Arnold Schwarzenegger Says James Cameron Was Hands-On In Making 'Terminator 6'

When it comes to the Terminator films after Terminator 2: Judgement Day, James Cameron's involvement is nominal. He gets a credit, cashes a check, and plans some more Avatar films. But that's not the case with Terminator 6, AKA Terminator: Dark Fate. According to the Terminator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Cameron worked closely with director Tim Miller to get the film made. Could that mean the old Terminator magic is back?

It's hard to get overly excited about Terminator: Dark Fate, because so many post-Terminator 2 sequels have been disappointing. But maybe this sixth entry will turn out well, especially because James Cameron seems to have played a big part in the crafting of the film. Cameron and director Tim Miller came up with the story together, and according to Arnold Schwarzenegger, he even offered some direction advice to Miller. While speaking with The Arnold Fans, Schwarzenegger said that while Cameron was mostly busy with his Avatar sequels, he's also a bit of a "control freak" who couldn't just sit back and leave Terminator 6 alone.

"He does get involved in the filming," Arnold said, "so there were interesting discussions about which direction to go with a certain scene or how the dialogue should finish or what the certain look should be of an individual and all that stuff so there was a big collaboration between Jim and Tim Miller. I feel it was in good hands with both of them."

It's good to hear that. I'm not the biggest Tim Miller fan, but I love knowing Cameron had some input for the shooting of some scenes. But Schwarzenegger was sure to praise Miller as well, lest you think he was trying to downplay the director's work on the movie:

"The director, Tim Miller, was very, very talented and I can see why his movie, Deadpool, made so much money and why it was successful because he's very organized. He's an expert with visual effects and special effects and with stunts. He felt very comfortable directing all the actors, the young and the older ones. He was a pleasure to work with."

The plot of Terminator: Dark Fate is mostly a secret for now. All we really know is that it's going to ignore the sequels after Terminator 2, and serve as both a follow-up and a reboot. In addition to Schwarzenegger, the film stars Linda Hamilton, Mackenzie Davis, Gabriel Luna, Natalia Reyes, and Diego Boneta.

Terminator: Dark Fate opens November 1, 2019.