TERMINATOR SALVATION hasn’t even hit theaters yet and already there’s some drama about that film’s follow-up. All parties involved – including director McG and star Christian Bale – are planning on a fifth TERMINATOR movie but there’s a very realistic possibility that it won’t be at Warner Bros., the studio that put SALVATION together. MGM won first right of refusal on TERMINATOR distribution rights in a lawsuit when they tried to block the distribution of SALVATION by WB and Sony. MGM believed they had the rights to distribute the TERMINATOR film based on their acquisition of the bankrupt Orion, who distributed the first TERMINATOR film but they passed on developing a fourth TERMINATOR film (at the time no talent was involved and all they had was a script by John Brancato and Michael Ferris, which was heavily rewritten for SALVATION).
This may all seem head-spinningly complex but the long and short of it is that the current storyline of the TERMINATOR franchise wouldn’t be where it’s at today without Warner Bros. bringing in McG, Christian Bale, Jonah Nolan, et. al. If it moves to MGM, who may not have enough money to spend as a big studio like WB would, what does that mean for the fifth installment? Will it look more like this? Or is it a simple business decision that won’t impact the quality of the film at all and no one will even notice (except nerds like me)?
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