Just when you thought Judgment Day had been averted, a new poster for Terminator: Dark Fate arrives with a reminder that an apocalyptic future filled with human-hunting androids is still a very real possibility in the world of the classic sci-fi franchise.
Terminator franchise star Arnold Schwarzenegger debuted the poster on Twitter with the caption “Are you ready?” The image features his character, the classic T-800 android assassin that has appeared in every iteration of the franchise so far, front and center.
Are you ready? #TerminatorDarkFate pic.twitter.com/m7s7i2Vcrc
— Arnold (@Schwarzenegger) September 10, 2019
The most recent trailer for Dark Fate (see above) was released just after midnight on August 30, and that date is significant: As the trailer points out, the original Judgment Day — when androids slaughter most of humanity in a worldwide machine revolt — was supposed to be August 29, 1997.
While humanity doesn’t appear to have avoided its gruesome fate, it might have found another potential savior.
Directed by Deadpool filmmaker Tim Miller, Terminator: Dark Fate brings back franchise creator James Cameron — who directed 1984’s The Terminator and 1991’s Terminator 2: Judgment Day — as a producer on the project. He’s not the only person returning to the franchise, either. As seen in the trailer, actress Linda Hamilton reprises her role as Sarah Connor, returning to the series for the first time after starring in the first two acclaimed installments.
Hamilton is joined by Schwarzenegger, who first brought the deadly T-800 assassin to the screen in The Terminator and reprised the role — albeit on the side of the heroes — in Judgment Day. Unlike Hamilton, Schwarzenegger has appeared in nearly every chapter of the series in one form or another, either in a lead or supporting role, or simply in a cameo.
Along with all of the familiar faces both behind and in front of the camera, Dark Fate also stars Blade Runner 2049 actress Mackenzie Davis, who can be seen in the trailer as a mysterious, augmented hero who’s apparently capable of going toe-to-toe with the Terminator killing machines. Natalia Reyes (Birds of Passage) also co-stars in the film along with actor Gabriel Luna, who recently played Robbie Reyes, the chain-wielding, fire-headed vigilante known as Ghost Rider in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. television series.
Paramount Pictures delivered the much-anticipated first look at Terminator: Dark Fate with the film’s debut trailer, and although it was light on plot details, the preview offered up plenty of the visual-effects magic and explosive action that has become a staple of the Terminator franchise.
That trailer offered the first look at Gabriel Luna as the latest version of the Terminator assassin. His character is capable of morphing its exoskeleton to adapt to whatever the heroes throw (or shoot, drive, or drop) at it, and seemingly able to split off into a second killing machine when necessary.
Terminator: Dark Fate is reportedly a follow-up to Terminator 2, ignoring the three sequels that followed that film and establishing a new timeline — which is nothing new for a franchise that often plays fast and loose with its own continuity.
Terminator: Dark Fate is scheduled to hit U.S. theaters November 1.
Updated on September 10, 2019: Added a new poster for Terminator: Dark Fate.
