James Cameron is among the most commercially successful filmmakers in the industry. Even before Avatar became a monstrous box-office success the director had features like The Terminator and Titanic to his name. Nonetheless, the 2009 movie spanned into a 5-part franchise with the sequel Avatar: The Way of Water currently dominating the box office thirteen years after the original movie came out. However, there’s one franchise that seems to have stayed with the director that he wants to reboot, The Terminator. Cameron recently revealed to the Smartless Podcast with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett that indeed a reboot is in “discussion.”
The thirteen-year gap between the two Avatar movies is attributed to Cameron’s penchant to perfect the story and the required technology for the sequels. While discussing the themes of his movies and the use of artificial intelligence in filmmaking, Cameron confirmed the discussion about the reboot saying, “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.” Adding, “I would make it much more about the AI side of it than bad robots gone crazy.”
While Cameron hasn’t directed a Terminator movie since Terminator: Judgment Day, he has been attached to the franchise with sequels like Terminator: Genisys and Terminator: Dark Fate. Though he recently regretted making the latter “your granddad's Terminator movie.” Created by Cameron, the time-traveling AI-assassin featuring franchise started in 1984 with Terminator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the titular cyborg, Linda Hamilton as his target Sarah Connor and Michael Biehn as Kyle Reese, Sarah’s protector. The movie topped the United States box office for two weeks, eventually grossing $78.3 million which propelled the franchise. In 1991 the director returned to helm Judgment Day which went on to make $519 million worldwide and garnered much critical acclaim garnering three Academy Award nominations and winning two.
Judgment Day is considered among the best movies ever made. However, the magic could not be recreated in the following sequels ever since. If indeed the Terminator reboot discussion turns fruitful and Cameron returns to direct, which he hints at in his comments, an AI theme-based story can do wonders with the contemporary audience. With the advancements in entertainment technology and Cameron at the helm, a reboot of the franchise is certain to be a visual delight.
Check out the trailer for the first film in the franchise below: