With the obvious exception of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cinematic icon, none of the Terminator franchise’s most prominent cybernetic organisms have been particularly jacked. Robert Patrick, Kristanna Loken, Sam Worthington, Jason Clarke and Gabriel Luna have all occupied the role of antagonist over the last 30 years, but not one of them is cut from the same excessively muscular cloth as the Austrian action icon.
That might be about to change, though, as insider Daniel Richtman is claiming that Dwayne Johnson is being eyed to play a Terminator in an upcoming project, although that’s the beginning and end of the tipster’s information. The Rock certainly fits the physical bill, but all of Skynet’s subsequent creations have been emotionless killing machines, which would force the actor to rein in his natural charisma and undeniable star wattage.
He might have named himself Franchise Viagra and then gone on to prove it by reviving the box office fortunes of several brands including Fast & Furious, G.I. Joe and Jumanji, but even if rights holders Skydance wanted him for Terminator, there are no guarantees he’d be able to make time in a schedule that’s constantly jam-packed, and that’s without even mentioning the brand’s severe decline in popularity that’s seen three reboots in the space of ten years fail to launch a new series.
Of course, this is just the latest in a long line of speculative Terminator intel that Richtman has reported on over the last several months, which also includes potential roles for John Cena, Margot Robbie and a returning Edward Furlong in addition to a future-set movie overseen by James Cameron, a PG-13 theatrical sequel, a TV show for Hulu, a deeper exploration of Skynet, multiple female Terminators and Cameron assuming full creative control. But as things stand, the only new outing officially in the works is the upcoming Netflix animated series.
