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Independence Day

1996 · directed by Roland Emmerich · 145 min
26,757 feet · Prominence
119th of 15,261 films scored
The Rewatchables‘Independence Day’ With Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and Shea Serrano

How this film scores

Draw86

$817m worldwide in 1996 — $1.72bn in today's money.

As released$817mIn 2026 money$1.72bnRank34 of 8,589In 19961 of 170

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise71

Critics 68, awards 20. Half each, so Praise lands at 71.

Critics68 → 34Awards20 → 10

Oscars1 won Visual Effects1 nominated Sound
BAFTAs2 nominated Sound, Special Visual Effects
How Praise works

Half critics, half a tiered award record where Picture and Directing carry most of the weight. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy80

Judged directly: Iconic 90s disaster blockbuster, quoted.

Verdict80 of 100IMDb7 from 642kWikipedia74k views a monthAge30 years

Scored beside it · 124 of 3,430 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 86 praise 71 legacy 80averages 79, which places it at26,757 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

In these careers — elevation for this film

Will Smith22,582 ft