How Much Arnold Schwarzenegger Was Paid For Terminator

The Terminator certainly made Arnold Schwarzenegger one of the most famous action stars of all time, but how much was he paid for The Terminator? While the actor was known for films like Conan the Barbarian, he didn’t make as much money as the first Terminator movie compared to many of his other hit projects. Before becoming governor of California in the 2000s, Arnold starred in many popular films such as Batman & Robin and Jingle All the Way Kindergarten Cop. But the glory of Arnold’s career began after appearing in James Cameron’s The Terminator, in which he portrays a cyborg killer sent from the past to kill Sarah Connor, whose unborn son John will save humanity from extinction. The sequels show various T-800 characters, one being the antagonist and the other being the hero. The evolution of the T-800 Terminator has become one of Schwarzenegger’s most famous roles throughout his long career.

Which Is Better: ‘The Terminator’ Or ‘Terminator 2’?

Arnold Schwarzenegger had virtually no lines in The Terminator, and for that, he didn’t make much money for his pivotal role. After speaking only 17 lines in the entire film, he was Paid only $75.000 That works out to Over $4.400 per word. Adjusted for inflation in 2022, $75.000 would be about $214.000 today. Schwarzenegger helped shape the original T-800 as one of the most iconic villains and characters from the 1980s to the present day. Arnold made significantly more money from Terminator sequels and other films.

How Much Was Arnold Schwarzenegger Paid For Terminator’s Sequels

Compared to The Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger earned a large amount of money for Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Terminator 3 Rise of the Machines The first sequel received a larger budget, and most of that money went to Schwarzenegger. He reportedly earned $15 million for his portrayal of the heroic T-800 For speaking 700 words, he was paid $21.428 for each word spoken. The amount of money it took to make the film was about $100 million, so his salary was about one percent of the total budget. In Terminator 3, the actor earned even more.

He earned $30 million, from the $200 million budget to make the film. Arnold also earned an additional $5 million from the film’s profits. However, Terminator: Dark Fate’s box office problems created problems for future sequels. It is not publicly known how much Arnold Schwarzenegger earned for Terminator Genisys and Dark Fate. Schwarzenegger’s current net worth is over $400 million and he usually earns $20-30 million per film. The budget of Dark Fate has become one of the largest in the franchise. It is likely that the actor earned a similar amount of money to appear in the latest films in the Terminator franchise.

Why Arnold Schwarzenegger Didn’t Return For Terminator Salvation

During filming in the summer of 2008, the actor briefly changed careers and became governor of California. During his tenure as governor, Schwarzenegger’s role was limited and he did not return to the film industry until after his term ended. Christian Bale replaced him in the lead role of the adult John Connor. He revealed that Terminator Salvation was supposed to make changes to the films. Bale was right about the Terminator franchise because it ended up showing something unique. The film was successful, but low critical reception and poor reception for the two sequels caused the Terminator franchise to slow down.