While the Terminator franchise has never dwelled on the differences between the superficially similar T-800 and T-850 models, there are some vital changes between the two generations of Terminators. While modern Terminator movies need more than new Terminator models to succeed, there was a time when the franchise introducing a new Terminator to the mix was more exciting than exhausting. Before multiple reboots made this prospect less intriguing, 2003’s Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines promising two new types of Terminator had viewers authentically thrilled.
While the first of these two new Terminator models was Kristanna Loken’s T-X, the other new Terminator model was a slightly more complicated addition to the series. In Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Arnold Schwarzenegger played the T-850, rather than another T-800. However, discerning the difference between these two models was nowhere near as easy as sorting a T-1000 from a T-X
While it was tricky to see the difference between the original Terminator’s T-800 and the T-850 at first, the franchise has since clarified what separated the two models. The T-850, introduced in Rise of the Machines, is slightly stronger and faster than the T-800. Its skin tears off more easily but also regenerates faster. It has a slightly better built-in grasp of human psychology (although it has less of a sense of humor than its predecessor), and it is more resistant to plasma weapons. Most importantly, the T-850’s exterior looks about ten years older than its predecessor—which is handy, because actor Arnold Schwarzenegger was also ten years older during filming.
Why Terminator 3 Introduced The T-850
The Terminator franchise needed a way to reinvent the Terminator itself after two successful movies that posited him first as a villain and then as a hero. While the original Terminator cut some gory scenes, the movie was still clearly a horror and the T-800 was clearly a murderous villain. Similarly, its first sequel was a lighter action thriller where the T-800 was now unambiguously heroic, meaning a heroic T-800 and a villainous T-800 both felt played out by the time Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines arrived. This proved a real problem since viewers still wanted to see Arnold Schwarzenegger return as the character.
The easiest way to reinvent the Terminator while keeping his recognizable actor was to simply make him a new model this time around, meaning the T-850 could effectively still play the part of the T-800 but, crucially, viewers couldn’t be certain whether they should expect heroism or villainy this time around. While some scenes cut from Terminator 3: Rise of Machines made the character’s allegiances more ambiguous, the T-850 was mostly a heroic figure thanks to John Connor reprogramming the cybernetic unit after an assassination attempt. However, since then, the Terminator franchise has barely mentioned the short-lived T-850 model, resulting in widespread confusion over what (if any) difference there is between it and the original T-800.