The new Terminator film has found its Kyle Reese.  After testing a number of actors for the key role in director Alan Taylor’s (Thor: The Dark World) reboot Terminator: Genesis, we learned recently that Taylor and Paramount had narrowed their focus to two actors: Jai Courtney (Jack Reacher) and Boyd Holbrook  (The Host).  Now Variety reports that the former has come away with the role, as Courtney has been tapped to play Kyle Reese opposite Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) as Sarah Connor, Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty) as John Connor, and Arnold Schwarzenegger as the iconic Terminator.  Hit the jump for more. 

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Per Variety’s report, plot details on Terminator: Genesis are firmly under wraps save for the fact that it’s being planned as the first in a new trilogy of films.  Michael Biehn inhabited the Reese role in James Cameron’s original film, so Courtney certainly has big shoes to fill.  The Australian actor was the very best thing about the otherwise forgettable A Good Day to Die Hard and he was sufficiently intimidating in 2012’s Jack Reacher, so it’ll be interesting to see what he brings to the role of Reese.

This isn’t the first potential franchise role for Courtney, though, as the actor will be seen next month in the futuristic thriller Divergent and is poised to return in the sequel Insurgent.  Courtney also has a role in Angelina Jolie’s next directorial effort Unbroken, which opens in theaters this Christmas.  Terminator: Genesis will begin filming this year ahead of a July 1, 2015 release date.

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