Why James Cameron’s Original Terminator Cut Its Darkest Scene

Why James Cameron’s Original Terminator Cut Its Darkest Scene

Even in the original script for The Terminator, the particulars of Sumner’s fate were never depicted onscreen. While a director such as Paul Verhoeven might have treated viewers to the sight of Sumner skewered by his teleportation failure, Cameron opted to limit the moment to a line wherein Reese cryptically says that Sumner “didn’t make it.” However, even this didn’t make it into the finished movie. James Cameron’s sci-fi horror was evidently gory enough without implying that Sumner suffered a horrific offscreen fate, resulting in the character being excised entirely.
Since Sumner’s fate had little impact on the narrative of The Terminator, it is not unreasonable to suggest that cutting the death was the right decision. After all, characters teleport throughout the rest of the Terminator franchise without ever encountering the logistical hiccup that shredded Sumner, meaning his death could easily have become an odd plot hole if included in The Terminator. Not only that, but The Terminator’s outsized success as a sci-fi horror was owed in large part to the movie’s relentless pace and its intense terror. Stopping the story to explain that a minor character melded himself into a fire escape offscreen might have been a dark, horrifying death, but it could also have derailed The Terminator’s momentum and left viewers confused about its relevance.

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1535570269372-ccr3’); });

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1550597677810-0’); });

#James #Camerons #Original #Terminator #Cut #Darkest #Scene

Why James Cameron’s Original Terminator Cut Its Darkest Scene

Even in the original script for The Terminator, the particulars of Sumner’s fate were never depicted onscreen. While a director such as Paul Verhoeven might have treated viewers to the sight of Sumner skewered by his teleportation failure, Cameron opted to limit the moment to a line wherein Reese cryptically says that Sumner “didn’t make it.” However, even this didn’t make it into the finished movie. James Cameron’s sci-fi horror was evidently gory enough without implying that Sumner suffered a horrific offscreen fate, resulting in the character being excised entirely.
Since Sumner’s fate had little impact on the narrative of The Terminator, it is not unreasonable to suggest that cutting the death was the right decision. After all, characters teleport throughout the rest of the Terminator franchise without ever encountering the logistical hiccup that shredded Sumner, meaning his death could easily have become an odd plot hole if included in The Terminator. Not only that, but The Terminator’s outsized success as a sci-fi horror was owed in large part to the movie’s relentless pace and its intense terror. Stopping the story to explain that a minor character melded himself into a fire escape offscreen might have been a dark, horrifying death, but it could also have derailed The Terminator’s momentum and left viewers confused about its relevance.

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1535570269372-ccr3’); });

googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-1550597677810-0’); });

#James #Camerons #Original #Terminator #Cut #Darkest #Scene