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History of Terminator Timeline

(1984 - Present)

The Terminator is a science fiction media franchise created by director James Cameron, beginning with the 1984 film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as a cyborg assassin sent from a post-apocalyptic future. The franchise has expanded into multiple sequels, a television series, comic books, and video games, becoming one of the most influential works in sci-fi cinema and shaping popular perceptions of artificial intelligence. Less

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Origins and Development

Cameron dreams of a metallic torso in Rome

1982

In Rome, Italy, during the release of Piranha II: The Spawning (1982), director James Cameron fell ill and had a fever dream about a metallic torso holding kitchen knives dragging itself from an explosion.

Image source: The Terminator

Cameron dreams of a metallic torso in Rome

Cameron uses the dream as a launching pad for a slasher film

1982

Inspired by director John Carpenter, who had made the low-budget slasher film Halloween (1978), Cameron used his dream as a 'launching pad' to write a slasher-style science fiction film.

Cameron develops the concept with William Wisher Jr

1982

Cameron devised the premise of the film from the fever dream he experienced during the release of Piranha II: The Spawning (1982), and developed the concept in collaboration with his friend William Wisher Jr.

Cameron draws on 1950s sci-fi and other influences

1982

Cameron's influences included 1950s science fiction films, the 1960s fantasy television series The Outer Limits, and contemporary films such as The Driver (1978) and Mad Max 2 (1981).

Cameron shelves the liquid Terminator idea

1982

Cameron felt that the technology of the time was unable to create the liquid Terminator, and shelved the idea until the appearance of the T-1000 character in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991).

Daly agrees to back the film

Oct 1, 1982 - Dec 31, 1982

In late 1982, Daly agreed to back the film with help from HBO and Orion.

Production

Planned Toronto filming is halted over Schwarzenegger's contract

Jan 1, 1983 - Mar 31, 1983

Filming for The Terminator was set to begin in early 1983 in Toronto, but was halted when producer Dino De Laurentiis applied an option in Schwarzenegger's contract that made him unavailable for nine months while filming Conan the Destroyer.

Cameron writes Rambo II script during the waiting period

1983

During the waiting period, Cameron was contracted to write the script for Rambo: First Blood Part II, refined the Terminator script, and met with producers David Giler and Walter Hill to discuss a sequel to Alien, which became Aliens (1986).

Brad Fiedel creates the iconic theme in 13/16 time

1984

Brad Fiedel's score featured a main title theme in the unusual time signature of 13/16, which arose when he experimented with rhythms and accidentally created an incomplete loop on his sequencer; he liked its herky-jerky propulsiveness.

Fantasy II develops the 2029 sequences

Mar 1984

The sequences set in 2029 and the stop-motion scenes were developed by Fantasy II, a special effects company headed by Gene Warren Jr.

Production begins in Los Angeles

Mar 1984

In March 1984, The Terminator began production in Los Angeles, with filming taking place mostly at night on location. Filming had been delayed because of Schwarzenegger's commitments to Conan the Destroyer (1984), during which Cameron found time to work on scripts for Rambo: First Blood Part II and Aliens (1986).

Release and Reception

Soundtrack released with score and club songs

1984

A soundtrack to the film was released in 1984 which included the score by Brad Fiedel and the pop and rock songs used in the club scenes.

The Terminator premieres

Oct 26, 1984

The Terminator premiered on October 26, 1984, introducing Arnold Schwarzenegger as the cybernetic assassin sent back in time from post-apocalyptic 2029 to 1984 Los Angeles to assassinate Sarah Connor, whose future son will save the world from Skynet.

Time magazine praises the film's tech-noir savvy

Oct 26, 1984

Richard Corliss of Time magazine said that the film had plenty of tech-noir savvy to keep infidels and action fans satisfied, and Time placed The Terminator on its 10 Best list for 1984. Critics praised Schwarzenegger as perfectly cast in a machine-like portrayal requiring few lines of dialog.

Shaun Hutson novelization published

Feb 21, 1985

Shaun Hutson wrote a novelization of the film which was published on February 21, 1985, by London-based Star Books (ISBN 0-352-31645-4).

Cinefantastique calls the film derivative and original

May 1985

In the May 1985 issue of Cinefantastique, The Terminator was referred to as a film that manages to be both derivative and original at the same time, described as like a streamlined Dirty Harry movie with no exposition at all; just guns, guns and more guns.

Bantam/Spectra novelization published

Oct 1985

Randal Frakes and William Wisher wrote a different novelization of the film for Bantam/Spectra, published in October 1985 (ISBN 0-553-25317-4).

Orion settles Ellison dispute with acknowledgment credit

1986

Orion settled in 1986, gave Ellison an undisclosed amount of money, and added an acknowledgment credit to later prints of the film.

Richard Schickel gives the film an A rating

1991

In 1991, Richard Schickel of Entertainment Weekly reviewed the film, giving it an A rating, writing that what originally seemed a somewhat inflated, if generous and energetic, big picture, now seems quite a good little film.

Total Film names it 72nd-best film ever made

2005

In 2005, Total Film named The Terminator the 72nd-best film ever made.

Selected for the National Film Registry

2008

In 2008, The Terminator was deemed culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

Empire selects it among the 500 Greatest Movies

2008

In 2008, Empire magazine selected The Terminator as one of The 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.

Scholars examine the film as tech-noir

2008 - 2011

Authors Paul Meehan in Tech-Noir: The Fusion of Science Fiction and Film Noir (2008) and Emily E. Auger in Tech-Noir Film: A Theory of the Development of Popular Genres (2011) found that The Terminator belonged to and was the originator of the term tech-noir, though Frelik argued such films had no applicable reason to be understood as tech-noir rather than science fiction.

Named among the 30 Most Significant Independent Films

2010

In 2010, the Independent Film & Television Alliance selected The Terminator as one of the 30 Most Significant Independent Films of the last 30 years.

Included in 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die

2015

In 2015, The Terminator was among the films included in the book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.

Home Media and Legacy

Released on VHS and Betamax

1985

The Terminator was released on VHS and Betamax in 1985, bringing the film to home audiences.

NOW Comics releases comic based on the film

Sep 1988

In September 1988, NOW Comics released a comic based on The Terminator.

Dark Horse Comics publishes sequel comic

1990

Dark Horse Comics published a comic in 1990 that took place 39 years after the events of the film.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day released

1991

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) was the first sequel to follow The Terminator, finally realizing Cameron's earlier liquid metal Terminator concept through the T-1000 character.

Image source: Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Terminator 2: Judgment Day released

Video games released for Nintendo and Sega systems

1991 - 1993

Several video games based on The Terminator were released between 1991 and 1993 for various Nintendo and Sega systems.

Letterboxed Laserdisc edition released

Mar 1995

In March 1995, The Terminator was released as a letterboxed edition on Laserdisc.

DVD premiere through Image Entertainment

Sep 3, 1997

The film premiered on DVD through Image Entertainment on September 3, 1997.

Hong Kong VCD edition released online

Jan 23, 2001

On January 23, 2001, a Hong Kong VCD edition of the film was released online.

MGM special edition DVD released

Oct 2, 2001

Through their acquisition of PolyGram Filmed Entertainment's pre-1996 film library catalogue, MGM Home Entertainment released a special edition of the film on October 2, 2001, which included documentaries, the script, and advertisements for the film.

Key Facts

  1. The original Terminator film was released in 1984, directed by James Cameron and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the T-800 cyborg.
  2. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) was groundbreaking for its CGI effects, particularly the liquid metal T-1000 antagonist, and won four Academy Awards.
  3. The franchise's central premise involves Skynet, an artificial intelligence that becomes self-aware and attempts to exterminate humanity using killer machines.
  4. Beyond the films, the franchise includes the television series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009), comics, novels, and video games.
  5. The franchise's depiction of rogue AI has significantly influenced public discourse about the risks of artificial intelligence.

Source

This History of Terminator timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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