Will Smith Shouldn’t Be Pricing Himself Out of the ‘Independence Day” Sequel So Fast

Director Roland Emmerich– who’s got the bewildering “White House Down” coming out Friday– tells the New York Daily News that Will Smith won’t be in the “Independence Day” sequel. He’s too expensive. And Emmerich says Smith told him he wanted to do other things. Oh really? Like what? “After Earth 2”? “Eight Pounds”? The fact is: Will Smith has not had a hit in a long time. “After Earth” and “Seven Pounds” were insufferable. The best thing he could do, frankly, is get himself into “ID4, Part 2” ASAP. For Smith, the thing he must do now is reconnect with his audience. They’re about to move on without him. Can it happen? Ask Eddie Murphy or Tom Cruise. Audiences change with new generations. “After Earth” did a lot of damage to Smith’s popularity. And “ID4” is beloved. Emmerich may have gotten lost on “WHD” but he knows these initials– “ID4” — a lot better. Smith could do a lot worse than cut his price and jump onto a popular project. Urgggh.