Terminator | |
---|---|
Terminator characters | |
First appearance | The Terminator (1984) |
Last appearance | Terminator: Resistance (2019) |
Created by | James Cameron |
Portrayed by | Various actors |
In-universe information | |
Race | Cyborg/android |
Occupation | Infiltration unit |
Affiliation | Skynet The Turk ( Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles ) Legion ( Terminator: Dark Fate ) |
In the Terminator franchise, a Terminator is an autonomous cyborg, typically humanoid, conceived as a virtually indestructible soldier, infiltrator, and assassin. A variety of models appear throughout the franchise. Within the fictional storyline, Terminators are created in a post-apocalyptic future by a computer AI known as Skynet, [lower-alpha 1] after it has launched war on humans. The machines are created to aid Skynet in its quest, and most are designed as infiltrators with a human appearance. Several Terminators throughout the franchise are reprogrammed by the human resistance to instead serve as protectors.
James Cameron introduced the first Terminator character in the 1984 film The Terminator , featuring a single cyborg simply called the "Terminator" or "Cyberdyne Systems Model 101", portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Terminators are cyborgs designed as skilled killing machines. In most franchise media, the machines are created in a post-apocalyptic future by a computer AI, Skynet, [lower-alpha 1] after it has launched a nuclear war against humans. According to the first two films, Terminators were created after the war started. The films Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and Terminator Salvation feature an altered timeline affected by the destruction of Cyberdyne Systems in Terminator 2: Judgment Day . In this new timeline, Terminators were created by Cyber Research Systems, starting with the T-1. Subsequent films also feature their own alternate timelines.
Terminators typically consist of an exterior made of living human tissue, covering a metal endoskeleton. The skin is prone to aging and injury related deterioration. [2] [3] Terminators are generally used as infiltration units, their appearance allowing them to blend in with humans. Dogs are used by the human resistance to detect Terminators in disguise. [4] Although designed to kill people, several of the machines are reprogrammed by the resistance to instead serve as protectors. [5]
Common Terminator traits include super strength, [6] [7] shapeshifting, [8] [9] vocal impersonation, [10] [11] and red eyes. [12] [13] A Terminator's point of view is also rendered in this color. [14] [15] [16]
The original film The Terminator (1984) introduces a Cyberdyne Systems Model 101, also known as a T-800 and commonly referred to as simply the "Terminator". [17] The character is portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, who would return to play various incarnations of the machine throughout the film series. Originally an antagonist, the T-800 is usually depicted as a protector in later appearances. [18] [19]
Subsequent films have introduced other Terminator models:
The films have also featured several humans who later become part machine:
A television series, titled Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008–09), introduces several new Terminator models. Among these are multiple T-888 antagonists, [32] [33] including one known as Cromartie (portrayed by Garret Dillahunt). [34] Other Terminators include a shapeshifting T-1001 known as Catherine Weaver (portrayed by Shirley Manson), [32] and an unknown model known as Cameron (portrayed by Summer Glau), a protector to John Connor. [35]
An early model, the T-600, is referenced in the first film, noted as being easily spotted due to its rubber-skinned exterior. [36] [37] The T-600 makes its first appearance in The Sarah Connor Chronicles. [38] Terminator Salvation features T-600s and T-700s, the latter also using rubber exteriors before Skynet upgrades to human tissue with the T-800. Both models also have a darker-colored endoskeleton and are larger compared with their successor. [28] [39] [40] [41]
Other machines, lacking a human appearance, have also appeared. These include Hunter-Killers (or HKs), which make appearances in the future war segments of the film series. Two types of HKs exist: ground-based tanks and aerial drones. [42] [43] [28] [44]
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines briefly features the T-1, described as the earliest Terminator model by director Jonathan Mostow: "I wanted to depict the first generation of Terminator robots, to show where it all began. […] We came up with this primitive but deadly robotic machine that is part tank, part robot." [45]
Terminator Salvation introduces a variety of new machines, [40] including Aerostats which fly over areas looking for humans. [28] Upon locating them, the Aerostats report back to the Harvester, a machine rising at least 50 feet. The Harvester is tasked with capturing the humans, and can smash into buildings to acquire them. [39] [40] The humans are then loaded into the Transporter, a flying machine which brings them to Skynet's facilities for research, which is then used to create the T-800. [39] Terminator Salvation also introduces two other machines, both designed to kill humans: the Hydrobot, an amphibious snake-like vehicle; [40] [43] [46] and motorcycles known as Moto-Terminators. [43]
Terminator Genisys introduces an additional model, four-legged Spider Tanks, which are dropped by aerial HKs. [47] [48]
The Terminator concept was originally conceived by James Cameron, director and writer of the first two films. [49] [50] Special effects artist Stan Winston and his crew provided practical Terminator effects for the original film, including the endoskeleton, and would return for the next three installments to provide further effects. [28] [51] [52] Following Winston's death in 2008, a successor company was formed by his crew under the name Legacy Effects, which worked on Terminator Genisys. [52] Industrial Light & Magic has also worked on the films since Terminator 2, providing computer-generated imagery of the machines for certain shots. [53] [54] [55]
The T-1000 is a fictional character in the Terminator franchise, debuting as the main antagonist in the 1991 film Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The character was originally portrayed by Robert Patrick, marking his breakout role.
Terminator is an American media franchise created by James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd. It is considered to be of the cyberpunk subgenre of science fiction. The franchise primarily focuses on a post-apocalyptic war between a synthetic intelligence known as Skynet, and a surviving resistance of humans led by John Connor. Skynet fights with an arsenal of cyborgs known as Terminators, designed to mimic humans and infiltrate the resistance. A prominent model throughout the films is the T-800, commonly known as the Terminator and portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger. Time travel is a common aspect of the franchise, with humans and Terminators often sent back to alter the past and change the outcome of the future.
Sarah Jeanette Connor is a fictional character and the female protagonist of the Terminator franchise. She is one of the protagonists of The Terminator (1984), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Terminator Genisys (2015), and Terminator: Dark Fate (2019), as well as the television series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008–2009). The character develops from a timid damsel in distress victim in the first film to a wanted fugitive committing acts of terrorism, a hardened warrior and mother who sacrificed everything for her son's future, on the verge of losing touch with her own humanity, and a mentor preparing and protecting a protégée for her destiny.
The Terminator, also known as a Cyberdyne Systems Model 101 or the T-800, is the name of several film characters from the Terminator franchise portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Terminator himself is part of a series of machines created by Skynet, an artificial intelligence, for infiltration-based surveillance and assassination missions. While an android for his appearance, he is usually described as a cyborg consisting of living tissue over a robotic endoskeleton.
Kyle Reese is a fictional character in the Terminator franchise, Kyle is the protagonist of the first film and a supporting role in other works. Kyle Reese is portrayed by Michael Biehn in The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Jonathan Jackson in Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008–2009), Anton Yelchin in Terminator Salvation (2009), and Jai Courtney in Terminator Genisys (2015).
John Connor is a fictional character and the male protagonist of the Terminator franchise. Created by writer/director James Cameron, the character is first referred to in the 1984 film The Terminator and first appears in its 1991 sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day (T2). In the character's first appearance, John is portrayed by Edward Furlong as a child, and briefly by Michael Edwards as an adult in a small role. Other actors have portrayed the character in subsequent films, including Nick Stahl, Christian Bale, and Jason Clarke. In addition, Thomas Dekker portrayed John Connor in the two-season television series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.
"I'll be back" is a catchphrase associated with Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was made famous in the 1984 science fiction film The Terminator. On June 21, 2005, it was placed at No. 37 on the American Film Institute list AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movie Quotes. Schwarzenegger uses the same line, or some variant of it, in many of his later films.
Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles is an American science fiction drama television series. It aired on Fox from January 13, 2008 to April 10, 2009, spanning 31 episodes across two seasons. It is a spin-off from the Terminator film series, disregarding the events of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and picking up shortly after Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The series revolves around the lives of Sarah Connor and her son John, who work to prevent the creation of Skynet, an artificially intelligent computer system that will eventually launch a nuclear war on humans.
Skynet is a fictional artificial neural network-based conscious group mind and artificial general superintelligence system that serves as the main antagonist of the Terminator franchise.
Terminator Salvation is a 2009 American military science fiction action film that is the fourth installment of the Terminator franchise, serving as a sequel to Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), but also as a soft reboot. It is directed by McG and written by John Brancato and Michael Ferris. It is the only Terminator film to date not to feature Arnold Schwarzenegger, though his likeness briefly appears digitally. Instead, it stars Christian Bale and Sam Worthington with Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood, Bryce Dallas Howard, Common, Michael Ironside, and Helena Bonham Carter in supporting roles. In a departure from the previous installments, Salvation is a post-apocalyptic film set in the year 2018. It focuses on the war between Skynet's machine network and humanity, as the remnants of the world's militaries have united to form the Resistance to fight against Skynet. Bale portrays John Connor, a Resistance fighter and central character, while Worthington portrays cyborg Marcus Wright. Yelchin plays a young Kyle Reese, a character first introduced in The Terminator (1984), and the film depicts the origins of the T-800 Terminator. After troubled pre-production, with the Halcyon Company acquiring the rights from Andrew G. Vajna and Mario Kassar, and with several writers working on the screenplay, filming began in May 2008 in New Mexico, and ran for 77 days.
Cameron is a fictional character on the Fox television series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which is a spin-off of the Terminator film franchise. Cameron is an unknown model of Terminator—a fictional type of android envisioned as a soldier and assassin, with living tissue over a metal endoskeleton. Cameron first appeared in the series' pilot episode. She is portrayed by actress Summer Glau who, in 2008, won a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress on Television for her performance.
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 and Robert Patrick, 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 when he is a child. The resistance sends back a less advanced, reprogrammed Terminator to protect Connor and ensure the future of humanity.
The T-X is the name of a fictional cyborg assassin who appears in the Terminator franchise. The T-X model is a gynoid assassin and infiltrator. The character was introduced as the main antagonist in the 2003 film Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, portrayed by Kristanna Loken. T-X has the ability to assume the appearance of other characters. This ability to shapeshift is similar to that of the T-1000, the main antagonist of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. T-X also has the ability to scan DNA from blood samples it puts on its tongue.
Terminator Genisys is a 2015 American cyberpunk action film that is the fifth installment in the Terminator franchise. It is a reboot of the franchise, taking the premise of the original film in another direction and ignoring the events depicted in sequels and the TV series. The film stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, who reprises his role as the Terminator. It is directed by Alan Taylor and written by Laeta Kalogridis and Patrick Lussier. Along with Schwarzenegger, the film's cast features Jason Clarke, Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, J. K. Simmons, Dayo Okeniyi, Matt Smith, Courtney B. Vance, Michael Gladis, Sandrine Holt, and Lee Byung-hun. The story 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. When Kyle arrives in the past, he discovers that the timeline has been altered by Skynet and that Sarah has been raised by a reprogrammed Terminator sent to protect her.
The T-3000 is a fictional character and the main antagonist of Terminator Genisys, the fifth installment in the Terminator series, portrayed by Jason Clarke. In the film, the T-3000 is an alternate timeline counterpart of Skynet's nemesis John Connor, created after Skynet infects a variant of Connor with nanotechnology and fractures the timeline. The T-3000 also serves as a foil personality to "Guardian", a protagonist who is somewhat similar to the T-3000 but also opposite in many ways, of their relationship dynamics with Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese.
Terminator: Dark Fate is a 2019 American science fiction action film. It is the sixth installment in the Terminator franchise and serves as a direct sequel to both The Terminator (1984) and Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), ignoring the events depicted in Rise of the Machines (2003), Terminator Salvation (2009), and Terminator Genisys (2015). The film stars Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger reprising their characters Sarah Connor and the T-800 Terminator, respectively, and introduces Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes, Gabriel Luna and Diego Boneta as new characters. Dark Fate is directed by Tim Miller and written by David S. Goyer, Justin Rhodes, and Billy Ray, based on a story by James Cameron, Charles H. Eglee, Josh Friedman, Goyer, and Rhodes.
The Rev-9 is a fictional character and the main antagonist of Terminator: Dark Fate, the sixth installment in the Terminator series. In its human form, the Rev-9 is portrayed by Gabriel Luna.
The [Rev-9] has a traditional, solid carbon-based endoskeleton complete with the unsettling skelly smile and piercing red eyes that Terminators are known for possessing.