Terminator: Reboot

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by StarTrek1701, Apr 16, 2012.

  1. StarTrek1701

    StarTrek1701 Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2008
    The 80's are making a very big comeback in the second decade of the new millenium. We are either getting sequels to 80's hits and flops (Predators, Tron Legacy) or we are getting drastic modernised reboots (Robocop, Short Circuit). We all know its just a matter of time before some big studio head gets the bright idea of doing a reboot of one of scifi's most beloved franchise: the Terminator universe. Granted the last two movies were.. subpar.. at best, but that doesn't stop us fans from wanting more. The Terminator and T2:JD will always be two of my favorite movies of all time. Rebooting them is, obviously, pointless. However, if it is rebooted, how/what would you like to see?

    For starters, lets be hypothetical and think the movie would go into pre-production this year. So shooting is next year (2013) for a 2014 release. How would you develop the story, what themes would it have, and who shall be the cast?

    Here's my idea:

    CAST
    Jennifer Lawrence as Sarah Connor
    Ryan Gosling as Kyle Reese
    Patrick Schwarzennegger as The Terminator.

    SYNOPSIS
    The year 2050. The machines rose from the ashes of the nuclear fire. Two decades have passed since Judgement Day. Skynet, a self-aware militaristic program had gone rogue, deducing humanity as its number one existential threat, so it takes control of all modern UAV's, UGV's and UMV's, plus 'early models' of humanoid androids that are precursors to the terminators in the future. However, even after reducing the human population to a mere 800 million or so, it seems Skynet cannot beat humans no matter what. It actually begins to lose the war. Defenses are down, humans taking control of many of Skynet's outposts, military and research alike. The final blow comes when its main defense grid is smashed and humans will take control of its main headquarters within a matter of days. Desperate, it strikes one final blow to the Resistance, but the resistance still comes out on top. All because of one man: John Connor. We all know what's Skynet's last ditch effort.

    UPDATES TO A CLASSIC
    Obviously the tropes that worked in 1984 isn't gonna work today. For starters, viral videos uploaded from everyone's Android (ha!) and iPhones takes minutes to gain momentum. The advent of Facebook will also make it highly easy for a futuristic robot to just hack and find Sarah Connor's face, identity, work, etc. However, the Terminator does not know which Sarah Connor it is, so it has to hunt down every Sarah Connor who is of birthing age (13-50) in the Los Angeles area. It should also be very discreet in taking out its intended targets.

    The Terminator itself is a wartime robot, bleeding edge of its class. The T-800 comes with human/organic vaporizer that it can use once every 30 minutes to completely disintigrate a human body. It can change its height within a 5" range, rearrange its facial structures, eye/hair color and voice to remain undetected and/or grossly unidentifiable. It can also mimic human emotions and behavior very well. Think scratching its eyes or smiling flirtily. For a robot, its not robotic at all. That makes it even more dangerous and very, very hard to convince others it is a killer machine. The only way to detect a Terminator: dogs. Dogs start to bark and howl wildly without reason when a Terminator comes near them.

    The Terminator shouldn't also look like a bodybuilder with a bad Austrian accent. Its an infiltration robot in a dystopian future where food is scarce and every breath you take could be detected by an HK nearby. Nobody would have time to be in the gym 6 hours a day with a specialized diet to get Mr. Universe muscles. Any human or soldier with half a brain would be able to easily realize something's not right if a bodybuilder comes up to them with no emotions and ask for help.

    TL;DR
    So what are your thoughts as to how the Terminator franchise should be rebooted, or even if it should be rebooted? Please provide your ideas or general discussion about it. :)
     
  2. Guy Gardener

    Guy Gardener Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Apr 15, 2000
    Location:
    In the lap of squalor I assure you.
    Nice.

    Here's my idea.

    Sarah's on PCP, and it's all in her head.
     
  3. Admiral James Kirk

    Admiral James Kirk Writer Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2001
    Location:
    Tucson, AZ

    Patrick is his mother's son as far as looks go. I'm about as scared of Patrick as I am any other skinny douche I pass on the street every day.
     
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2012
  4. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 9, 2001
    Location:
    Mr. Adventure
    I'd drop the vaporizer thing personally. And we aren't all on Facebook or am I the only one left?
     
  5. Admiral James Kirk

    Admiral James Kirk Writer Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2001
    Location:
    Tucson, AZ
    I've been on Facebook for two years. Or is there something cooler out now? ;)
     
  6. Sindatur

    Sindatur The Gray Owl Wizard Admiral

    Joined:
    Jan 2, 2011
    Location:
    Sacramento, CA
    I don't do Facebook, MySpace or Twitter either, too much exposure of your computer, IMHO.
     
  7. Takeru

    Takeru Space Police Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2007
    Location:
    Germany, EU, Earth
    In other words, he'd be perfect for the part. The Terminator should look like someone who's not dangerous at all, if I were Skynet I would create a model that looks like a 12 year old sad orphan.
     
  8. davejames

    davejames Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2001
    Location:
    Sac, Ca
    I'm with James Cameron on this one. The two best stories were already told in T1 and T2, and with the coolest Terminator you could ever have in Swarzenegger.

    Anything more would just be a rehash or a retread. Time to move on.
     
  9. Dream

    Dream Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 2, 2001
    Location:
    Derry, Maine
    They already rebooted the franchise with the tv show. Didn't work out.
     
  10. Skellington

    Skellington Part-time poltergeist Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2009
    Location:
    Dublin, Ireland
    I'm not sure that a reboot would be a wise idea. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles showed that the franchise had artistic legs without James Cameron, but a movie reboot would probably entail a back-to-basics retelling of the original story. The original story, though, was basically Cameron's alleged fever dream on celluloid. I don't see a manufactured and commerce-minded retread faring well against such a seminal and driven movie, unless perhaps Cameron himself decides to take up the reins. That's not likely to happen in the next five years, if ever.
     
  11. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    May 10, 2005
    Location:
    Confederation of Earth
    Essentially, every Terminator film was a reboot.

    The first film was a closed loop. Subsequent ones, including the TV series, always rebooted it. There's not a consistent one in the bunch.

    Kind of like Highlander.
     
  12. Disruptor

    Disruptor Commodore

    Joined:
    Dec 26, 2011
    New spin on it. The Terminator is a human sent back in time to destroy the future saviour of the oppressed machines.

    I think that would be...stupid.

    I think for once they should just let something die. Sarah Chronicle Conners and Salivation were met with lukewarm reception.
     
  13. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    May 10, 2005
    Location:
    Confederation of Earth
    Mirror Universe Terminator...
     
  14. Skellington

    Skellington Part-time poltergeist Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2009
    Location:
    Dublin, Ireland
    Well, at least the Terminator franchise always had an excuse (or a halfway credible pseudo-excuse). :)
     
  15. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

    Joined:
    Apr 14, 2000
    Location:
    QC, IL, USA
    I'd wager that you are in the minority, or at least in the minority within the age group that a new Terminator movie would be aimed at.
     
  16. Admiral James Kirk

    Admiral James Kirk Writer Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 5, 2001
    Location:
    Tucson, AZ
    If you were Skynet and creating a terminator then that would be the smart thing to do. However if you were a director casting the lead villain in a movie that wouldn't be so smart.

    Don't get me wrong a terminator who isn't built like a Sherman tank isn't a bad idea, since they are infiltrator units. However you still have to cast somebody intimidating in the part.

    James Cameron originally cast Lance Henricksen. Henricksen with his odd, lined features and creepy eyes would have been extremely intimidating as a Terminator. Patrick Schwarzenegger on the other hand is about as scary as your proverbial 12 year old orphan.

    However the OP's suggestion for Kyle Reese, Ryan Gosling would be a better choice for the Terminator role. He's small and plain featured but as his performance in the film All Good Things proved, he can be chilling. Even deadly. He's a perfect choice if you're casting a little guy as a Terminator.
     
  17. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 9, 2001
    Location:
    Mr. Adventure
    I'll be safe from the Terminator because he won't be able to find a Yellow Pages to find me and my dentures.

    I really do need to get on Facebook someday but there's so many creepy stories with it I'm not in a super hurry.
     
  18. Mr. Laser Beam

    Mr. Laser Beam Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    May 10, 2005
    Location:
    Confederation of Earth
    Being one of the few who prefers the Future Coda ending of T2, I maintain that Skynet's constant use of time travel will eventually result in its own extinction. They will end up removing themselves from history.
     
  19. Caliburn24

    Caliburn24 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Apr 23, 2005
    Location:
    Gig Harbor, Washington
    Terminator: Salvation, and TSCC, despite their flaws, understood that you can't just keep having machines disguised as humans hunting Sarah or John Connor. That gets stale really fast. Rebooting the franchise to retell that original story and make it "sexier" might do all right in terms of box office, but it is creatively a dead end.

    The Terminator story I want is the one that picks up after Rise of the Machines where John Connor emerges from his bunker to form the resistance and the Future War begins. Salvation sort of did this, but was poorly executed and just didn't feel "right" somehow.
     
  20. RoJoHen

    RoJoHen Awesome Admiral

    Joined:
    Apr 14, 2000
    Location:
    QC, IL, USA
    I still haven't seen Salvation, but I agree. T3, though a flawed movie in its own right, had the perfect setup for a sequel.