Judd Hirsch isn't sure if he'll be invited to return for the upcoming sequel to "Independence Day," but he thinks his character may have aged too much in the years since the 1996 original.
When Hirsch, 79, spoke with HuffPost Live's Ricky Camilleri on Monday about his ABC drama "Forever," he answered a fan question about the "Independence Day" follow-up, which is slated for release in June 2016.
Hirsch told HuffPost Live he doesn't know if he'll return because of the age of his character, which he considered himself "too young" to play first time around. In the film, Hirsch played the father of Jeff Goldblum's David Levinson, and because the sequel will jump forward two decades, Hirsch's character may be too old to include, he said.
"I wish I knew that," Hirsch said to the question about whether he'll be back. "From what I understand -- now, they haven't started shooting yet -- but I'm pretty sure that some of the people will be back. I believe it's going to be 20 years later, and I don't think Jeff Goldblum will look like a really old man. I don't know -- I might come back as Methuselah."
If Hirsch does not return, he won't be the only one; star Will Smith has opted out of reprising his role for the second chapter.
But playing a character older than himself in the original was fun for Hirsch. He said he felt empowered to play it with a hint of youth after an experience he'd had during a play, when he was sent to a nursing home to study body movements of the elderly so that he could act like an 81 year old.
"This guy comes running by in the [nursing] home, and I said, 'Well, how old is he?' They said 90. He was the only one that ran. He was 90. So it completely makes up my mind -- I said, 'Nowadays, there is no such thing as age. Not for me'," Hirsch said.
Hirsch also discussed the Oscar-winning film "Ordinary People," including a scene Hirsh was sad to see deleted from the final cut. See that conversation below, and click here for the full HuffPost Live interview.
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