With nine months left until Terminator: Genisys comes to theaters (wait really?), the title is still dumb, but at least one part of the movie sounds fascinating. In a recent interview, James Cameron shared his alternate-universe take on how Arnold Schwarzenegger’s T-800 fits into the latest film, and it’s surprisingly sweet.
Cameron seems to be pretty content with how his franchise is doing without him, but he did make at least one big contribution to Genisys. Because he wanted a reason to bring back Schwarzenegger, he came up with a pretty logical explanation, as he explained to Deadline:
I wasn’t interested in producing it or working on it actively, but I did want to put in a good word for Arnold. I pointed out that the outer covering (of the Terminator) was actually not synthetic, that it was organic and therefore could age. You could theoretically have a Terminator that was sent back in time, missed his target, and ended up just kind of living on in society. Because he is a learning computer and has a brain as a central processor he could actually become more human as he went along without getting discovered.
Aw. Imagine a Terminator, stuck in the past without a purpose, grasping for a new life goal, and realizing that humans actually have it pretty great! Imagine the Terminator trying to parlay his super-strength into bodybuilding but still not feeling human enough on the inside to match his outsides. Founding a cheesy Hollywood-themed restaurant chain where he could store movie memorabilia and hide his own futuristic gear in plain sight. (His Mr. Freeze outfit was REAL.) Becoming an upstanding citizen and dabbling in politics. Marrying a Kennedy. Becoming Governor…
WAIT.
Photo: MGM Home Entertainment