James Cameron has just revealed why he decided to unveil the twist of his SF classic “Terminator 2: Judgment Day” when promoting the film.
In Terminator 2: Judgment Day, we discover that the character played by Arnold Schwarzenegger is on the right side of the law. A twist unveiled in the marketing promotion of James Cameron’s classic SF. In an interview with Empire, the filmmaker explains why he wanted to reveal this oh so important point in the story even before the film was released.
“All the directors fight with the producers, but here there was no conflict“, says James Cameron. “Mario Kassar and Andy Vajna, from the company Carolco, were good partners with me on Terminator 2 and it was me who decided on the way forward regarding marketing. That included showing Arnold as the good guy.”
“Here, it was not a twist Sixth Sense that we only reveal to you at the end of the film”says the 68-year-old Canadian. “The character is announced as the Protector at the end of the first act.”
For James Cameron, the best of a project must be shown to the public in order to give them the best chance. “I always find that to sell a film, you have to come up with the strongest thing in your story”he explains. “I thought our potential audience would be more drawn to seeing how the most badass killing machine could become a hero than seeing another classic action movie in the vein from the first movie.”
“Sequels must strike a delicate balance between honoring the most beloved elements of the first installment and promising to really shake things up, turn them around”concludes James Cameron. “Our marketing campaign for T2 delivered on exactly that promise, and it worked.”
“It was Grandpa Terminator”: James Cameron blames himself for the failure of Terminator 6
Released in theaters in 1991, Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a true classic of SF, a big public success with more than 520 million dollars worldwide. Its author James Cameron is currently back at the top of the news with Avatar: The Way of the Water, in theaters since December 14.
False Fitting: the blunders and mistakes of the “Terminator” saga