Cameron wished one of the films from his Terminator series would fail at the box office with it’s release.
SUMMARY
James Cameron created the Terminator series with Arnold Schwarzenegger with the first film in 1984.
The director wanted to end the series with the second film, which didn’t happen.
The world of cinema and the film industry in general might reward cinematic excellence and the artistic expression of filmmakers, but it also wants to see commercial success with the projects that they create.
Thus, director James Cameron, the man who brings both of these attributes to his film, is naturally revered in the industry.
James Cameron on the sets of Titanic
The success story may be a long one, but it naturally had a starting point, which was none other than the Terminator series of films that the filmmaker created with Arnold Schwarzenegger in the lead role.
Despite the franchise adding to the legacy Cameron is still building in the industry, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines was the project in the series that he wished would fail, primarily because he wasn’t part of the creative process.
James Cameron Wanted Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines to Fail
A still from Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
It’s a natural response for you to bring the creation you have envisioned in your mind to life, and when you want to move on, your natural response is to give it a proper and satisfactory end.
James Cameron also wanted to complete the Terminator series with the release of the second film in the franchise, which wasn’t the case when it was revived for a third film.
In a past interview with Black Film (via Showbiz CheatSheet), Arnold Schwarzenegger, the star who has been a regular appearance in all the films of the series till the latest, revealed that he knew the original filmmaker wanted Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines to both fail and succeed.
He said that since he didn’t want to continue the franchise further, he was replaced by filmmaker Jonathan Mostow, who ultimately made the third film with him. He said:
“He has a part of him that wants the movie to succeed and a part of him that wants it to fail.
He has mixed emotions because he started it and I think this one time-wise, it didn’t work out and he didn’t want to be part of it under those constraints that it has to be a summer movie 2003 and he has to do it.
He doesn’t operate that way. I totally appreciate that,”
Seeing as his original creation was being continued without him, he may have despised it a bit, but seeing his legacy move forward without him may also have filled him with pride, hence these complicated emotions.
What Was Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines About?
A still from Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
The film may have followed the same route that has been etched into the DNA of the franchise, but Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines still managed to capture the hearts of the audience.
After destroying Cyberdyne Systems ten years in the past, John Connor is a drifter who is living a life in a constant run without his mother, Sarah Connor, from the malevolent AI Skynet.
Unable to locate Connor in the past, Skynet sends out an advanced terminator named T-X that would kill all the future allies that the main protagonist is fated to meet.
Thus, human resistance also sends their own Terminator model back into the past to save Connor and his future with Kate Brewster.
