The latest installment in the iconic Terminator franchise may end up being even darker than the title suggests. Shortly after the release of the movie’s new trailer, Terminator: Dark Fate has been confirmed by producer James Cameron to be rated R.
This is definitely a return to form for the action-packed science fiction series, of which only the first three films shared this adult rating. Terminator Salvation and Terminator Genisys, the fourth and fifth entries respectively, were both released as PG-13 flicks as an attempt to draw in a wider audience. The strategy ultimately failed though when neither movie performed as well as anticipated at the box office.
Cameron is now taking the same route the Halloween franchise did last year by forgetting all of the poorly received sequels and simply picking up the story from the last time it resonated. Terminator: Dark Fate will be a direct follow-up to Terminator 2: Judgment Day and shall once again star Arnold Schwarzenegger in the titular role of the cyborg assassin. Linda Hamilton is also set to be back as protagonist Sarah Connor, marking her first reprisal of the role since 1991.
Cameron explained the choice to revert back to the franchise’s roots in an interview earlier this week, saying:
“I think, tonally, what makes this a direct sequel to T1 and T2 is as much about the tone as it is about the narrative: it’s R rated, it’s grim, it’s gritty, it’s fast, it’s intense, it’s linear. The whole story takes place in 36 hours. It’s not this kind of grandiose, complex story. It’s just very focused on the characters, it’s very now, it’s very present and it’s just a fast white-knuckle ride.”
As if fans weren’t already excited enough about the film, the creative decision to return to what made the series great in the first place is definitely going to strike a chord with those who fell in love with the first two installments.
After all, now that Schwarzenegger and Hamilton are beginning to climb up there in age, this may be one of the last times that the original Connor and her eponymous enemy face off onscreen. Hopefully, this latest chapter will be just as thrilling as the first few times these two legendary characters went toe to toe.
Terminator: Dark Fate is set to be released on November 1st, 2019.
