David Farnor | On 11, Nov 2023

Netflix is stepping into the Terminator universe this August with a new anime series – which will arrive, aptly, on Judgement Day.

Called Terminator Zero, the eight-part series will follow on from the reveal in Terminator 2: Judgment Day that 29th August 1997 is the date that the artificial intelligence network known as Skynet becomes self-aware and usurps its human masters, leading to an all-out war between humanity and machines. It will be set in 2022 and 1997, as a soldier is sent back in time to change the fate of humanity. She is assigned to protect Malcolm Lee, a scientist working on a new AI system designed to compete with Skynet – and is already the target of an unrelenting assassin from the future.

The voice cast includes Timothy Olyphant as The Terminator, Rosario Dawson as Kokoro, Japan’s AI answer to Skynet, Andre Holland as computer programme Malcolm, a dad of three, Sonoya Mizuno as resistance fighter Eiko, and Ann Dowd as The Prophet, a philosophical guide for the human resistance.

The series is written by Mattson Tomnlin (Project Power) and will premiere – inevitably – on 29th August.

 

Watch: First teaser for Netflix Terminator series

11th November 2023

Netflix is continuing its strategy of tapping into existing franchises with a new Terminator anime series.

Simply called Terminator: The Anime Series, it will tie in with the movies’ existing lore – specifically, that of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, which revealed that 29th August 1997 is the date that the artificial intelligence network known as Skynet becomes self-aware and usurps its human masters, leading to an all-out war between humanity and machines spanning the last decades of the 20th century and the first decades of the 21st.

Based on the teaser, the anime will take us back to two days before Judgement Day, with the warning: “On Aug. 30, 1997, everything changes.”

The anime will be executive-produced by Skydance, Japan Animation Studio Production I.G., and Mattson Tomlin. Tomlin, who will serve as the showrunner and writer for the series, previously wrote Project Power and is currently writing Batman II.

“Anyone who knows my writing knows I believe in taking big swings and going for the heart,” Tomlin said in 2021. “I’m honored that Netflix and Skydance have given me the opportunity to approach Terminator in a way that breaks conventions, subverts expectations, and has real guts.”

 

Netflix orders Terminator animated series

27th February 2021

The Terminator franchise is getting its first TV animated outing, with a new series in the works at Netflix.

The streamer is rapidly expanding its line-up of animation, with a host of productions based around existing properties, from Tomb Raider and Skull Island to Sonic Prime, based on Sonic the Hedgehog.

Now, it’s teaming up with Skydance for a series based on the long-running sci-fi movies. The series is produced in partnership with Production IG (Ghost in the Shell, B: The Beginning), which Netflix has had a Production Line Deal with since 2018.

Mattson Tomlin (Project Power, The Batman) will be showrunner and exec-producer on the project.

Tomlin says: “Anyone who knows my writing knows I believe in taking big swings and going for the heart. I’m honoured that Netflix and Skydance have given me the opportunity to approach Terminator in a way that breaks conventions, subverts expectations and has real guts.”

John Derderian, Netflix, Vice President of Japan & Anime, adds: “Terminator is one of the most iconic sci-fi stories ever created – and has only grown more relevant to our world over time. The new animated series will explore this universe in a way that has never been done before. We can’t wait for fans to experience this amazing new chapter in the epic battle between machines and humans.”

Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, President and CEO of Production IG, comments: “I asked my long-time friend and colleague Mamoru Oshii what he thought about the idea of turning Terminator into an animated series. His response was ‘Ishikawa, are you out of your mind?’ At that instant, I was confident we should get onboard.”

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