"Entertainment Weekly caught up with Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins producers Derek Anderson and Victor Kubicek."
Here's what was said...
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: There's been a lot of conflicting information about Bale's role in Salvation — including reports that he'll be playing the Terminator himself. Was this just the rumor mill spinning out of control yet again? DEREK ANDERSON: There's a hugely engaged fan base for this mythology. There are over a million fan sites out there. And they've been really waiting for this next installment, so as soon as word got out [that Bale was being considered], everybody started speculating: Is he the Terminator? Is he John Connor? Is it a new role that we haven't seen in the franchise in the past? Where that came from, we're not really sure. But he was always being considered for Connor.
The other rumor was that Connor was only going to be a supporting role. ANDERSON: John Connor is an ongoing, very central character throughout the next trilogy. VICTOR KUBICEK: Exactly. The mythology, really at the root of it, is the birth of the hero. John Connor is this modern-day, messianic figure that is going to lead our franchise forward. ANDERSON: He's leading the fight for the salvation of humanity against the machines. So he's very important.
So he's the star? KUBICEK: Yes. ANDERSON: There's gonna be another major costar with kind of equal presence in this installment.
And that costar would play the Terminator character? ANDERSON: Yes.... Well, it's hard to say. It is a new character introduced in the mythology that's not replacing Arnold [Schwarzenegger]. It's not like he's stepping into Arnold's shoes. It's a completely new character.
Okay, but is it a Terminator — a killing machine? ANDERSON: No, not really. That's one of the big twists that if we told you —
You'd have to kill me? KUBICEK: [Laughs] Yes. ANDERSON: It would ruin the story for you. But there's an element of humanity to it. It's a bit different.
Not to beat a dead horse, but is the new figure Connor's enemy? KUBICEK: The other lead character is a new figure. [Anderson laughs] And it's questionable if he's an enemy or not. That's not necessarily resolved. ANDERSON: It's a really interesting time in the franchise because it's where all the fans have always wanted the franchise to go, and it hasn't to date, which is the post-apocalyptic world. It's after judgment day. So because we're in a different time in the mythology, it introduces a whole new set of circumstances and characters.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY:All right, easier question: Why Christian Bale for John Connor? DEREK ANDERSON: Well, he's a brilliant actor, clearly. VICTOR KUBICEK:Absolutely, and I think even more, like I said, this is kind of a messianic figure, somebody who's really complex and unlike a robot. There's this intense humanity. We feel like he really possesses that. ANDERSON:He does have that incredible range. He can be that physical active guy that also has a lot of heart. The audience needs to empathize with him. There's probably not any better actor for that role.
Will Schwarzenegger be returning in any form? KUBICEK:He may make a cameo. ANDERSON: It still hasn't been determined, but if he does, it would be a very small cameo.
That's a tricky thing, because at this point, you don't want his presence to be a distraction, right? KUBICEK: That's sort of how we feel, though you can't divorce him from this franchise. He's a huge supporter of it, and he's very excited about what we're doing. It's for no lack of enthusiasm that we wouldn't bring him back. But I think we agree with you. This is about the future of the franchise, and we're really excited to bring in all new elements, while still maintaining the core mythology.
Terminator fans seem to be pretty supportive of the casting of Bale. They're a little more skeptical about McG. ANDERSON:People can only speak to the body of work that they've seen of his [including Charlie's Angels and We Are Marshall]. Some people love it and some people don't. I think one of the things that we're certain of is, this is gonna be the next step in his career as a filmmaker. He's bringing all of his past experience and his amazing vision. KUBICEK: McG is a huge Terminator fan. He is as excited as we are about bringing the franchise into the future. And again, Christian is such a committed, incredible actor. He doesn't choose the roles he takes lightly. So I think that's an endorsement of the script and certainly of McG. Somebody like Christian wouldn't have signed on for a project if he didn't feel he was in great hands with his director.
Is it odd that Bale will be starring in two iconic, tentpole movies for Warner Bros.? KUBICEK: No, we're not really daunted by that because they're such different movies. This character is unlike anything anyone will see in a Batman picture. ANDERSON: I don't think there's going to be anyone watching Salvation, saying, ''Oh, there's Batman!'' Because Christian does so inhabit the role. And, if you think, Harrison Ford was part of two huge, iconic franchises: Star Wars and Indiana Jones. KUBICEK: Nobody was too confused about that.
Today we were supplied with the first official synopsis for Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, which stars Christian Bale as John Connor and has McG attached to direct. Here it is! The film is about John Connor (Christian Bale), now in his 30's and soon to be wife Kate Brewster realize they must create a resistance organization with Earth's remaining survivors against the army of robots slowly being built up by Skynet. As they are building this resistance, one survivor happens to be a traitor in disguise, and has a secret that nobody would ever come to suspect.
I wonder if this film will even acknowledge T3 now seemingly regarded as the worst of the films so far. Perhaps that is why there is no 4 in the apparently official title. Rumor says the makers of the Sarah Connor series will be ignoring 3, and the same doing the series are doing 4. So I wonder if 4 will be made and what it will be like? Either way they are taking a huge gamble.
I hated John Connor is T3 so much. Aren't you tired of emo heros? Can't John Connor be a badass? He HAS to. I'm not saying he must be perfect and without fear, but I hated the way he was portrayed as weak and emo.
I am suprised, I admit that Bale agreed to do this film considering he may end up being closely associated with two popular film franchises, but am interested in what he does with the role of Connor.
Wow there have been some significant developments in the t4 arena. Well, its a shame that they didn't get Nick Stahl to do Terminator 4, but Christian Bale is not a bad choice at all for John Connor. 3 different John Connors for 3 different T movies though, that says something. Like ragesremorse said, it cant be worse than the third, and the fact that we will see the future war makes me all the more optimistic. They need a solid script with good writing and we might have a great terminator movie. I am curious as to who will play Kate Brewster now.
More details have appeared on the making of the new Terminator 4 (Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, lets hope its a working title) movie. Check out below for more facts, rather then the gossip and rumours that appear online in lots of blogs and even official newsportals and -sites.
Quotes from articles...
* The Story
"We're keeping the script under very tight security. And one of the reasons is that we have a huge twist at the end, which we're being careful not to reveal. Like with the last Terminator — we kept that under tight wraps so not even the crew got the last six or seven pages. I can tell you this much — this is the story everybody has been waiting for. Namely, we're in the future. The part of it where Arnold's character has not yet been built but is on the drawing board. And in the next two episodes we'll get to the point where time-travel is more in the foreground. It's the war against the machines, the start of Skynet taking over the world."
* The Shoot
According to Borman, the shoot will likely start on April 15 at Budapest's Korda Studios, using mostly interior sets and a mix of CGI and robotics. "The time period gives us a lot of space to play around with toys. The machines you'll see are basically a generation before Arnold." He adds: "One thing you should know is that this place now has the biggest indoor water tank in the world — it's bigger than a football field and it'll be ready for the time we get there." Does this mean we should expect a watery action sequence? Have Skynet got aquatic Hunter-Killers in their arsenal?
* The Director
"It's not a rumour anymore — McG is going to direct it." Along with most of the free-thinking world, we're sceptical about the Charlie's Angels director's ability to craft a dark and smart sci-fi thriller. But Borman is convinced they've got the right guy: "He has a chance with this to show what he can really do, without any restraints, a completely imaginative future-world he can build."
* Arnold
Is this the last we've seen of the Austrian Oak model of Terminator? Not necessarily. "It's convenient that he hasn't been built at this point of the story, as Arnold has more important things to do right now, but that doesn't mean he might not re-appear later in the trilogy. He knows the material and is very supportive of what we're doing. There might even be hints of his character in this one."
There has been some Terminator 4 (can we call it that?) news this week. Although minor news it is both interesting and a little sad (if you are one of those who like T3).
First of all it was posted on the Australian film site Moviehole.net that actor Sam Shepherd will star in the upcoming Terminator movie:-
James Cameron, who just worked with the Aussie actor on “Avatar”, suggested to “Terminator Salvation : The Future Begins” director McG that he use Worthington (indicating that the director of the first two "Terminator" installments might be warming to the new pic) in the new cyborg sequel. As it tuned out, Worthington (“Dirty Deeds”, “Rogue”) was perfect for one of the lead roles in the film, which stars Christian Bale as John Connor, and the “Charlie’s Angels” director was yet to find someone suitable.
While the "Terminator Salvation" plot has twists and turns that are being kept under tight wraps, Variety says Worthington will play the role of Marcus, a central figure in a three-picture arc that begins after Skynet has destroyed much of humanity in a nuclear holocaust. A group of survivors led by John Connor (Christian Bale) struggles to keep the machines from finishing the job.
Cameron kept his distance from "Terminator 3," the first he didn't direct. Might he join in on this one? Even if it’s just by way of sprinkling holy water on the film stock so that it turns out a little more blessed than the abovementioned second sequel?
Sources tell the trades that McG spoke on the phone recently with Cameron, who is in New Zealand working on "Avatar." It was during that chat that he recommended Worthington, who in "Avatar" plays a paraplegic war veteran from Earth who's brought to another planet inhabited by a race of humanoids at odds with Earth's inhabitants.
Today the same site quotes a chat between MTV and Nick Stalh and how he feels about not being in Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins:-
Talking to MTV, Stahl says although he doesn’t about being involved in the project, he was informed early on that Connor would be a middle-aged man, not someone in his early thirties, in the new film.
“They said it would be a 50-year-old man, but I guess they reduced the age a little bit,” Stahl said of how the franchise producers had explained the plot to him. “That’s what they told me very early on [in development of the ‘Salvation’ script]. That it was gonna take place further in the future, and I probably wouldn’t be on.”
“I like [Bale] a lot…he’s a little older, and they wanted someone a little older, and also he’s got a name. He’s a big guy now. So, God bless.”
“I love the franchise, and I love the movies,” he continued, “so I’ll probably be seeing the fourth one.”
KMC Community Forums
Dec 5th, 2007 08:58 AM
Thanks Passione
