Tim Miller Says “Terminator: Dark Fate” Will Scare The F**k Out of Misogynists

Yes yes, we’ve heard the comments about “What makes you think ANOTHER Terminator film will be good when the last few were so damn bad? What does this one have that the others haven’t?”

Three words for you-

Linda. FUCKING. Hamilton.

Having the original Sarah Connor return to the franchise in the current socio climate is a wonderful choice, and everything Hamilton has said about returning is exactly what we wanted to hear.

“I didn’t want it to look like a shameless money-grab, I wanted the script and the story where going to be worthy of carrying on the tale,” Hamilton told Variety on the red carpet during CinemaCon in Las Vegas.

She continued, saying the story is what eventually pulled her back in to the franchise.

“The script wasn’t finished, or really even started, but I thought it would be really interesting with all those years in between, so many different ways we could enrich the character and the character’s experience, piled on top, and that it might be a nice time to return.”

And not only do we have Hamilton back as Sarah, but we have Mackenzie Davis (“Halt and Catch Fire,” “Blade Runner 2049”) on board as Grace, an “enhanced, machine-fighter” as director Tim Miller calls her.

In a recent interview with Variety, Miller elaborated a bit more about Grace, and what she’ll bring to the film. Namely, “scaring the fuck” out of misogynists.

Variety: Mackenzie Davis and her character Grace feel like something very new for a franchise like this. What brought her here? 

Tim Miller: Before we brought in screenwriters, we did a room with novelists at my request because they’re world builders and we’re reinventing the franchise. One was Joe Abercrombie [the “First Law” series], who pointed out that the “Terminator” films tend to have a trinity of main characters. One of those is the protector, the Kyle Reese character [portrayed by Michael Biehn in the original, Jai Courtney and Anton Yelchin in sequels]. 

Joe came out with this idea that a new protector from the future is a machine fighter. It’s a painful life, and they’re scarred and take a lot of drugs to combat the pain of what’s been done to them. They don’t live a long time. It’s a very sacrificial role; they risk death to save others. And from the very first suggestion it was always a woman. We had to look for someone who has the physicality, but I’m very sensitive to actors. I didn’t just want a woman who could physically fit the role but emotionally as well. Mackenzie really wanted to do it; she came after the role. She worked harder than anybody.

Variety: An early “Dark Fate” poster received backlash, calling Davis and her co-stars “feminazis” and other chauvinist hate speech. How do you think she’ll be received in the room at Comic-Con?   

Tim Miller: If you’re at all enlightened, she’ll play like gangbusters. If you’re a closet misogynist, she’ll scare the f–k out of you, because she’s tough and strong but very feminine. We did not trade certain gender traits for others; she’s just very strong, and that frightens some dudes. You can see online the responses to some of the early s–t that’s out there, trolls on the internet. I don’t give a f–k. 

Linda Hamilton (“Sarah Connor”) and Arnold Schwarzenegger (“T-800”) return in their iconic roles in Terminator: Dark Fate, directed by Tim Miller (Deadpool) and produced by visionary filmmaker James Cameron and David Ellison. Following the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Terminator: Dark Fate also stars Mackenzie Davis, Natalia Reyes, Gabriel Luna, and Diego Boneta.

Terminator: Dark Fate is set to hit theaters on November 1st 2019, and we CAN’T. FREAKING. WAIT.

In the meantime, why not try one of Secret of the Booze‘s 21+ recipes for a metallic T-100 cocktail?