How to Get Cast in a ‘Terminator’ Production

Created by co-writer–director James Cameron and co-writer–producer Gale Anne Hurd, the “Terminator” franchise exists within a post-apocalyptic future. Sometime in the future, an AI computer system called Skynet becomes self-aware and launches nuclear war against the humans who threaten its existence, eliminating humanity using robot assassins known as Terminators—which look human themselves. 

In the first film, “The Terminator,” a human named John Connor launches an uprising against the machines that ultimately jeopardizes their success. With their downfall in sight, the machines opt to send a Terminator (Schwarzenegger) back in time to kill John’s mother, Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), to prevent his birth and the subsequent resistance he established. Although the machines (spoiler alert!) fail in this mission, they make another attempt to kill John as a child in “Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” also directed by Cameron. While the movies that follow somewhat deviate from the original timeline, each focuses on the battles Sarah and John face as they work to save—and rebuild—humanity.

Here are the films that have come to define the franchise so far:

• “The Terminator” (1984)
• “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (1991)
• “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines” (2003)
• “Terminator Salvation” (2009)
• “Terminator Genisys” (2015)
• “Terminator: Dark Fate” (2019)

The franchise also briefly dipped its toes into the TV pool with Fox’s “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” which ran for two seasons between 2008 and 2009. Now, “Terminator Zero”—the first anime entry in this series—is set to premiere on Netflix on Aug. 29. 

While “The Sarah Connor Chronicles” focused on Sarah and John’s efforts to stop the creation of Skynet, “Terminator Zero” will introduce Japanese scientist Malcolm Lee (André Holland), who’s tasked with developing a Skynet competitor. The new series primarily takes place in 1997 in Japan, with Lee and his three children being pursued by a warrior from a post-apocalyptic future.

Schwarzenegger and Hamilton became the faces of the franchise when they starred as the Terminator and Sarah Connor, respectively, in both “The Terminator” and “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.” Additionally, Michael Biehn originated the role of Resistance soldier Kyle Reese in the first film, and the second film brought Robert Patrick’s iconic portrayal of the T-1000 into the mix.

Schwarzenegger returned to this career-defining role for “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” alongside Nick Stahl, who took on the role of John Connor, and Claire Danes (Kate Brewster). “Terminator Salvation” then featured Christian Bale as John Connor; Sam Worthington (Marcus Wright), Anton Yelchin (Kyle Reese), Bryce Dallas Howard (Kate Connor), Moon Bloodgood (Blair Williams), and Helena Bonham Carter (Dr. Serena Kogan) rounded out the cast.

In the fifth film, “Terminator Genisys,” Schwarzenegger starred once again, as well as Jason Clarke (John Connor), Emilia Clarke (Sarah Connor), Jai Courtney (Kyle Reese), J.K. Simmons (O’Brien), Courtney B. Vance (Miles Dyson), and Matt Smith (Alex).

Then, “Terminator: Dark Fate” saw Schwarzenegger and Hamilton reunite in the roles they originated, along with Mackenzie Davis (Grace), Natalia Reyes (Dani Ramos), Gabriel Luna (Gabriel), and Diego Boneta (Diego Ramos).

Next up, though “Terminator Zero” will be animated, its voiceover cast features some top-notch talent including Holland (Malcolm), Timothy Olyphant (the Terminator), Sonoya Mizuno (Eiko), Rosario Dawson (Kokoro), and Ann Dowd (the Prophet).

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Stanzi Stokes (“Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” “The China Syndrome”) was the main CD behind “The Terminator,” and the late Mali Finn, who worked with Cameron on “Titanic” and “Avatar,” served as the principal CD on “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.”

Sarah Finn and Randi Hiller (“The Avengers,” “Iron Man”) cast the third installment, “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines,” while Justine Arteta and Kim Davis-Wagner (“Being John Malkovich,” “Daisy Jones & The Six”) cast “Salvation.” 

Ronna Kress (“Moulin Rouge!” “Deadpool”) cast “Genisys.” Mindy Marin (“Juno”), Lucinda Syson (“Batman Begins”), and Tonucha Vidal (“Wonder Woman 1984”) shared casting duties on “Dark Fate.”

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As Schwarzenegger told Men’s Health, Cameron wanted him to play the Terminator from the start, but the actor didn’t see himself playing a robot. Instead, he had his sights set on playing human Kyle Reese. However, as the actor noted, he became “fixated” on the Terminator before his first meeting with Cameron. 

At lunch with the writer-director, Schwarzenegger told Cameron, “He’s a machine. So everything has to be matter-of-fact. I told Jim that. I said there should be no joy, no gratification, no kind of victory lap of any sort. Just the mission, complete,” he shared. “Jim, afterward, says to me, ‘Fuck—you analyze it better than the way I have written it. Why don't you play the Terminator?’ ” However, Schwarzenegger hesitated because the titular character “only says 27 lines”—though he obviously came around to the idea in the end.

But what can those who audition expect? “I hope they can expect to have a good experience. A question we ask a lot is, ‘Did you accomplish what you came in here wanting to do today? Do you feel like you did the work that you prepared?’ Hopefully, we can honor that,” Finn told us. “I understand and have an amazing amount of compassion for what actors go through and how hard they work—what it means to them every time they come in for an audition. We want to honor that and let people know that when you’re doing your best work, you never know where that’s going to land you…. When you do good work and show up every day, we take note,” she added. “We remember that, and hopefully it turns into something down the line.”

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Though the most recent “Terminator” films—“Genisys” and “Dark Fate”—did not fare well at the box office (many claimed every entry after “Terminator 2” stumbled because Cameron was not involved), Cameron has since revealed he’s working on a secret “Terminator” project that’s “totally classified.” So, while we don’t know what the director has up his sleeve, keep an eye on this space for updates as they become available.

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Currently, there are no casting calls or auditions available for the “Terminator” franchise. In the meantime, we recommend bookmarking our main casting page. And with Cameron potentially reassuming his place as the creative mind behind “Terminator,” we also suggest checking out our guide on how to get cast in an “Avatar” movie, as he’s also the brains behind this major science fiction franchise.

“Avatar: The Way of Water” Courtesy 20th Century Studios

Failure isn’t fatal. “Let me be very clear about something,” Schwarzenegger wrote in his 2023 book “Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life.” “And this is for anyone out there who has ever experienced failure, which is every single one of us: Failure is not fatal…. Everyone who has accomplished something they’re proud of…will tell you that they learned more from their failures than from their successes. They will tell you that failure isn’t the end. And they’re right. If anything, when you look at it with the right perspec­tive, failure is actually the beginning of measurable suc­cess, because failure is only possible in situations where you’ve tried to accomplish something difficult and worth­while.” 

He added, “You can’t fail when you don’t try. In that sense, failure is kind of like a progress report on your path to purpose. It shows you how far you’ve come, and it reminds you how far you still have to go and what you have to work on to get there. It’s an opportunity to learn from your mistakes, to evolve your approach, and to come back better than ever.”

Bring your talent. “Don’t be afraid of casting directors. We want you to get the part,” Arteta told us. “You’re never walking into a room where we don’t want you to get the part. Know that and just know how good you are, and trust yourself. And if you don’t get this part, maybe you’ll get a different part in the show or the movie; or in two years I’ll be like, ‘Kim, who was the person we auditioned for that?’ We do this all the time. Just bring your talent.”

She continued, “There are so many people that we want to know, do know, and are keeping tabs on. That’s the wonderful world of storytelling: There’s always something that you’re going to be right for. I don’t think there’s an exact rhyme or reason to how to stay in touch with us, but just know that we’re doing our job. We’re remembering you.”

Honor your authentic voice. “The most important quality is that [actors] honor their own authentic voice,” Finn said. “An actor should always follow their instincts and follow their impulses because as long as an actor is drawing on their own life experience and connecting with what’s real in them and bringing that to what’s real in the character, it’s going to be unique. It’s going to stand out. I think the most important thing is to bring their own original inspiration and creativity to anything they’re doing and to the role. That’s what makes them stand out. There’s really no way to try to guess what someone’s looking for or to try to figure out how to do it right. There’s no right. There’s only making it your own and bringing it to life.” 

She added, “Just trust that we have your best interests at heart and we’re listening to our directors and our producers and our screenwriters, and we are having the job of putting this all together. But there is always a much bigger picture than the particular role the actor’s focused on.”