Arnold Schwarzenegger starred as T-800 in James Cameron’s landmark science fiction film The Terminator in 1984. Since then, the Austrian Oak has appeared in five films and even made a CGI appearance in Terminator Salvation, the film in which he did not actually star in. Fans have often wondered why all the T-800s throughout the five films have the face and accent of Arnold Schwarzenegger. One deleted scene from Terminator 3 has the answer to this question.
The film initially used a very silly and pretty funny scene to explain why all the T-800s look the same. It is shown in the deleted scene that the AI robot was modeled after the physical appearance of a U.S. Air Force Chief Master Sergeant, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Terminator 3 Deleted Scene Reveals Why T-800s Have Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Look And Accent
Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s T-800 was Skynet’s machine assassin developed in the future that came back to the present to hunt the son of Sarah Connor in The Terminator. He was destroyed in the film by a pipe bomb that also killed Kyle Reese. In Terminator 2: Judgment Day, T-800 returns as a reprogrammed Terminator to save Sarah and John. Both T-800s and the ones in the following sequels and prequels were all played by Schwarzenegger.
The Predator actor’s recurring appearance as the new T-800 in each film was explained in a deleted scene in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. According to this scene, Skynet designed the physical appearance of the Cyborg based on Chief Master Sergeant William Candy, who is a part of the U.S. Air Force Combat Control Team.
Candy is played by Schwarzenegger in a goofy scene where the Cyber Research Systems officials are briefed about the development of the AI robot assassin. Schwarzenegger’s Air Force Sergeant is shown to be in peak physical condition, which is why he got picked in the first place. However, the scene makes a further silly play on how T-800 got the Austrian accent of the actor.
The character Candy originally speaks an exaggerated Southern accent in the film and is voiced by another actor. The boss hates the accent of the killer bot and his assistant Sherwood Olson promises to fix it. Interestingly, the character of Olson is voiced by Schwarzenegger with an Austrian accent, hinting that Olson swapped Candy’s voice with his own for T-800.
The scene was cut from the film as it was a major deviation from the serious tone of the movie. While it provided an essential explanation, it turned out to be too silly to be included in the original cut. The deleted scene was later made available on the DVD and Blu-ray releases of the film.
James Cameron Initially Didn’t Want Arnold Schwarzenegger In The Film
Interestingly, James Cameron badly wanted to avoid casting Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Terminator and the actor thought the film was too silly. However, when they set aside their differences, they were able to make an iconic sci-fi film. The FUBAR actor was the studio’s choice for Kyle Reese, which did not sit well with Cameron. The director would’ve to then find a more intimidating actor for Terminator which was very challenging.
However, when Cameron met with Schwarzenegger, he was impressed with his comments on how the villain should be portrayed. The Avatar director cast him as the villain. Schwarzenegger believed the film was a “sh*t movie” but still committed to it, as he sought a change of pace from working in the sword and sorcery film, Conan the Barbarian (via PeakD).
The first film went on to collect $78.3 million at the box office, spawning several sequels (via The Numbers).
The Terminator is available on Prime Video, while Terminator 3 is available for rent on AppleTV+.
