Over the course of 11 years and four movies, the 'Ice Age' franchise has earned 20th Century Fox nearly $3 billion, so it's not surprising that they have officially announced an 'Ice Age 5.' Fox revealed this next installment will hit theaters in 2016.

Coming hot on the heels of the long-awaited 'Independence Day' sequel and a mysterious Marvel Studios release, 'Ice Age 5' will hit July 20, 2016 and reunite the prehistoric heroes from the four previous films for another scientifically-challenged adventure. Since the Ice Age pretty much came to an end in last year's 'Ice Age: Continental Drift,' it'll be interesting to see how the folks at Blue Sky animation continue the adventures of these talking animals. At this point, we wouldn't be surprised if they fall into the time portal and end up in present day. After all, if a woolly mammoth voiced by Ray Romano can live through the thousands of years it took for the real Ice Age to conclude, then time travel is not out of the question here.

We kid, of course. These movies don't exist to accurately depict the Ice Age but instead to entertain the children of long-suffering parents who'd rather be in a Pixar movie but are content to sit in a theater for 90 minutes while their spawn take a breather from screaming at each other.

At this point, story details are unknown, so all we have is that release date. As we learn more, we'll be sure to let you know.

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