The Terminator

All six films, The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Terminator Zero, four incompatible futures.

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Where to start with The Terminator

Two films, then an argument. The first two are one of the great science-fiction pairs and everybody agrees on them. After that the series restarts three separate times, each sequel ignoring the ones before it, and no two of them can both be true. Pick a branch or stop after two.

  1. 1
    The Terminator (1984) The Terminator

    A small, cheap, relentless horror film that happens to be about time travel. Explains itself completely and needs nothing else.

  2. 2
    Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) Terminator 2: Judgment Day

    The sequel that eclipsed the original, and a complete ending in its own right. Many people stop here on purpose, and it is a defensible place to stop forever.

  3. 3
    Terminator: Dark Fate (2019) Terminator: Dark Fate

    If you want a third, this is the one the original director endorsed and it follows directly from Judgment Day, treating everything in between as though it never happened. Watching it does not require any of the films it ignores.

Then what? The other branches are on the list below and clearly marked: Rise of the Machines and Salvation form one alternative, Genisys another, and The Sarah Connor Chronicles a fourth that splits off after the second film. None of them agree with each other. Terminator Zero is animated and separate again.

A suggested way in, not an official one. The full list is below: tick anything off in either place.

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The Core Timeline

  • The Terminator 1984
  • Terminator 2: Judgment Day 1991
  • Terminator: Dark Fate 2019

Other Timelines

  • Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines 2003
  • Terminator Salvation 2009
  • Terminator Genisys 2015

Television

  • Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles 2008, 2 seasons, 31 episodes
  • Terminator Zero 2024, 1 season, 8 episodes

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