James Cameron’s The Terminator has become a classic film that has stood the test of time, and its lead star, Arnold Schwarzenegger, forever reminds fans that he is the one and only perfect actor to portray the character. The franchise has been through a lot over the years, but it remains one of the biggest films in history.
The behind-the-scenes of the 1984 movie was as interesting as the viewing experience itself, and for someone who was still making a name in the industry, Cameron had a lot to prove. The pressure was, indeed, real when he started working with Schwarzenegger who already held global fame.
James Cameron On Casting Arnold Schwarzenegger In The Terminator
James Cameron created The Terminator when he was only at the start of his career, and the only feature film he had under his belt was a low-budget Piranha sequel. At the time, Arnold Schwarzenegger was already known as a seven-time Mr. Olympia title holder and had starred in Conan the Barbarian in 1982.
This put pressure on the Canadian filmmaker as he once revealed working with the actor was an intimidating experience (via IMDb):
“I was petrified at the start of The Terminator (1984). First of all, I was working with a star, at least I thought of him as a star at the time. Arnold came out of it even more a star.”
Schwarzenegger was originally cast for the role of Kyle Reese, but when Cameron personally met him, the director realized he found the perfect actor for the role of Terminator. The former professional bodybuilder once told Cameron via Graham Bensinger:
“Everything was kind of off because he was not like a human being, there was something wrong here, but you couldn’t identify exactly what it was. He cannot go and look down and have the magazine be put into the gun… This has to be done like a machine, therefore he has to be trained blindfolded.”
Cameron was amazed with the actor’s idea and decided the True Lies star knew the Terminator better than anyone else. Right then, he hired Schwarzenegger as the titular character, but the latter refused. He badly wanted to play Reese.
The director told him to go home and reflect for a while. Eventually, the Predator star realized it could be the most memorable character he would ever play if he did it right.
James Cameron Saw Arnold Schwarzenegger As An Extremely Strong Machine
James Cameron admitted in an interview with GQ how he perceived Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character and why he changed his mind about his casting. He stated:
“I couldn’t get over how unique [Arnold Schwarzenegger’s] face was, how it almost just projected this kind of raw power. And my conception of the character had been that he was more of an infiltrator. But then my perspective shifted, and I would say that it kind of pivoted on a dime.”
He also noted how Schwarzenegger had the makings of a real Terminator, even without the weapons that made him more terrifying. He continued:
“I just saw him as like this kind of bulldozer, this kind of armored tank. And he could just move through a crowd. If anybody was in his way, he’d just push them out of the way, and you’d just accept it. It didn’t even have anything to do with the guns, it was just that kind of raw strength, a kind of a machine strength.”
Despite his initial feeling of intimidation towards Schwarzenegger and the beef they had on the set, the Terminator franchise both propelled their careers to the stratosphere of stardom and success.
