1984's Terminator 2: Judgment Day, which was an even bigger smash. However, the franchise soon went off the rails from there.
Last year's Terminator: Dark Fate was the latest attempt to reignite the franchise, and was yet another failure despite many of the original talent involved this time around. Some believe this means the end of the iconic series while others feel there is still potential after all these years. Here are five reasons the Terminator franchise should get another shot, and five reasons it should end.
Another Shot: James Cameron's ion
James Cameron put himself on the map as writer and director of the original Terminator film. It helped kickstart his career, and he started making hit after hit. Following the massive success of Terminator 2, Cameron felt he was done with the franchise he started. But that was only partially true.
Many critics of the later Terminator films have acknowledged Cameron's notable absence as a big reason the films aren't working as well. However, Cameron did return to oversee Dark Fate, and apparently sparred with director Tim Miller over its vision. Cameron clearly still loves this story, and perhaps he should have one last crack at it before we close the book on Terminator.
Time To End: Too Much Retconning
Sometimes sequels are so misguided that franchises just have to pretend they never happened in order to move forward. However, if this happens multiple times, there might be a bigger problem with said franchise.
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machine, Terminator: Genisys and Terminator: Dark Fate were all made as direct sequels to Terminator 2. The franchise has hit restart so many times that the timeline is a jumbled mess. With Dark Fate, they were so determined to go off in a new direction, they retconned things that destroyed the emotional arcs of the original stories. The series is such a hodge-podge now, it doesn't even know what's important to the mythology.
Another Shot: A New Future
In an interesting development, Dark Fate confirms that Sarah and John Connor's actions in Terminator 2 did, in fact, stop Judgment Day, and Skynet never took over. However, it also establishes that there is a new future in which a new threat emerged.
Clearly, this storyline was meant to kick off a whole new path for the franchise. While the box office failure of Dark Fate suggests that it is not likely, this certainly does introduce some potentially exciting stories the series could tell going forward.
Time To End: Repetitive
The original film had a brilliant and inventive sci-fi story. For the sequel, Cameron was able to find a way to revisit that story with some interesting changes. However, at this point, each new Terminator film feels like it is just more of the same.
There are only so many ways you can tell the same story of a Terminator relentlessly hunting the heroes and keep it interesting. Each movie tries to throw in some new hook but it's not enough to give things a fresh take. Even the villainous Terminators are starting to feel a bit dull.
Another Shot: Solid Action
There are things that you could certainly pick apart about Dark Fate, but many would agree it was the best Terminator sequel since Terminator 2. A lot of that has to do with the fact that there are some solid action set pieces in the film.
While the story might feel overly familiar and the villain isn't too compelling, Miller managed to deliver some thrills with the action. These movies represent a rare R-rated action movie series with a big enough budget for large-scale, exciting sequences. That's so rare in Hollywood, it would be a shame to lose it.
Time To End: The Fanbase Is Gone
Hollywood is criticized a lot in recent years for its overreliance on existing properties. But the bigger problem seems to be that these studios are not considering whether there is still an audience for them.
Not every franchise is Star Wars or Marvel. The Terminator franchise was massive a few decades ago, but maybe those fans have moved on. Just because modern audiences might recognize the name doesn't mean they have an interest in it. That seems to be the case with the Terminator series.
Another Shot: Sarah Connor Is Back
Along with James Cameron, another missing piece of the Terminator puzzle who hasn't been around since Terminator 2 is Linda Hamilton as Sarah Connor. While Schwarzenegger is certainly the most entertaining character in the series, Sarah was the heart of the first two films.
Like Cameron, Hamilton finally returned in Dark Fate, and it was certainly a welcome return. She proved to be as big of a badass as she was in Terminator 2, and we immediately want to follow her on further adventures. Hamilton seems tired of the role, but maybe a good script could lure her back.
Time To End: No Arnold
No matter how bad any of the Terminator sequels might have been, Arnold Schwarzenegger could always be counted on to be a bright spot. The T-800 is the role he was born to play, and he is still great after all these years.
Schwarzenegger's "Carl" is certainly a highlight in Dark Fate, but the movie ends with his demise. Of course, Schwarzenegger has come back many times in this franchise, but they must be running out of ways to bring him back by now. Dark Fate might be his final Terminator role, and is there really a point in continuing on without him?
Another Shot: Strong Mythology
With the first Terminator film, Cameron told a straight-forward and isolated story. However, the mythology around that story was so fascinating, it began to grow with each new film. The Terminator films have always stuck to the story of Sarah and John Connor, but maybe there are other stories worth exploring.
Much like the Star Wars franchise is trying to tell stories outside of the Skywalker saga, Terminator should branch out. There are so many paths this could take that could give the franchise a fresh new perspective.
Time To End: Too Beholden To The Original
The most iconic line in the series is certainly, "I'll be back". However, it is also an example of why this franchise seems to be running in place without moving forward in any meaningful way.
The line "I'll be back" is not great on its own but was made great from the situation in the film. Now every subsequent sequel forces that line in increasingly cringe-inducing ways. The franchise has become so beholden to the original story that it has failed to evolve at all in three decades. If it's not willing to add anything new, there's no point in continuing, and we should all just enjoy the first two films.
