I was lucky enough to moderate a great Q&A with White House Down director Roland Emmerich this evening at the Apple Store in SoHo, NYC, and Independence Day addicts out there (myself one of them) might want to pay attention to the rest of this post. We both spoke very highly of Independence Day during the 40-minute conversation (listen to the whole thing right here), and it didn't take too long before Independence Day 2 came up. Emmerich told me he's always been interested in returning to both Independence Day and Stargate (I have a feeling that'll come next) -- both of these in addition to producing a Lawrence of Arabia show for television -- now that technology has come a long way in the last two decades.

Previously Emmerich has said that half of the cast of Independence Day 2 will be made up of returning characters, while the other half is new. Earlier today it was reported that Will Smith is a little too expensive and too big a star to get back for part two (comments Emmerich reiterated tonight), though he elaborated a bit and said he still hasn't presented Smith with the final product and hopes he can get him for a cameo to "pass the torch," so to speak.

When I pressed him on who those returning characters are, he said Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman are on board so far. In the original Goldblum played the nerdy scientist heartthrob whose shticky relationship with his father (Judd Hirsch) provided some of the film's greatest moments. Pullman played the badass president of the United States who took to the skies to defend his country against the invading aliens (he also gave us one of the most spirited and patriotic of all movie speeches). No word on how either man factors into the plot of the sequel, which Emmerich has said is "unusual."

Independence Day 2 is due out on July 3, 2015, while the very fun and exciting White House Down hits theaters this weekend.