Join us in revisiting the classic Terminator franchise and explore why a return to horror could make for an incredible sequel.
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James Cameron did a fantastic job with the first two films in the Terminator franchise. However, the movies that came after that were disappointing, to say the least. And that’s not to say that the narratives were not entertaining. However, in comparison to The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991), they just did not bring the same amount of hype. But there are several reasons why the later Terminator films do not live up to their predecessors. The most apparent reason is that the first two movies were sci-fi horror films, whereas the rest were just action flicks. So how would the Terminator franchise go about fixing this issue?
This is something that can be seen in many franchises. It begins with a few good movies, and then as more movies are pushed into the mainstream, they break further and further away from the original film. Take the Fast & Furious franchise, for example. The original Terminator was a straightforward, stylish horror movie that saw Arnold Schwarzenegger as an iconic monster and unstoppable killer. Based on a nightmare by writer-director James Cameron, it offered science fiction elements, a robot assassin with a machine gun on a shoestring budget. How can this problem be solved?
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What made the First Two Terminator Films So Great?
The Terminator (1984) was a movie that James Cameron wrote based on a nightmare he had about a metallic monster coming out of a fire to chase him. And he perfectly translated this slasher film-type image onto the big screen in an original movie that audiences would be seeing for the first time. The film follows the story of Sarah Connor, an unsuspecting young woman in 1984 who becomes hunted by a cyborg assassin. The cyborg is from 2029, sent back to the past to kill her as she is the mother of the leader of the Resistance in the future.
Firstly, what makes this story so intriguing is how Sarah Connor suffers unimaginable consequences for something that is not her fault. John Connor’s actions are purely his own, yet his mother must suffer because of it. Not only that, but as a sci-fi film that is part of the horror genre, it also brings elements of time travel into the mix. Even better, Sarah Connor is not only one of the main characters, but she is also the final girl, a significant trope within the slasher genre of the time. But the unexpected events make her extremely vulnerable against a virtually unbeatable monster.
Second, the film is centred around future tech horror and how technology can turn on the human beings that created it. This is because the robots have reached a sentient level of consciousness that far outmatches human resources. In fact, with how dependent modern humans are on the internet and technology, a threat like this takes over human resources and can control what many people see. A great example of this is in the recent horror film M3GAN (2023), wherein a brilliant toy-company roboticist Gemma creates a robot that takes on a mind of its own. What made the film truly scary is how likely a technological advancement like this will occur in real life. And also how likely it is for things to go wrong with the said device in a gruesome fashion.
Third, the film was a break-in dream for James Cameron, who had a $6.4 million budget. And the special effects that came of this were genuinely well-done for an 80s action-horror flick. Not to mention, many Terminator fans agree that part of what made the first movie so significant was the B-grade feel it had to it. The film consisted of cold blue hues with a complimentary mix of red lights, and it gave the film a very metallic feel. It added to the atmosphere and sold many viewers on the future tech horror aspects.
Fourth, not only did the first film deliver a futuristic atmospheric feel, but it also delivered on a sense of dread. The idea that an apocalypse was coming and there was nothing anyone could do about it is very well-executed. To make matters worse, if any of the main characters tried to warn authorities or someone in power about this, they would be laughed at. As seen in the film, the police officers do not buy a word of what Sarah Conner is saying until T-800 waltzes in and massacres the entire police station. And as the audience followed Sarah for the entire movie, this scene was probably very frustrating. But realistically, this is the exact response someone in her predicament would be met with. She is completely isolated and alone, with no one to help her or stop the world from ending.
Last, there are the horror elements that are so well done that the film becomes more than just a sci-fi plot. There are various scenes where audiences get to see some crazy body horror. For example, when T-800 cuts open his arm to reveal a robotic skeleton underneath, it immediately sets off alarm bells for most viewers. Part of this can be attributed to Arnold’s ability to play an emotionless, robotic creature so perfectly and work on himself without so much as flinching. This leads to another horror element that Arnold so perfectly embodies: the uncanny valley’s use to alarm viewers even more. When T-800 removes his glasses to reveal his skinless robotic eye…well…that immediately gives one shudders.
And these elements make the action sequences that much more thrilling because who wouldn’t be scared of a creature like that chasing them?
Although considered more of an action movie, the second film retains all of the qualities that made the first movie good. Specifically speaking, it stays in touch with the future tech and body horror roots seen in the first instalment and capitalizes on having a vulnerable main character, as John Connor is only a child in this one. It expands on the prospect of authority figures not being dependable, with Sarah Conner being institutionalized and told that what she experienced was not real. And then, there is the shapeshifting monstrosity that is T-1000 sent to assassinate the poor child. It can take the form of anyone and anything, adding to the paranoia experienced by the characters on screen.
Yes, they had faced a futuristic, unbeatable robot before and won. But what on earth is this?! To make matters worse, the T-1000 had the genius idea to shift into a police officer, one of the authority figures on whom Sarah and John depend. Not to mention, there is something scary about knowing there is some truth to a police officer being able to kill without facing any consequences. Again, it’s almost as if these films are just a few steps away from becoming a reality. What made the first two films in the franchise great was how they could capitalize on realistic fears that humans have developed from living in an ever-changing and ever-growing environment. Technology is constantly advancing, and this can be seen in the massive difference between cell phones and laptops from the late 90s to the early 2000s and now. Keep in mind that the 90s were only twenty years ago.
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Why Are the Terminator Films Considered to Be Horror-Slasher Films?
Besides the above-mentioned horror elements that have been so prominent in the first two movies, context is also a great way to answer this question. The 1980s seemed an excellent time for slasher-horror movies, as various iconic films were being released. For example, Sean Cunningham’s Friday the 13th (1980) was released just a few years prior to The Terminator. As a result, by the time the first Terminator film was released, the Friday the 13th franchise was already seeing its fourth instalment. Similarly, John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978) also sparked a series of sequels released throughout the 80s and 90s. In fact, the movie series saw its most recent instalment last year!
But surely you are sitting there, reading this, and wondering what those films have to do with the Terminator franchise. To answer your query, James Cameron was a huge fan of John Carpenter and wanted to do something like the iconic writer-director. But the issue arises when one considers the sheer amount of slasher flicks produced at the time. It would be difficult to get recognition if your own film was another knock-off version of the slasher genre tropes. There was already a Michael Myers and too much of Jason Voorhees, so how does one bring something original to the table?
In classic James Cameron style, the filmmaker brought fans a horror-slasher movie disguised as a futuristic sci-fi-action flick with time travel and explosions. Again, you are probably thinking about how that would work, and that’s the genius behind the films. Cameron follows all the classic slasher-genre elements, but the otherworldly elements prevent viewers from noticing this immediately. However, if you re-watch the films with this in mind, you can easily draw parallels between other great slasher films of the time and The Terminator films.
Strictly focusing on the inaugural instalment of the Terminator franchise, the first parallel that can be drawn is between Sarah Connor and other iconic final girls and scream queens such as Laurie Strode and Heather Langenkamp (from the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise). T-800 uses a phone book to take out all the Sarah Connors in the area where he knows he will find the one he was looking for. Unfortunately, she does not realize this until he actively begins pursuing her. Sarah now must fight for survival against an unstoppable killer. Sound familiar, yet?
Then, looking at Arnold’s T-800’s appearance, he perfectly fits the big and menacing build that comes with the classic slasher trope. Not only this, but his quiet non-emotive exterior is another element that makes one immediately think of Jason or Michael. Looking at the latter two killers, both have their faces covered, one wielding a machete while the other carries a large kitchen knife. Likewise, T-800 always wears sunglasses to hide his robotic appearance and wields a machine gun. Now, you can argue, but these elements surely have the dots connecting.
The most significant parallel, however, must be the way T-800 just bulldozes his way through the film. The body count is exceptionally high for the assassin cyborg, taking out anyone who gets in the way of his mission. In classic slasher-flick fashion, he ruthlessly kills no matter how often he is shot down or injured. This builds into the nightmarish scene at the film’s end, where T-800 is just a metal skeleton with glowing red eyes chasing Sarah down. Even after he is chopped in half, he still pursues her! He one-ups Jason and Michael with ease in this terrifying sequence.
Other minor parallels include how he just…sits up after being taken down. In every great slasher flick, this happens at least once. Audiences take a breath of relief, thinking the main character has ended the ruthless killer after them, but then they sit up Undertaker-style. This specific trope is why Columbus has the ‘double tap’ rule in Zombieland (2009). Another is the trope of sex being punished. This is especially apparent at Camp Crystal Lake, wherein horny teenagers will always be the first victims. And if you don’t remember a scene like this from The Terminator, it’s the one where T-800 takes out Sarah’s roommate and her boyfriend after they have intercourse.
One could even argue that The Terminator brings a new angle to the slasher genre. It does correctly what Jason X (2001) failed to do. It places an unstoppable serial killer in a different period and effortlessly delivers the horror.
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How Can the Terminator Franchise Return to its Horror Roots?
Based on the answers of many fans across the internet, the main problem with the latest flicks in the series is that it tries too hard with the action. To the extent that the film seems to forget that it is supposed to be scary, not just filled with car chase scenes and explosions. The later films also break away from the beautiful cold hues it used to create the unsettling atmosphere in the first movie. And most annoyingly, the films begin to focus more on time travel, John Connor’s destiny (and existential crisis) and exploration of the lore. However, they do not do it in a way that retains the horror aspect but instead just completely break into Michael Bay’s territory. At this rate, they should just have the films be spin-offs of the Transformers (2007) universe.
What they would have to do is filter the story so that it is simplistic and straightforward again. Nobody has time to be scared if they are trying to figure out which timeline this version of the T-800 is from. This will allow viewers much better access to the core of what made the first instalments so good. Another good way to deliver on this would be to add more apocalyptic horror. For example, the scene in the second film where Sarah is watching the kids play in the park is absolute nightmare fuel. A nuclear bomb detonates, and she is forced to watch as her children are killed while she burns to death. The horror in this scene is tangible.
Fans have suggested that the franchise should be rebooted entirely, in fact. Some believe that the original franchise cannot be salvaged and instead bring something new to the table. An excellent suggestion by one fan was to have director Leigh Whannell take the reigns, as he did a fantastic job with Upgrade (2018) and The Invisible Man (2020). It could be done as a series or a new film, but both would have updated special effects. And with modern technology, the creep factor seen in T-800 would increase tenfold.
Furthermore, having the main character be vulnerable against these monstrous machines is another way to boost the horror elements. Similar to the second film, having a child as the target of the machines would be extremely scary. Perhaps having someone like Violet McGraw or McKenna Grace fill the role would be a perfect match, as both actresses have seen roles in horror films and series. Rebooting the franchise would also fix any plot holes the ridiculous amount of time travelling created in the narrative.
A great narrative suggestion for a new Terminator film by Youtuber It’s Greg Kon looks at the timeline simultaneously to the singularity and has the filmmakers utilize the horror behind software like GPT3 that can easily mimic human emotion and facial expressions. He spoke about how this could monopolize humanity’s fear of modern technology by feeding fake news and propaganda to civilians. This way, it can influence them with deep fakes and get them to do what it wants, essentially controlling them.
However, for this to work, the focus would have to be shifted from lore, time travel and the romance/relations between characters. This is a genius idea and would make for a terrifying and entertaining watch. Because let’s be honest, what is scarier than omnipotent AI software that can control the human race through their paranoia and anxiety? A great example of this is how the government runs the city in Equilibrium (2002). The real leader has died, but they use technology and fake news to control how people think and act.
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Should the Terminator franchise return to its horror roots?
Why the Terminator Franchise Should Return to its Horror Roots Written by Jesse Jacobs for Fortress of Solitude
