As James Cameron continues his work on the next installment in the franchise, André Holland is weighing in on reprising his Terminator Zero role in live-action. The acclaimed star made his franchise debut in the Netflix anime show, starring as Malcolm Lee, a scientist racing to perfect an artificial intelligence that can rival Skynet and stop Judgment Day. Developed and showrun by The Batman — Part II‘s Mattson Tomlin, Terminator Zero scored rave reviews from critics and audiences, while leaving just enough room open for future stories.

During an interview with ScreenRant at the Sundance Film Festival premiere of his new movie, Love, Brooklyn, Holland was asked about the possibility of returning as Malcolm Lee to the Terminator franchise. The Zero star was very enthusiastic in his hopes to reprise his character, recalling the final day of recording the dialogue for his character, in which he told the producers to seriously consider him if Malcolm crossed over to live-action. Check out what Holland said below:

Man, listen, I had so much fun doing that. And when we finished, I remember the day we finished, we walked out the door and I said to them, “If you guys do this, please call me, because I would love to do it.” It was so much fun.

What Holland’s Comments Mean For His Terminator Future

Some Timeline Tweaking Would Be Needed For His Return

For much of the show’s run, the AI Kokoro and other characters find themselves wondering just how Malcolm knew as much as he did about Skynet and the future destruction of humanity at the AI’s hands. It was eventually revealed in episode 7 that Malcolm was actually from the future and traveled back to the past in order to stop Skynet and be with the robotic enтιтy he created. Though his efforts did initially succeed, the world was now at the whim of both a freed Kokoro and Skynet, while Malcolm died in Terminator Zero‘s ending to save resistance soldier Eiko.

While most franchises would view a character’s death as their ending, the Terminator franchise is certainly no stranger to reviving characters, which is largely down to its time travel formula. As explained in the anime, the rules Tomlin adhered to is that, every time a human or machine traveled back in time, it created an entirely new timeline. With this in mind, it’s entirely possible for the next Terminator movie to be set in a present day timeline, in which Malcolm is still alive and still putting together Kokoro.

The other possibility for how Malcolm could return in the next movie is if Terminator 7 was once again set in the post-apocalyptic timeline. While he’s remained mum on details for the next film, Cameron has previously indicated it will do away with the “distinct iconography“, even as it explores the same themes of the originals. With this in mind, the door certainly is open for Cameron, in an effort to move away from the oft-treaded Connor family story, to consider bringing back Holland as Malcolm.

Our Take On Holland’s Potential Terminator Future

It Would Provide A Sense Of Gravity & Originality To The Franchise

While I have largely remained a fan of the series since its original installment, I certainly can’t help but feel like the Terminator franchise was running its course on film with its continued focus on the Connor family, much in the way Star Wars became too focused on the Skywalkers. As such, Terminator Zero was a very welcome surprise, and though it may require a bit of timeline changes, I think Holland getting to reprise his role as Malcolm from the show would be a fantastic way to provide some acting gravitas and more originality.