After the flop of Terminator Salvation, the Terminator franchise almost entered the animated realm, but the project sadly didn't come to fruition. Needless to say, the Terminator property has gone through a lot of ups and downs. Or perhaps more accurately, two huge ups, and a series of ever-worsening downs. Well, that's not entirely fair, as Terminator 3 has its fans, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles was an underrated TV show, and Terminator: Dark Fate was much better than Terminator Genisys.
Still, that doesn't change the fact that absolutely nothing the Terminator franchise has produced since 1991 has even come close to matching the greatness of all-time classics The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Most reasonable fans wouldn't expect follow-ups to such huge hits to be as good, but in many cases, they've come up so drastically short that many wonder why Hollywood is still trying to keep the series alive. Yet, as sure as the sun rises and sets each day, there's no real question that some studio will attempt to make a Terminator 7 eventually.
Case in point, after the critical drubbing and underwhelming box office earned by 2009's Terminator Salvation effectively killed plans for a new trilogy, a company called Hannover House announced their intention to continue the franchise with the animated Terminator 3000. Obviously, such a film never materialized.
Terminator's Unmade Animated Movie Sequel Explained (& Why It Was Cancelled)
In August 2010, it was announced that Hannover House was developing an animated Terminator movie called Terminator 3000. It was aiming for a PG-13 rating, and thus wasn't planning on including the graphic violence found in the older Terminator films. Little is known about the story of Terminator 3000, mostly because the script wasn't finalized at the time of the announcement. However, it reportedly functioned as a follow-up to the original Terminator, even bringing back Kyle Reese in some unexplained manner. The production budget was set to be around $70 million, making Terminator 3000 a clear attempt at making a blockbuster tentpole.
While many fans hated the idea of a PG-13, family friendly animated Terminator movie, it turns out they didn't need to worry. For whatever reason, Hannover House CEO Eric Parkinson had chosen to announce the project publicly, despite knowing full well he couldn't make it without the permission of then rights holder Pacificor, who he hadn't even talked to yet. The Terminator franchise rights have changed hands many times over the years, and Parkinson claimed he controlled the specific rights to make an animated movie, while Pacificor held the main IP rights.
Pacificor wasn't happy about a Terminator movie being developed without their permission, and quickly sent Hannover a cease and desist notice. Parkinson still wanted to work something out, but the project was put on ice. Years later, with the Terminator franchise now controlled by Annapurna Pictures, Parkinson again publicly teased Terminator 3000 and said he was still trying to get it made. Apparently, Annapurna wasn't interested either. Perhaps this is a lesson in why business deals should be made in private, and before public reveals happen.
