'Terminator: Genisys': What's The Deal With Matt Smith's Character?

When Matt Smith was first cast in Terminator: Genisys, we had no idea who he was playing. Now that the film is in theaters, of course, we have the answer — but we're left with a whole bunch of other questions about his mysterious character.

In a new interview, screenwriters Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier explain the Terminator Genisys Matt Smith character, including where he came from, what he wants, and what in the hell he's doing here. (Warning: Spoilers ahead for Terminator: Genisys.)

If you've seen the movie, you know Matt Smith is Skynet. He's the one who changes the timeline by attacking John Connor (Jason Clarke). While Smith doesn't get a lot of screentime in this movie, it's clear he's being set up for greater things in the sequel. But how did he get there, and what exactly is he capable of?

Kalogridis explained to Crave Online:

You see in the beginning. He grabs John. He's not from this timeline. He's from an alternate universe, in the multiverse, another of the many universes that exist. That Skynet is not from that timeline. [...] This Skynet has been to this universe, and this universe, and this universe. That's why he says, "I came a very long way to stop you." He's not from here. So he's watched it. He's watched it happen a bunch of different times, and each time he's seen it there is a different result but the same result.

Lussier added:

It is the understanding that for Skynet, finally realizing that "I cannot just wipe out the humans, I can never defeat the humans unless I have the best weapon that humans have, and that is him."

Kalogridis made sure to emphasize that Smith's Skynet is not the same Skynet from Terminator and Terminator: Genisys. Unlike that Skynet, "this particular Skynet can" hop between dimensions.

Their breakdown of the Terminator Genisys Matt Smith character leaves still more questions about how he picked up those time-hopping abilities, what else he saw, what he's going to do with them next, and so on, but hey, they have to leave something open for the sequel.

For an even more detailed explanation of the "multiverse model" of Terminator: Genisys, read the full interview here.