14. The Terminator (1984)
$78.3 million
The Terminator is a 1984 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator, a cyborg assassin sent back in time from 2029 to 1984 to kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), whose unborn son will one day save mankind from extinction by Skynet, a hostile artificial intelligence in a post-apocalyptic future. Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) is a soldier sent back in time to protect Sarah. The screenplay is credited to Cameron and producer Gale Anne Hurd, while co-writer William Wisher Jr. received an “additional dialogue” credit.
13. Predator (1987)
$98.3 million
Predator is a 1987 American science fiction horror action film directed by John McTiernan and written by brothers Jim and John Thomas. It is the first installment in the Predator franchise. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the leader of an elite paramilitary rescue team on a mission to save hostages in guerrilla-held territory in a Central American rainforest, who encounter the deadly Predator (Kevin Peter Hall), a skilled, technologically advanced alien who stalks and hunts them down.
12. Jingle All the Way (1996)
$129.8 million
Jingle All the Way is a 1996 American Christmas family comedy film directed by Brian Levant. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sinbad as two rival fathers, mattress salesman Howard Langston (Schwarzenegger) and postal worker Myron Larabee (Sinbad), both desperately trying to purchase a Turbo-Man action figure for their respective sons on a last-minute shopping spree on Christmas Eve. The film’s title is borrowed from the lyrics of the popular Christmas song “Jingle Bells”.
11. Last Action Hero (1993)
$137.3 million
Last Action Hero is a 1993 American fantasy action comedy film directed and produced by John McTiernan and co-written by Shane Black and David Arnott. It is a satire of the action genre and associated clichés, containing several parodies of action films in the form of films within the film. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Jack Slater, a Los Angeles police detective within the Jack Slater action film franchise, while Austin O’Brien co-stars as Danny Madigan, a boy magically transported into the Slater universe, and Charles Dance as Mr. Benedict, a ruthless assassin from the Slater universe who escapes to the real world. Schwarzenegger also served as the film’s executive producer and plays himself as the actor portraying Jack Slater.
10. Kindergarten Cop (1990)
$202 million
Kindergarten Cop is a 1990 American action comedy film directed by Ivan Reitman and distributed by Universal Pictures. Arnold Schwarzenegger stars as John Kimble, a tough police detective working undercover as a kindergarten teacher to apprehend drug dealer Cullen Crisp (Richard Tyson) before he can get to his former wife and son. While undercover, Kimble discovers a passion for teaching he never knew he had and considers changing his profession to become an educator. Pamela Reed plays his partner, Phoebe O’Hara, and Penelope Ann Miller plays Joyce, the teacher who becomes his love interest. The original music score was composed by Randy Edelman.
9. Twins (1988)
$216.6 million
Twins (rendered in its title sequence logo as TWiiNS) is a 1988 American buddy comedy film produced and directed by Ivan Reitman. The film is about unlikely fraternal twin brothers (Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito) who were separated at birth. The core of the film is the contrast between the streetwise Vincent (DeVito) and the intelligent but naive Julius (Schwarzenegger).RELATED:
Best Arnold Schwarzenegger Movies According to IMDb
8. Batman & Robin (1997)
$238 million
Batman & Robin is a 1997 American superhero film based on the DC Comics characters Batman and Robin by Bill Finger and Bob Kane. It is the fourth and final installment of Warner Bros.’s initial Batman film series, a sequel to Batman Forever and the only film in the series made without the involvement of Tim Burton in any capacity. Directed by Joel Schumacher and written by Akiva Goldsman, it stars George Clooney as Bruce Wayne / Batman, replacing Val Kilmer, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Victor Fries / Mr. Freeze, and Chris O’Donnell reprising his role as Dick Grayson / Robin, alongside Uma.
7. Eraser (1996)
$242.3 million
Eraser is a 1996 American action film directed by Chuck Russell and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Vanessa Williams, James Caan, James Coburn, and Robert Pastorelli. The film follows a U.S. Marshal of WITSEC who protects a senior operative testifying about an illegal arms deal and is forced to fight his former allies when one of the players is revealed to be a mole inside WITSEC.
6. Terminator: Dark Fate (2019)
$261.1 million
Terminator: Dark Fate is a 2019 American science fiction action film directed by Tim Miller and written by David Goyer, Justin Rhodes and Billy Ray from a story by James Cameron, Charles Eglee, Josh Friedman, Goyer and Rhodes. Cameron also produced the film with David Ellison. It is the sixth installment in the Terminator franchise and a direct sequel to Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), ignoring the events of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), Terminator Salvation (2009) and Terminator Genisys (2015), following the return of creative control to Cameron.
5. Total Recall (1990)
$261.4 million
Total Recall is a 1990 American science fiction action film directed by Paul Verhoeven, with a screenplay by Ronald Shusett, Dan O’Bannon, and Gary Goldman. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Ronny Cox, and Michael Ironside. Based on the 1966 short story “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” by Philip K. Dick, Total Recall tells the story of Douglas Quaid (Schwarzenegger), a construction worker who receives an implanted memory of a fantastical adventure on Mars. He subsequently finds his adventure occurring in reality as agents of a shadow organization try to prevent him from recovering memories of his past as a Martian secret agent aiming to stop the tyrannical regime of Martian dictator Vilos Cohaagen (Cox).RELATED:
Arnold Schwarzenegger: 10 Hilariously Coolest Things That Can Only Happen In His Movies
4. True Lies (1994)
$378.9 million
True Lies is a 1994 American spy action comedy film written and directed by James Cameron, based on the 1991 French comedy film La Totale!. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as Harry Tasker, a U.S. government agent who struggles to balance his double life as a spy with his familial duties. Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton, Art Malik, and Tia Carrere star in supporting roles. True Lies was the first Lightstorm Entertainment project to be distributed under Cameron’s multimillion-dollar production deal with 20th Century Fox, as well as the first major production for the visual effects company Digital Domain, which was co-founded by Cameron. It was also the first film to cost $100 million.
3. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)
$433.4 million
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is a 2003 science fiction action film directed by Jonathan Mostow. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, Claire Danes, and Kristanna Loken, it is the third installment in the Terminator franchise and a sequel to Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). In its plot, the malevolent artificial intelligence Skynet sends a T-X (Loken)—a highly advanced Terminator—back in time to ensure the rise of machines by killing top members of the future human resistance as John Connor’s (Stahl) location is unknown. The resistance sends back a reprogrammed T-850 (Schwarzenegger) to protect John and Kate.
2. Terminator Genisys (2015)
$440.6 million
Terminator Genisys is a 2015 American science fiction action film directed by Alan Taylor and written by Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier. Produced by Skydance Productions and distributed by Paramount Pictures, the film is a reboot of the Terminator franchise, taking the premise of the original film in another direction and ignoring the events depicted in sequels and the TV series. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, who reprises his role as the Terminator (following his absence in 2009’s Terminator Salvation), alongside Jason Clarke, Emilia Clarke (no relation), Jai Courtney, J. K. Simmons, Dayo Okeniyi, Matt Smith, Courtney B. Vance, Michael Gladis, Sandrine Holt and Lee Byung-hun. It follows Kyle Reese, a soldier in a post-apocalyptic war against Skynet, who is sent from 2029 to 1984 to prevent Sarah Connor’s death.
1. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
$520.9 million
Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a 1991 American science-fiction action film directed by James Cameron, who co-wrote the script with William Wisher. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, and Edward Furlong, it is the sequel to The Terminator (1984) and is the second installment in the Terminator franchise. In the film, the malevolent artificial intelligence Skynet sends a Terminator—a highly advanced killing machine—back in time to 1995 to kill the future leader of the human resistance John Connor. The resistance sends back a less-advanced, reprogrammed Terminator to protect Connor and ensure the future of humanity.RELATED:
Arnold Schwarzenegger Is Called Movies’ ‘Ultimate Action Hero’
