Now that Terminator 5 is finally moving forward, it must be time to start speculation as to what the film’s story will be. Our first entry in what I am sure will be a series of such stories comes to us from WWE Examiner (via Bleeding Cool) and also hints at what franchise star Arnold Schwarzenegger’s role in the new film may be.
T5 may be a prequel set in the days of Sarah Connor’s parents, marking the first time terminators have been sent back in time to kill a character that existed before both John and Sarah Connor.
Incredibly, Schwarzenegger may not play the role of a machine in the next film, but a potentially heroic human figure in or close to the Connor family. One theory is that Schwarzenegger’s remarkable ability to protect the Connor family in the 1940s or 1950s with antiquated weaponry by today’s standards ultimately inspired the machines to develop a terminator in his likeness that was eventually sent to 1984 when Sarah Connor was first targeted for termination.
This does make a certain amount of sense. The previous installments of the franchise have moved from the present day forward into the future after Skynet launches its campaign to exterminate mankind. There isn’t much room for additional stories that would actually carry any dramatic weight to be told. But this feels like a logical extension of the original two film’s storyline of terminator robots being sent back to the present day to eliminate the mother of Skynet’s greatest opponent, but perhaps with a dash of Back To The Future tossed in. The one thing that doesn’t ring true for me is the assertion that the machines would so admire what 40s/50s Schwarzenegger’s character does that they would model their terminator robot’s face on his. It sounds too much like an emotional reaction and out of character for an emotionless computer.
The Examiner also reports that another action star is being eyed for the film –
We’re told the script is now being developed and with one fellow action movie star in mind for the role of T5′s most sinister machine. A source close to Annapurna Films exclusively tells WWE Examiner Friday morning that one version of the script is being produced specifically for The Rock himself.
Johnson would be a good replacement if the 65-year-old Schwarzenegger ever decides to call it a day, so I can see where producers might want to start positioning him now to step in and take over.
But let’s remember that we are still very early in the development process for this movie so I wouldn’t take anything that is being reported at this stage without at least a grain of salt.
