LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 06: Director James Cameron attends Red Carpet Green Dress at the Private Residence of Jonas Tahlin, CEO of Absolut Elyx on February 06, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gabriel Olsen/Getty Images for Absolut Elyx)
Movies - TV
Why James Cameron Came Back To The Terminator Franchise
By SANDY SCHAEFER
James Cameron’s 1991 “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” was the perfect stopping point for the franchise and was believed to be sequel-proof, but multiple continuations of the story were produced over the years, with each claiming to be the start of a new trilogy. Cameron wouldn’t return to the franchise until 2019’s “Terminator: Dark Fate,” which he co-wrote and produced.
The “Terminator” franchise’s birth came from the 1980s Cold War era fears of nuclear annihilation, whereas “Dark Fate” reflects our current age of surveillance, drone warfare, and increased anti-immigrant sentiments. Cameron said in an interview, “I just feel like the world we live in now is going to be very much defined by our co-evolution with our technology.”
Cameron added, “It’s like we’re really on the cusp of an Orwellian armageddon of inconceivable proportions. Therefore, I thought, hey, let’s make a movie about that.” Despite Cameron’s involvement, the movie bombed at the box office, but the film takes the franchise into new thematic territory and reflects the growing prominence of transhumanist elements in Cameron’s work since “Terminator 2.”