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Terminator Salvation is a 2009 American military science fiction action film that is the fourth installment of the Terminator franchise, serving as sequel to Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003), but also as a soft reboot. It is directed by McG and written by John Brancato and Michael Ferris. It is the only Terminator film to date not to feature Arnold Schwarzenegger, though his likeness briefly appears digitally. Instead, it stars Christian Bale and Sam Worthington with Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood, Bryce Dallas Howard, Common, Michael Ironside, and Helena Bonham Carter in supporting roles. In a departure from the previous installments, Salvation is a post-apocalyptic film set in the year 2018. It focuses on the war between Skynet's machine network and humanity, as the remnants of the world's militaries have united to form the Resistance to fight against Skynet. Bale portrays John Connor, a Resistance fighter and central character, while Worthington portrays cyborg Marcus Wright. Yelchin plays a young Kyle Reese, a character first introduced in The Terminator (1984), and the film depicts the origins of the T-800 Terminator. After troubled pre-production, with the Halcyon Company acquiring the rights from Andrew G. Vajna and Mario Kassar, and several writers working on the screenplay, filming began in May 2008 in New Mexico, and ran for 77 days. Terminator Salvation was released on May 21, 2009, by Warner Bros. Pictures in the United States, and by Sony Pictures Releasing under its Columbia Pictures label internationally, and grossed over $371.4 million worldwide but received mixed-to-negative reviews. While originally intended to be the first installment of a second Terminator trilogy, these plans were canceled following the Halcyon Company filing for bankruptcy after the film's release. The franchise rights were sold in 2012 to Annapurna Pictures, resulting in Terminator Genisys, a reboot of the series, being released in 2015 with Schwarzenegger reprising his role. Plot In 2003, Dr. Serena Kogan of Cyberdyne Systems convinced death row inmate Marcus Wright to sign over his body for medical research following his execution. Sometime later, the automated Skynet system is activated, becomes self-aware, and, perceiving humans as a threat to its existence, starts a nuclear holocaust to eradicate them. In 2018, John Connor leads an attack on a Skynet base, where he discovers prisoners and schematics for a new type of Terminator: the T-800 model. John survives an explosion on the base. Marcus emerges from the base's wreckage and begins walking toward Los Angeles, where he encounters Kyle and a mute child named Star during a skirmish with Skynet's machines. Kyle and Star are taken prisoner by Skynet. The Resistance fighters discover that Marcus is a cyborg. Although Marcus insists that he is human, John and his wife Kate suspect that Marcus has been sent to execute them. Marcus learns that he was resurrected by Skynet to lure John to the base; when the Resistance launches its attack, John will be killed, achieving Skynet's goal. Refusing to accept his fate, Marcus tears out the hardware linking him to Skynet and leaves to aid John. As Kyle and Star escape, Marcus appears and fights a T-800. John detonates explosives, destroying the base along with thousands of unfinished T-800s and thereby changing the future. John's heart is damaged in the conflict, so Marcus offers his heart for transplantation. As he recovers, John radios to other Resistance fighters that, although this battle has been won, the war continues. Cast Christian Bale as John Connor. Director McG deemed Bale "the most credible action star in the world" during development. McG wanted Bale for Marcus, but the actor—even though he "can't really remember why"—wanted to play John, and that led to the character's role getting expanded in rewrites of the script. Bale was the first person to be cast and signed on for the role in November 2007. McG talked extensively with Bale in the UK about the role while the latter was filming The Dark Knight, and they both agreed to proceed. Although a fan of the Terminator series, he was at first uninterested until McG convinced him the story would be character-based and not rely on special effects. They kept working on the story every day, along with Worthington. McG said Bale broke his hand punching a Terminator prop during filming. Bale spent six to eight hours each day with McG in the editing room to advise the finished product. In January 2018, Bale revealed he rejected the role three times before accepting it, in part to spite those who told him not to take the role. Sam Worthington as Marcus Wright, a human-terminator hybrid experiment. Worthington compared Marcus to Dorothy (The Wonderful Wizard of Oz) and Alice (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland) due to being "this person waking up in another world [who then] tries to find himself". Terminator creator James Cameron personally recommended Worthington (whom he directed in Avatar) to McG. Russell Crowe also recommended him to McG. The director decided Worthington looked tougher than the "great many of today's [waify] young male actors". Worthington recalled Cameron told him "the Terminator to make is the one with the war". Worthington tore his intercostal muscles during the first weeks of filming but nevertheless insisted on performing his own stunts. McG once expressed interest in casting Christian Bale, Daniel Day-Lewis or Josh Brolin in the part. Brolin did talk to Bale and read a draft of the screenplay, which he found "interesting and dark; ultimately, though, I didn't think it felt right". Anton Yelchin as Kyle Reese, a teenage refugee and admirer of John Connor and the Resistance. As portrayed by Michael Biehn in The Terminator, he was sent back in time to 1984 to protect Sarah Connor to ensure the survival of the human race, and fathered John with her. Yelchin said he wanted to portray Kyle as Biehn did and not make him appear weaker because it was a younger version of the character. The difference in his portrayal lies in showing Kyle as intense, but not concentrated until he joins the resistance proper. Yelchin tried to convey Kyle's intensity by focusing on how fast Biehn appeared when running in the original film. Moon Bloodgood as Blair Williams, a "no-nonsense and battle-hardened" pilot of the Resistance who suffers from survivor's guilt and serves as a romantic interest for Marcus. McG characterizes her as continuing the feminine strength that has been prominent throughout the franchise. Bryce Dallas Howard as Kate Connor, the wife of John Connor and daughter of Robert Brewster, who supervised the development of Skynet. Charlotte Gainsbourg was originally set to play the part, but left due to scheduling conflicts with another film. As portrayed by Claire Danes in the third film, Kate was a veterinarian; but in this film, she is now a physician. Howard suggested, as part of the character's back.... Discover the Craig Sharp popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Craig Sharp books.