrix could count, but that has all the hallmarks of a fad (a good fad, but still). The closest is Jurassic Park, but that's more of a Jaws than a Star Wars.