‘I’m done,’ Arnold Schwarzenegger retires from the Terminator franchise
The Terminator star and Hollywood icon Arnold Schwarzenegger, has announced his retirement from the iconic character.
Despite reprising the role multiple times since the original 1984 film directed by James Cameron, Schwarzenegger has decided to bid farewell to the character following the lukewarm response to recent Terminator movies.
The first Terminator film introduced Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor, who finds herself targeted by a relentless cyborg from the future on a mission to eliminate her and prevent the birth of John Connor, the future leader of the human resistance.
The former California Governor returned in Cameron’s highly-acclaimed sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, where his cyborg character was reprogrammed to protect a young John Connor from a more advanced cyborg, the T-1000.
While the first two si-fi installments achieved both critical acclaim and box office success, the four subsequent sequels released between 2003 and 2019 failed to replicate their predecessors’ achievements.
Despite the ‘Predator’ star’s involvement in most of these sequels (excluding Terminator: Salvation due to his role as the Governor of California at the time), he has expressed his decision not to portray the Terminator again due to the underwhelming audience response to recent installments.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Schwarzenegger expressed, “The franchise is not done. I’m done. I got the message loud and clear that the world wants to move on with a different theme when it comes to The Terminator. Someone has to come up with a great idea. “
Acknowledging the defying of the last two Terminator films, the 75-year-old actor confessed, “The Terminator was largely responsible for my success, so I always would look at it very fondly. The first three movies were great. Number four [Salvation] I was not in because I was governor. Then five [Genisys] and six [Dark Fate] didn’t close the deal as far as I’m concerned. We knew that ahead of time because they were just not well written.”
The disappointing reflection of Terminator: Dark Fate, intended to kickstart a new era for the franchise with the highly anticipated reunion of Schwarzenegger and Hamilton’s Terminator characters, further confirmed the audience’s waning interest.
The film not only proved to be a box office disappointment but also received mixed reviews from critics.
Cameron, the original director, has expressed his desire to return to the series, affirming Schwarzenegger’s prediction of its continuation. While the Hollywood icon has accepted moving on from his iconic role, the fate of the Terminator franchise now rests on the emergence of a captivating new concept to revitalize the beloved series.
In the ever-evolving landscape of Hollywood, where franchises are often resurrected, time will tell if someone can breathe new life into the Terminator universe and prevent it from languishing on life support.
