Terminator 2: Why James Cameron Changed The Original Happy Ending

Terminator 2 ends on a hopeful, yet uncertain note, but James Cameron’s original ending idea was much more final and surprisingly upbeat. Of course, Terminator 2‘s theatrical ending, which most would agree works well, was effectively undone by both Terminator 3 and Terminator: Dark Fate. Both sequels had to find a way to undo Sarah and John Connor’s seeming prevention of Judgment Day and Skynet’s creation, and that by itself was a major bummer for most fans.

Such are the problems with an ending that’s both good and fairly conclusive. Everything Sarah and John endured collectively in the first two Terminator films was made worth it by finally winning, and stopping the apocalypse. It also made the T-800’s sacrifice at the end a bittersweet triumph, instead of in hindsight kind of a worthless act. At least the theatrical Terminator 2 ending is only flawed in hindsight though. At the time, it was satisfying, even if not entirely closed off to the possibility of further Connor adventures.

Originally though, Cameron wanted Terminator 2 to end definitively, wrapping up the franchise early, and on a positive note no less. That might sound admirable, considering how far the series has fallen in quality, but Cameron ended up being talked out of doing that, and it was still probably for the best.

Terminator 2: Why James Cameron Changed The Original Ending

In Terminator 2‘s originally filmed ending, an elderly Sarah Connor is shown in a park, watching an adult John play with his daughter. Sarah notes that Judgment Day never occurred, and that humanity has gone on as normal, with John attempting to do good as a U.S. senator. It’s happy, but it’s also kind of corny, and the old age makeup on Sarah isn’t great. That ending being changed is primarily due to the efforts of Mario Kassar, lead producer on the sequel. Kassar was motivated by the understandable desire to leave the franchise open for continuation. He and Cameron battled back and forth over the ending, with Kassar finally getting Cameron to agree to a test screening.

Reactions to the screening from the test audience were negative on the ending, with many feeling that its overly positive nature didn’t fit in with the dark tone struck by the rest of Terminator 2. Some respondents even felt like the ending had been tacked on from a different movie, due to how out of place it seemed. Based on Kassar’s continued objections and this new audience data, Cameron finally realized he’d miscalculated, and came up with the theatrical ending fans know. Interestingly, Sarah’s final voiceover line about a machine learning the value of human life meaning people can too appears in both conclusions.

About The Author