Here’s Independence Day: Resurgence’s Harvester Queen explained. Independence Day became one of the defining blockbusters of the 1990s and featured Earth being attacked by a brutal race of aliens intent on wiping out mankind and harvesting the planet’s resources. It cemented Will Smith as a movie star and features some still impressive setpieces and action. Director Roland Emmerich and producer Dean Devlin soon moved on to 1998’s Godzilla – which hasn’t aged quite as well.
Roland Emmerich has since admitted a dislike of sequels, which might be one reason Independence Day: Resurgence took so long to arrive. Another factor was Will Smith’s involvement, with the star being vocally reluctant to return. Two scripts were developed for the follow-up, with one involving Smith’s character and the other focusing on his son instead. Ultimately, Will Smith opted out to make Suicide Squad, with Independence Day: Resurgence proving to be a critical and commercial disappointment. Emmerich has since admitted it was a mistake to press ahead without Smith’s involvement.
Independence Day: Resurgence added some more lore to the aliens, dubbing them “Harvesters” and revealing they’ve been destroying and harvesting worlds for thousands of years. It also revealed they are a hive-mind race, controlled by a fearsome Harvester Queen. It turns out this Queen was in charge of the 1996 war and 20 years later leads her forces in a revenge attack against the planet for defeating her ships.
Just like the Xenomorph Queen from Aliens, Independence Day: Resurgence positions the Harvester Queen as the head of her hive. She’s much taller and stronger than the rest of the invaders and is even bigger when she enters her bio-suit. This suit comes with a shield and massive tentacles, but while she’s more intelligent than her minions, she’s still lured into a trap where her ship is destroyed by former President Whitmore (Bill Pullman, The Sinner).
Independence Day: Resurgence proved the Harvester Queen was nothing if not tough, as she survives the explosion and heads to Area 51, intent on destroying an alien intelligence that previously encountering the Harvesters. She takes down a bunch of fighter jets along the way – though somehow fails to crush a school bus – and almost succeeds in destroying the sphere. Instead, she suffers fatal injuries and dies, with the rest of the invaders flee without a leader to guide them. This was intended to set up Independence Day 3 where humanity would have led a counter-attack on the Harvester aliens, but the response to Independence Day: Resurgence currently makes a follow-up doubtful.
