James Cameron has officially confirmed that there’s a new Terminator reboot in the works. In truth, it would be best to let the franchise die, as there hasn’t been a movie good enough to surpass Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The Sarah Connor Chronicles proved that there’s still a compelling story to tell within the Terminator universe. Terminator Salvation at least showcased that the brand has the potential to expand the scope of its world.
Nevertheless, Terminator: Dark Fate was the nail in the coffin for the franchise. The crazy thing is, it was far from the worst film in the series. However, there’s no denying that it’s incredibly hard to get past the perfect ending of Judgment Day. Cameron and executives are determined to milk the franchise for everything it’s worth. So, if there’s any chance of the series getting back to its glory days, then these are the mistakes that the upcoming Terminator reboot should avoid.
The Story of Jon Connor, Sarah Connor, and T-800 Is Over
These characters’ stories ended perfectly in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. There was never any reason (other than money) to revisit this arc because all the questions were masterfully answered in the sequel. Did Terminator: Dark Fate ruin the mythology by killing off John Connor? No. The mistake that it made was killing off Jon Connor like he was a worthless extra that didn’t have any value within the series. John Connor should’ve died heroically. In fact, there are some stories left to tell with the legacy character.
The same goes for Sarah Connor. The most fascinating parts about Dark Fate stem from the mysterious signals that she was getting from the T-800. There could’ve been a revenge saga focusing on Sarah Connor finally putting an end to Skynet once and for all. The problem was that we were forced to down the same plot points of the first two Terminators with the female version of John Connor.
The ship has sailed with this story, and it’s best to leave John, Sarah, and the T-800 out of the upcoming Terminator reboot. Their characters have been damaged because of the lackluster sequels. Audiences will likely be turned off if another story involves any of these three. There are plenty of different avenues for James Cameron to take that can still be in the Terminator universe. However, the key factor is that these stories have to be GREAT. The new Terminator films need to add to the intriguing lore of the brand itself.
No More Stories About A Terminator Killing The Chosen One
Once Terminator Genisys bombed at the box office, executives clearly panicked and went with the, “It’s if not broke, don’t fix it” route with the following Terminator stories. The only films to truly deviate from this angle are Terminator Salvation and, to some extent, Terminator Genisys. By the time Dark Fate came around, the story beat was extremely tired. It boggles the mind that Skynet keeps only sending one Terminator back to complete the mission.
It’s clear that Dani was never going to die. Or that the T-800 was going to sacrifice himself (again) for the sake of the mission. The story has run its course, and it’s time that a new approach is taken to the Terminator mythology. Cameron stated that the upcoming reboot would tackle AI technology. That could be an interesting angle that brings a new perspective on technology and robots. More importantly, it sounds like it will deviate from the original premise of the first film, which is great!
Take the recent Halloween reboot, for example. Before it went off the rails, David Gordon Green brought a new angle to tackle the Halloween saga without retreading the same beats of the 1978 original. If James Cameron can pull off that same tactic, then it would do wonders for the brand. Again, it would be a mistake to bring back Jon or Sarah Connor. However, if it’s a fresh story that reinvigorates both the characters and the world, then bringing back these legacy characters could be worth the risk.
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