Fans of the Terminator franchise will be thrilled to learn that renowned filmmaker James Cameron has recently announced that he is writing the screenplay for the upcoming seventh installment of the franchise. On the other hand, he is contending with a huge obstacle that is slowing down his development. The film Terminator: Dark Fate, which was released in 2019, with the intention of reviving the long-running science fiction and action brand with a mix of known names and new talent, sadly failed to reach the expectations that were set for it at the box office and was a financial disappointment. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has played a pivotal role in the Terminator series, has stated that he would no longer be involved with the franchise in any capacity moving forward.
However, James Cameron, who was responsible for the production of the first Terminator movie, is not quite prepared to say goodbye to the franchise just yet. He has been diligently toiling away behind the scenes on a new Terminator sequel, but there is a significant roadblock in the way of his progress. Cameron disclosed this information while speaking at a conference hosted by Dell Tech World. He stated that he began writing the script for Terminator 7 three months ago but has since opted to put the process on hold. Before moving on with the project, he wants to first observe and get an understanding of the developments that have been made in artificial intelligence (AI) that is applied to the actual world.
Skynet, the self-aware super-intelligent system that serves as the actual nemesis of the series, has always played a large part in the Terminator world. This is primarily due to the fact that Skynet exists. Artificial intelligence has always played a key role. On the other hand, the prior Terminator films did not go into the complexities of the AI itself but instead primarily centered their attention on the cyborg assassins that were sent back in time by Skynet. With Terminator 7, Cameron intends to modify that, with the goal of shifting the attention onto the AI facet of the story. During an interview in 2022 for the Smartless podcast, he discussed his ideas for a possible new Terminator movie. He stated that he would place more of an emphasis on the artificial intelligence (AI) component than on the idea of renegade robots in the movie.
Since Cameron made those statements, remarkable improvements have been achieved in artificial intelligence technology. As a result, the renowned filmmaker has momentarily halted his writing process in order to catch up to these developments. There are no indications that the rate of advancement in AI will slow down, which raises questions about whether Cameron will ever be able to stay up with the rate at which new technologies are developed. The problem that he is having is not exceptional; in fact, all science fiction writers in the year 2023 are dealing with a same conundrum. The unrelenting advance of technology has reached a stage where even the most creative brains are finding it difficult to keep one step ahead of the always shifting competition. This reality is undoubtedly more terrifying than any fictitious scenario involving renegade robots that could possibly be imagined.
