Terminator: Dark Fate is hyping up the return of Linda Hamilton's Sarah Connor, but it's often overlooked that the actress first returned for Terminator Salvation. Due to release in the U.S. on November 1st, Terminator: Dark Fate brings back James Cameron in a producing and writing role, and will include the on-screen reunion of Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarzenegger for the first time since Terminator 2: Judgement Day. The latest installment will also be ignoring the past 3 movies in the Terminator series, and this includes Terminator Salvation.
Released in 2009 as a follow-up to the disappointing Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, the fourth Terminator movie shifted focus to the war between man and machine in the future and starred Christian Bale as John Connor. Although Terminator Salvation revisited many elements from previous films (John himself, Kyle Reese, the T-800), it was largely a departure from the classic format. The original creative minds remained absent and Schwarzenegger only appeared thanks to the magic of CGI, while the futuristic setting heralded a new visual style and a dramatic shift in emphasis. Unfortunately, Terminator Salvation is largely remembered for Christian Bale's behind-the-scenes outburst, and sequel plans were dropped in favor of an equally fruitless reboot.
Despite Linda Hamilton's appearance in Terminator: Dark Fate being billed as a long-awaited return, Terminator Salvation actually got there first, albeit only in audio terms. In the first Terminator movie, Sarah Connor makes tapes for an unborn John to listen to when he's older, explaining the situation with Skynet, his importance to humanity and the circumstances of his birth. There are two scenes in Terminator Salvation where a grown-up John listens to these tapes in the future and Linda Hamilton returned specifically to record this dialogue.
Sarah Connor's presence in Terminator Salvation is often overlooked, perhaps for several different reasons. The first recording John listens to is actually the same tape Sarah is heard making at the very end of the first Terminator movie as she refuels at a gas station. Understandably, some viewers might think this is reused audio, but Hamilton actually rerecorded her old lines afresh for Terminator Salvation. The second factor is that Terminator Salvation is a largely forgettable movie in itself. Though Linda Hamilton's presence is certainly welcome, and the scenes themselves are neat callbacks to the franchise's origins, it's clear by the second sequence featuring Sarah's voice that the film is far from the salvation it claimed to be, and not even Hamilton's foreboding monologues can redeem it.
The hype around Sarah Connor's return in Terminator: Dark Fate is especially curious, as a similar sense of excitement was built around her 2009 role in Terminator Salvation. Although it was "only" her voice that featured in the movie, there was months of speculation regarding whether Hamilton would return or not and what her role could be if she did. Terminator fans were unanimous in their celebration when it was finally revealed that the actress would be recording new Sarah Connor dialogue to be used in the the fourth Terminator film.
A decade later, and the cycle has started once again, and although Terminator: Dark Fate is Hamilton's first on-screen return to the franchise since the golden era of Judgement Day, it's not the first time the actress' presence has been hailed as an optimistic "return to form" for a series that has been flagging since 1991. In more optimistic terms, Terminator: Dark Fate appears to be taking the franchise's roots more seriously, not only by having Sarah Connor appear in an on-screen role, but also by bringing back James Cameron (arguably also a factor in Hamilton signing on) and setting the story right after Judgement Day.
