Last year’s Terminator: Dark Fate saw Linda Hamilton return as Sarah Connor with Arnold Schwarzenegger reprising his role as a T-800 “Terminator,” bringing Hamilton back to the role for the first time in almost thirty years. However, despite the positive response from audiences and critics, the film didn’t make an impact at the box office, and that has left Hamilton wanting to be done with the series.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the movie scored 70% and 82% with critics and audiences respectively, but there was division about the opening scene, which saw T-800 Terminator (Schwarzenegger) shoot John Connor (Edward Furlong) after the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Feminist agenda, blah-blah, you know how it goes. The result was the film making $261 million against a production budget of $185–196 million. The studio losses are estimated to reach $130 million. So, when speaking to The Hollywood Reporter about it, Hamilton wished that a smaller version of the film could be made.
“I would really appreciate maybe a smaller version where so many millions are not at stake. Today’s audience is just so unpredictable,” Hamilton tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I can’t tell you how many laymen just go, ‘Well, people don’t go to the movies anymore.’ It should definitely not be such a high-risk financial venture, but I would be quite happy to never return. So, no, I am not hopeful because I would really love to be done.”
Honestly, I agree. Considering that the original Terminator film cost $6.4 million to make, the need to spend so much money to make a grand spectacle rather than focusing on really tight scrips and atmosphere has been an issue for most sequels since the beginning. Even something like Halloween (2018) ended up costing $10 million. For what? I have no clue.
Still, Hamilton stands by the choices the film made, story-wise, including killing John. Remember, this story is a direct sequel to Terminator and T2, so this story doesn’t have those other sequels that focus more on him.
“I don’t think Sarah and John would be there at all if they were still fine and strong. I thought it was a great leaping-off point for my character,” Hamilton told THR. “To create a new fuel and fire for Sarah Connor, I thought it was a very good story point. I’m not one that clings to past ideas… I just think it’s much more interesting to launch from a new place.”
Being able to have the story focus on Sarah and her deep pain allowed Hamilton to go into dark places as an actress.
“[…] when I was taking my first meeting with Skydance, I said to them, ‘Do you know Mo’Nique in Precious and that scene at the end where her rage comes out in her amazing Oscar-worthy performance? I want that somewhere in this script.’ I wanted that level of just bitter truth and rage coming out. I wanted a Mo’Nique moment. So, that’s what we were going for.”
Honestly, Linda Hamilton deserves better than any franchise right now, so I’m just wishing for her to thrive. She and her guns (and by guns, I mean her arms) deserve a rest.
(via The Hollywood Reporter, image: Paramount)
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