Terminator 7 must step away from its most prominent franchise figure, but Arnold Schwarzenegger’s other franchises have faced very similar struggles when trying to replace the Austrian actor. Despite appearing in every Terminator movie to date, Schwarzenegger’s ubiquity within the film franchise has never guaranteed the success of its various feature-length projects. Bringing Schwarzenegger back to the lead cast for the long-awaited return of James Cameron may seem like committing to a tactic that has already failed, but it’s also understandable why the temptation exists.
There is no question that his role as the T-800 has resulted in some of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best performances. Similarly, the first two Terminator films are still some of the best among all of James Cameron’s movies. However, Terminator‘s already-confusing time travel rules have been retconned and altered so many times since Cameron’s departure that bringing back Schwarzenegger for the seventh movie would create all kinds of problems that would outweigh the possible benefits. That being said, Schwarzenegger’s other franchise exits raise all kinds of warning signs.
Terminator 7 Needs To Finally Replace Arnold Schwarzenegger
A new star needs to become the face of the Terminator franchise
Despite being the first actor to lead the hugely successful first two Terminator movies, bringing him back since then generally hasn’t worked. I actually quite enjoyed Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, but I know there are huge portions of the fan base that have issues with the 2003 legacy sequel. Since then, further movies have pretty much been resounding failures. Some have made a little money and made compelling story choices, but others have been letdowns in all areas.
The shortcomings of the post-Rise of the Machines sequels haven’t been Schwarzenegger’s fault, but it proves that continuing to shoehorn his T-800 back into the story just isn’t the solution the writers seem to think it is. His prominence has varied throughout the later Terminator movies, but none of the new stars, like Christian Bale or Emelia Clarke, have quite managed to take the mantle of the face of the franchise away from Schwarzenegger. The only way a new actor can pull this off is if he’s omitted altogether in Terminator 7.
Predator Is The Only Arnie Franchise To Successfully Replace Him
Prey works really well without Schwarzenegger’s presence
The Terminator movies have barely attempted to replace Arnold Schwarzenegger so far, and he has remained a fixture within the franchise despite the various installments’ ailing box office returns. Other Arnie franchises that have swapped him out for other actors haven’t fared well either. For example, 2011’s Conan the Barbarian replaced Schwarzenegger with Jason Momoa as the tile character, and it did not do well. Schwarzenegger’s confirmed return to the Conan franchise for the first time since 1984 proves how badly the saga needs him.
2022’s Prey is arguably the first example of a rousing success where a franchise once led by Schwarzenegger has thrived without the actor.
Similarly, Colin Farrell’s Total Recall remake in 2011 attempted to account for Schwarzenegger’s absence from the lead role, but the movie fell very short of the 1990 original’s quality. 2022’s Prey is arguably the first example of a rousing success where a franchise once led by Schwarzenegger has thrived without the actor. The Predator prequel jumps around the timeline alot and focuses on a variety of characters, which could be the key to success for Terminator 7 rather than rolling out the T-800 and the Connors again.
Who Could Replace Arnold Schwarzenegger In Terminator 7?
Alan Ritchson would be my first pick for Terminator 7’s leading man
Although Terminator 7 has to move on from Arnold Schwarzenegger, the movie will still need a physically imposing presence to fill the role of the story’s cybernetic villain/antihero. If it’s just a bunch of humans running away from a horde of faceless machines or without having one on their side, it wouldn’t feel quite the same. Thankfully, there are several active actors who would be great replacements for Arnie. I think the best choice would be Reacher‘s leading man, as I’m convinced Alan Ritchson would be a terrific Terminator after seeing him in various scenes of the Amazon show.
If Ritchson doesn’t get the job, I’d also love to see Henry Cavill become the face of the Terminator franchise. He has an established history of working with “nerdy” sagas as he clearly has an affinity for them. That said, he does also have an unfortunate trend of making his exit pretty unceremoniously – like how he parted ways with The Witcher. So, there could be a longevity issue there if he were cast. Chris Hemsworth’s role as Thor also qualifies him to replace Arnie, and Jason Momoa could also fit the role. So, Terminator 7 has several options.
Terminator
- Movie(s)
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The Terminator, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Terminator Salvation (2009), Terminator Genisys (2015), Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
- Created by
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James Cameron, Gale Anne Hurd
- First Film
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The Terminator
- Latest Film
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Terminator: Dark Fate
- First TV Show
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Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Summary
The Terminator franchise is a landmark in science fiction, featuring a battle between humanity and artificially intelligent machines led by Skynet. The story primarily revolves around the Terminator robots, particularly the T-800 model, and the resistance led by John Connor. The series explores themes of fate, artificial intelligence, and the moral implications of technological advancement.
