How You’d Fare Against the Independence Day Aliens, According to Myers-Briggs

How would you survive an alien invasion? It turns out, your personality holds the key. To celebrate the Fourth of July, we’re diving into how you’d fare against the city-destroying extraterrestrials from Independence Day—the quintessential summer blockbuster—all based on your Myers-Briggs type.

Every alien invasion needs a hero, and even if you’re not Will Smith, you possess your own specific skills to help Earth fight back. So place your patriotic hand over your heart, and read on to see how you might handle the aliens that gave me nightmares as a kid and still creep me out today.

ENTJ – The One Taking Charge of the War Room

When the sky is falling, the ENTJ is already barking orders in the command center. Feelings get hurt? Too bad—this is war. When they discover the CIA withheld critical Area 51 intel—intel that sent hundreds of brave pilots to their deaths—the ENTJ's fury is volcanic. As the President asks for options, the ENTJ slams the table: “Nuke 'em. Let's nuke the b*stards”.

INTJ – The One Who Knows Everything

While riots break out in the streets and explosions light up the horizon, the INTJ keeps a cool head. They’ve prepped for this. At Area 51, they dissect the captured alien and calmly explain the hive mind to a room full of stunned generals. They hand-pick a crack team of scientists and military personnel, determined to find the invaders' one weakness—and exploit it.

ENTP – The One Who Wants to Negotiate First

The ENTP is at the White House pushing for a sit-down with the extraterrestrial leadership when the welcome party gets spectacularly vaporized.  “Well, that didn’t work,” they say with a grin. Back to the drawing board. They rally their team, brainstorming wild, increasingly unhinged schemes until one mad idea actually saves the world. 

INTP – The One Who Concocts the Virus

The INTP is David Levinson, the movie's brilliant slacker—a little awkward, sure, but that's never slowed down a genius. While the world panics, the INTP is already detecting the aliens' signal, bombarding his ex-wife's White House extension trying to sound the alarm. While others empty their weapons against the aliens' impenetrable shields, they're quietly thinking of a way to shut them down. Then their dad gets a cold, and suddenly they have an idea for a scrappy little computer virus that somehow saves the entire planet.

ENFJ – The Shepherd Through the Wasteland

The ENFJ commandeers a pickup truck and leads their ragtag group through the wasteland after the aliens attack. They know more about how to survive than the rest—it's a hobby—and even that prickly teenager who won't stop chain-smoking eventually puts out the cigarette and actually listens. The group builds a self-sustaining survivor camp, with the ENFJ keeping the supplies counted and the spirits up. No wonder President Whitmore, a fellow ENFJ, saves his best work for the pre-battle speech. 

INFJ – The One Who Inspires Greatness

Burning cities on every screen and screaming outside the window hits the INFJ hard. But they push through the dread. Outside a shelter, lit by a roaring fire, they find a terrified stranger and sit with him until the world gets small enough to bear. By morning, his hands are steady—and he's climbing into a fighter jet to join the resistance. 

ENFP – The Fearless Revolutionary

Laser beams shoot down from above as others freeze under the massive ships. Not the ENFP. They dodge, weave and sprint to safety, where they somehow charm a gang of survivors into joining their cause—a stripper, an out-of-work engineer, a grumpy old man with a gun stash. Together they form an unlikely crew ready to take the fight to the smelly invaders.

INFP – The One Finding Joy in the Rubble

The INFP is building a shelter with old friends and new ones, gathered in the chaos of the invasion. It's hard work, but the INFP wouldn't have it any other way. They take a break to play hide-and-seek with a small girl with pigtails who hasn't smiled in days , because if the world is ending, someone has to make sure there's still a little joy in it. 

ESTJ – The Grizzled Cop Who Comes Out of Retirement to Lead

Looting and riots erupt outside their window. Retired or not, the ESTJ steps up, restoring order through equal parts bark and backbone. Before long, they're organizing the remaining military, law enforcement and civilians into a disciplined fighting force, because rules and structure still matter, even when the sky is on fire.

ISTJ – The One Who's Been Ready for This Since 1996 

The ISTJ is hunkered down in a bunker they've been quietly stocking for years. Methodically running protocols they could recite in their sleep, they inventory supplies, reinforce defenses and establish a perimeter that nothing is getting through while the world outside goes mad. 

ESFJ – The One Who Makes the Apocalypse Feel Like Home  

The others wake up to the smell of eggs and bacon, which the ESFJ will soon have to swap for survival rations, but will still serve with a smile. They keep everyone fed and comforted, turning a group of strangers into something that actually feels like a family. When the aliens show up, this tight-knit crew will be ready. 

ISFJ – The One Holding Everything Together From the Back Room 

The ISFJ is on the President's staff, fielding calls and patching together a response while everyone else panics. Between calls to military commands and government agencies, they find a moment to check in at home, making sure their family has what they need. Nobody will write songs about them. But without them, none of this works. 

ESTP – The One Who Punches Aliens in the Face

The ESTP is, without question, the coolest character in this movie: Captain Steven Hiller. A fearless fighter pilot, they parachute out of a plane, punch an alien in the face, and say, "Welcome to Earth." They insist on piloting an alien spaceship no human has ever touched and lighting a victory cigar before takeoff. Pure legend. 

ISTP – The One Who Can Make an Alien Craft Fly

The ISTP is just a regular mechanic, keeping their head down while the world loses its mind, until an old contact, out of options, drops an alien craft in their lap. Nobody thought it could fly again, but they obviously haven't met an ISTP. They settle in with their tools and hotwire the craft. While they're at it, they rig some serious makeshift explosives—because why not. 

ESFP – The Life of the Party (RIP)

As the squadron hurtles toward certain death, the ESFP is cracking jokes about the aliens being prettier than another pilot's mom. Like Captain Hiller's friend Jimmy (RIP Jimmy), they hold their nerve at suicidal speed in the face of the attacking enemy—and go down swinging.

ISFP – The Lone Survivor of the Wilderness

As civilization collapses, the ISFP slips into the woods. They already know how to live off grid—they hunt, they gather, they need nobody. When an alien dares to come close, they draw, shoot, and don't look back. Then back to the woods. Some people are just built for this.