Independence Day starring Will Smith has become a big hit on streaming. Released in 1996, the Roland Emmerich sci-fi film, which also stars Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman, chronicles humanity’s fight to survive after destructive alien invaders attack Earth. Independence Day was a major box office success, grossing $817.4 million worldwide, on top of earning mostly positive reviews from critics. The movie remains a popular watch even almost two decades later.

A new streaming popularity chart from Reelgood now reveals that Independence Day was the seventh most popular title on streaming in the U.S. for the week of July 4 – 10. The movie’s streaming success, unsurprisingly, coincides with the real American Independence Day on July 4, with Americans evidently revisiting the patriotic film around the holiday. The Smith movie beats out the likes of Pearl, House of the Dragon, and My Lady Jane. Check out the full top 10 list below:

Independence Day Is A 1990s Will Smith Classic

Where The Film Fits Into Smith’s Hollywood Career

Smith was already a well-known figure in the TV and music landscape prior to Independence Day‘s release, due in large part to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He had also, however, announced himself as a movie star with 1995’s Bad Boys. The Michael Bay action film can largely be credited as the project that started Smith’s Hollywood movie career, and it featured a blend of action, comedy, and charm that he would become known for in all his biggest titles.

A starring role in the Independence Day cast may not have been Smith’s big break, but it certainly helped to cement his newfound movie star status. Like Bad Boys, the Emmerich movie saw Smith playing a character with both attitude and heart, and he was the source of much of the film’s comedy. This winning combination would be further established in 1997 with the release of Men in Black.

Smith delivered a number of successful movies in the 2000s and the 2010s, but the trio of Bad Boys, Independence Day, and Men in Black could be enough to cement the 1990s as the decade with his greatest number of memorable movies. An attempt was made in 2016 to repeat the success of the 1996 classic with Independence Day: Resurgence, but Smith wisely did not return for this disappointing sequel. The fact that Independence Day continues to dominate streaming charts even 20 years later speaks to just how effectively the film hit the mark with audiences.

Source: Reelgood