Cliff Notes – James Cameron struggling to write ‘new Terminator film’ over stark sci-fi fears
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James Cameron expresses difficulty in writing the new Terminator film due to real-world events that mirror science fiction themes, stating, “I have a hard time writing science fiction.”
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The director suggests that the upcoming plot may focus more on artificial intelligence rather than rogue robots, aiming to refresh the franchise’s narrative.
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Reflecting on the reception of 2019’s Terminator: Dark Fate, Cameron acknowledges that the film’s appeal may have diminished for younger audiences unfamiliar with the original series.
James Cameron struggling to write ‘new Terminator film’ over stark sci-fi fears
Arnold Schwarzenegger led the way in the first Terminator films (Picture: Shutterstock)
James Cameron has revealed that he is having a ‘hard time’ writing the new Terminator movie because of ‘stark’ real-world events.
The iconic director is behind some of the biggest movies in history, including Avatar, Titanic, Aliens and the Terminator franchise.
However, during an appearance on CNN, the 70-year-old explained that he is currently penning ‘a new Terminator story’, but found himself struggling when it comes to the technology aspect of the plot.
‘I’m at a point right now where I have a hard time writing science fiction,’ he declared.
‘I’m tasked with writing a new Terminator story. I’ve been unable to get started on that very far, because I don’t know what to say that won’t get overtaken by real events.
‘We are living in a science fiction age right now, and the only way out is through, by using our intelligence, by using our curiosity, by using our command of technology, but also by really understanding the stark probabilities that we face.’
James Cameron opened up about the upcoming Terminator movie (Picture: Getty)
He directed and co-wrote the first two films (Picture: Shutterstock)
The Terminator first hit the screen in 1984, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the titular cyborg assassin, sent from the future to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), stopping her from giving birth to the man who would go on to save humankind.
The film currently commands an impressive 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes, and has gone down as one of the best movies of all time.
There were a further five movies in the franchise – Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Terminator Salvation, Terminator Genisys, and Terminator: Dark Fate.
In 2022, James revealed that there had been ‘discussions’ about a possible seventh film, and suggested that the plot would focus less on the rogue robots.
The first two Terminator films are iconic (Picture: Getty)
Arnie returned for 2019’s Terminator: Dark Fate (Picture: Paramount Pictures)
‘If I were to do another Terminator film and maybe try to launch that franchise again, which is in discussion, but nothing has been decided, I would make it much more about the AI side of it than bad robots gone crazy,’ he announced on the Smartless podcast.
He directed and co-wrote the first two instalments in the franchise, but took a back seat on the other movies before returning to co-write and produce 2019’s Dark Fate.
However, the flick – which saw the return of Arnie and Linda – bombed at the box office and didn’t go down well with fans.
Unpacking the reception in a candid interview with Deadline in 2022, the filmmaker said: ‘I’m actually reasonably happy with the film.
He reunited on screen with Linda Hamilton (Picture: AP)
‘I think what happened is I think the movie could have survived having Linda in it, I think it could have survived having Arnold in it.
‘But when you put Linda and Arnold in it and then, you know, she’s 60-something, he’s 70-something, all of a sudden it wasn’t your Terminator movie, it wasn’t even your dad’s Terminator movie, it was your granddad’s Terminator movie.
‘And we didn’t see that. We loved it, we thought it was cool, you know, that we were making this sort of direct sequel to a movie that came out in 1991. And young moviegoing audiences weren’t born. They wouldn’t even have been born for another 10 years.
‘So, it was just our own myopia. We got a little high on our own supply, and I think that’s the lesson there.’
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