The Terminator franchise is already quite extensive, but there is a surprising amount of canceled Terminator movies and TV shows that have been around over the years. The Terminator series has had some really high highs and some very low lows, causing the franchise’s plans to change drastically due to things like poor box office performance or negative critical reception.
James Cameron’s 1984 sci-fi thriller The Terminator was a massive hit, leading to the massive multimedia franchise that still exists today. The original film was followed by Terminator 2: Judgment Day, which many fans consider to be even better than the original. So, here are all the Terminator projects that never saw the light of day.
6. Cameron’s Original Terminator 3.Â
Although James Cameron initially said he didn’t want to do another sequel after Terminator 2: Judgment Day, the director changed his mind after the cast reunited for Terminator 2 3-D: Cameron soon began working on the Terminator 3 script. but was not immediately able to work on it due to the fact that he worked on the Titanic. The project was further delayed by the bankruptcy of the studio that owned the rights to the franchise, leaving the rights up for auction. At the time of the auction, Terminator 3 was in a state of stasis, which made it look like it wasn’t going to happen.
After years of waiting for the completion of Titanic and buying the rights to The Terminator, Cameron finally decided to leave the project in 1997. James Cameron agreed to make another film without him, which eventually became Terminator 3: Insurrection. machines. Little is known about James Cameron’s original script for Terminator 3, although he discussed the return of Sarah Connor with actress Linda Hamilton. “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” James Cameron hardly participated.
5. The Terminator Salvation Trilogy
In 2007, Halycon began planning a new trilogy based on the 2009 Terminator Salvation movie. However, Terminator Salvation disappointed at the box office, leading to the cancellation of Terminator 5 and Terminator 6 by writer William Wisher. The two films would have further developed the relationship between Kyle Reese and Sarah Connor, using time travel to bring back the former character. This would have been on top of continuing the Terminator Salvation storylines, though this never happened due to the cancellation of the trilogy.RELATED:
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4. Terminator 3000
Following the cancellation of the Terminator Salvation trilogy, Hannover House announced an animated reboot of the original Terminator titled Terminator 3000. The film was supposed to return Kyle Reese from the first film, meaning that many other early characters in the franchise would likely return as well. Interestingly, the film was going to be rated PG-13, which would be very different from the earliest entries in the Terminator franchise. However, Hannover House for some reason announced Terminator 3000 without permission from the copyright holders, causing Pacificor to send a cease and desist letter to Hannover House, shutting down the project before it even went live.
3. The Terminator Genisys Trilogy
After the failure of Terminator Salvation, the franchise took another step to revive the series with 2015’s Terminator Genisys. Paramount announced two Terminator Genisys sequels ahead of the film’s release, scheduling them for 2017 and 2018. However, Terminator Genisys was again a critical and commercial failure, continuing the franchise’s trend. This resulted in the cancellation of the Terminator Genisys reboot trilogy, causing all sorts of Terminator Genisys related projects to fall apart. The films would explain who sent Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Terminator back in time to protect Sarah Connor, as well as continue exploring John Connor’s life as a cyborg. However, the second of the canceled Terminator trilogies never saw the light of day.
2. The Terminator Genisys TV Show:Â
Terminator Genisys was also to spawn the Terminator television series. The show would tie in with future sequels to Terminator 1984: Interestingly, the Terminator Genisys TV show was to be written by Ashley Miller and Zach Stentz, who worked on the previous Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles TV show. While the two shows probably wouldn’t have been related, it’s possible that they would have had similar stories and tonalities.
The Terminator: Dark Fate Trilogy
The latest set of canceled Terminator projects is a trilogy of films based on 2019’s Terminator: Dark Fate. Terminator: Dark Fate saw the return of series creator James Cameron, as well as Sarah Connor actress Linda Hamilton, to the franchise, setting high hopes for the film’s success and potential future. However, Terminator: Dark Fate was not successful as it lost a significant amount of money.
According to Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Cameron was actually in talks to write the sequels to Terminator: Dark Fate, which would be his first script in the franchise since Terminator 2: Judgment Day. About the two sequels to Terminator: It’s unknown what’s next for the Terminator franchise, and with the show’s track record, anything that’s announced next might not even happen.