When someone is asked to picture an action movie star in their mind, they’re likely going to go Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, or Jason Statham, and basically in that order in terms of likelihood. As for Schwarzenegger, it’s hard to argue that he’s one of the very best leading men of straightforward action films there ever was. Commando, True Lies, Eraser, they all make that point. But the best entries of Schwarzenegger’s action filmography are actually sci-fi action movies. There have been few missteps when it comes to his movies that blend those two genres. Basically, just The 6th Day and, if you consider it an action movie, Batman & Robin.
The rest are either fun, very good, or outright classics. Several of them fall under the Terminator umbrella, but even outside the T-800 Schwarzenegger has played some all-timer sci-fi action characters.
7) Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is entertaining enough blockbuster fare, but nothing more. The standout is Kristanna Loken, who sold the T-X as a suitable follow-up antagonist after the fantastic T-1000 and, of course, the T-800.
But even the T-X represents how comfortable Terminator 3 was repeating T2, as opposed to taking it to any new interesting places. Granted, the ending is bravely nihilistic, but all throughout the viewer feels like they’re just watching a very watered-down version of a great movie. Not to mention, while Terminator Genisys and Terminator Salvation have their cheesy moments, there’s nothing quite as eye-rolling as the T-800 (or T-850, rather) saying “Talk to the hand.” Even still, overall, Rise of the Machines is better than those two movies.
6) Terminator: Dark Fate
It’s no secret that the Terminator franchise has struggled mightily to replicate the success and ambition of James Cameron’s two movies, but Terminator: Dark Fate comes the closest by a country mile. Unfortunately, while it was the Terminator 3 we deserved, it tanked because, after three letdowns, audiences had grown too cautious to risk being burned once again.
Here’s hoping Dark Fate is properly appreciated in time. It’s not perfect, but it manages to not feel like an entire retread. And, as far as serving as an opportunity for Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton to say goodbye to their characters (and for the audience to do the same), it couldn’t be much better than it is.
Stream Terminator: Dark Fate on fuboTV.
5) The Running Man
While Edgar Wright’s remake is more adherent to Stephen King’s text, there’s a strong argument to be made that the 1987 original The Running Man is more fun. It’s Gladiator if Gladiator were absurd.
We get some Schwarzenegger one-liners, we get a man who enjoys singing opera at full volume as much as he enjoys killing people, and we get game show host Richard Dawson playing, well, a game show host. A morally bankrupt, contemptible game show host.
Stream The Running Man on fuboTV.
4) Total Recall
A complex work that moves at a lightning speed thanks to exhilarating set pieces and tight direction from Paul Verhoeven, Total Recall was and remains one of the ’90s best actioners. And, like Verhoeven’s RoboCop, it’s a pretty seamless blend of thoughtful material and unexpectedly bloody violence.
There are so many great ideas in Total Recall that warp the concept of reality that it could prove almost alienating to those who don’t typically dig sci-fi. But, because of Schwarzenegger’s grounded, almost childlike performance, you get on board and stay there. His Quaid is so in awe of all that’s around him we find ourselves living through his dangerous adventure right alongside him.
Stream Total Recall on fuboTV.
3) Predator
An utterly rewatchable action classic, Predator is a blast with perfect pacing. Like the best monster movies, it’s wise enough to hold back its antagonist until the third act, and what a third act it has.
Predator was the earliest sign that John McTiernan was one of the ’80s preeminent action-focused auteurs. As he proved a year later with Die Hard, he knew how to great situations that seem insurmountable yet have a lone fighter come out on top. Toss in the inherently claustrophobic nature of the film’s jungle setting and Predator is intense from moment one, and it never misses a beat.
Stream Predator on Hulu.
2) The Terminator
A highly influential sci-fi film and the best of Schwarzenegger’s impressive ’80s filmography, James Cameron’s The Terminator was a highly impressive coming out party for its cerebral director, who also managed to balance Hollywood thrills with messages in a way that kept the audience hooked and had them leaving the theater thinking about the world the film built.
And, as for The Terminator‘s world, it is, of course, a world where AI represents the greatest threat to humanity. Talk about prescient. There’s a reason that, forty years later now, The Terminator is the movie people reference when talking about just how frightening they find the potential of modern tech to be.
Stream The Terminator on Netflix.
1) Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Quite possibly the best adrenaline rush of an action movie ever made, Terminator 2: Judgment Day is especially impressive because it was a formative entry in relatively early CGI filmmaking, yet even after nearly 35 years it still looks wonderful. Cameron always liked pushing the film industry forward, and perhaps even more than Avatar this was him doing just that.
The sequel also had some guts in entirely flipping the script on the original. The T-800 was so soulless in deadly in the first film, so to watch it become a father figure in the sequel could have really turned off fans. But it didn’t. In fact, that was one of the primary reasons why Judgment Day can be considered perhaps the best movie sequel of all time (tied with The Godfather Part II, but still).
Stream Terminator 2: Judgment Day on Netflix.