Arnold Schwarzenegger wanted to surpass his arch-rival Sylvester Stallone with Terminator 2. However, the director had a different plan for the film.
For many movie fans, Terminator 2 is among the best films of the entire sci-fi genre. It was also the winner of a poll here on MeinMMO as the best film that Arnold Schwarzenegger has made.
But the actor actually wanted the film to be much more brutal, as he revealed during a panel discussion on June 28, 2023, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
Here you can see a trailer for Terminator 2:
“I had to outdo Stallone“
In the 1991 film, Arnold Schwarzenegger once again stepped into his cult role of the Terminator and this time must protect the future leader of the human resistance, John Connor, from another murderous machine.
Behind the great success of Terminator 2, the actor saw one person above all: James Cameron, the screenwriter and director of the film.
In this YouTube video, you can see for yourself what Arnold Schwarzenegger said about Terminator 2. Jump to 1:06:45:
It was also his idea that Arnold Schwarzenegger this time would not appear as a villain, but as a “good machine“. However, the actor was initially skeptical when Cameron told him: “I want to make a good Terminator out of you.” “What do you mean by a good Terminator?” the actor asked in confusion.
Because Arnold Schwarzenegger actually had very different plans for his film character:
In the first [film] I killed 68 people. In the second, I must kill 150. We are going up! Cut their throats, shoot them with a gun, and run over them with a car.’
I had to outdo Stallone. Remember, my whole mission is to be number one when it comes to the number of people killed on screen.
Arnold Schwarzenegger via YouTube
Because at that time, the two action stars Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger were arch-rivals competing for the best projects. But that was not enough. It was also about who carries the bigger weapons in his films and who kills more people.
James Cameron stuck to his original idea and stopped the actor: “Arnold, stop. You’re a really sick guy. I will make sure you don’t kill a single person in Terminator 2.”
The actor did not like that at all. He commented: “That’s the stupidest thing I have ever heard. How can this be Terminator 2 without me killing someone? At least throw in a few symbolic bodies in the film.”
And concerning an iconic line from the Terminator, the actor and director disagreed:
Arnold Schwarzenegger actually did not want to say a famous line from Terminator
