Arnold Schwarzenegger in the News: Will He Be Back?

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s personal and professional lives have been front-page news lately. The announcement of his separation from his wife of 25 years last Monday was indeed sad news, but other recent reports concerning the fifth installment of the Terminator series has caused a flurry of excitement from fans. At a well-preserved 63 years old, Arnold Schwarzenegger has had three successful careers, fathered four children, and achieved cult status among sci-fi enthusiasts.

Fast Rise to Success

Born in Thal, Austria in 1947, Arnold’s first endeavor was bodybuilding. He moved first to London and then on to America, learning English as he sculpted his powerful 6’2″ frame into the body he envisioned. This work ethic, coupled with good genes, netted him his first Mr. Universe title at the age of 20. He went on to win the title three more times, as well as being named Mr. Olympia a total of seven times.

In 1970, Arnold broke into acting with the titular role in the film Hercules in New York. This was just the first in a series of movies where he portrayed physically-impressive characters. Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer put Arnold on the Hollywood map, but it was 1984’s surprise blockbuster, The Terminator, that launched him into the stratosphere.

The Terminator

The Terminator netted three Saturn Awards, accolades from the American Film Institute, and gave us one of the best catchphrases (possibly ever) with “I’ll be back.” He was serious. The movie topped the box office with over four million gross in the first week, shocking the studio and putting Arnold in the same category as Sylvester Stalone for being an action hero badass.

When Terminator 2: Judgement Day was released in 1991, Arnold made the switch from bad guy to good guy. No one cared that Eddie Furlong’s voice squealed like an 11-year-old girl at a Justin Bieber concert, and men world-wide salivated over the lovely changes Linda Hamilton had made to her physique. The Terminator walked into a biker bar buck naked and emerged victorious. Four Academy Awards, two BAFTAs, six MTV Movie Awards, and five Saturn Awards later, Arnold’s spot as an action hero legend was solidified.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines didn’t come out until 2003. At this point, Arnold was in his mid-fifties and still ready to strip off and make another tasteful nude entrance despite having had two heart surgeries and a hip replacement. He reportedly worked out for four to five hours a day and admitted to “eating like a girl” to prepare for the role. He was quoted as saying “I didn’t want anyone to laugh.” No one laughed. The film grossed $433 million dollars worldwide.

Arnold wasn’t involved with the fourth installment of the series, Terminator Salvation. He was far too busy being the 38th governor of the state of California, running his multiple businesses, and raising four children with his wife, Maria Shriver. All this, of course, while fighting harassment charges from several women, all of whom were more than happy to take a cash payment to drop the charges.

Will He Be Back?

However, Arnold’s children were born in the time period between 1989 to 1997. With his youngest, Christopher, now entering his teen years, Arnie’s days of changing diapers and chasing toddlers are over. His wife has separated from him and moved out of the family enclave in Brentwood. He stepped down as governor in January of 2011. He has some time on his hands, so why not come back to the silver screen?

In April of 2011, Schwarzenegger was attached to take part in the fifth installment to the Terminator series. Details are sketchy at best, and a squabble over the rights to the project are still being hammered out. Justin Lin, best know for directing The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, has been rumored to have accepted the directorship of the new Terminator movie.

IMDb. com has a tentative release date of 2014 listed. In 2014, Arnold is going to be about 67 years old and several of his children will probably be in college. To be perfectly juvenile, is he going to do another nude entrance? If Arnold does film a third reprisal of the role, is he ready for the physical demands of an action film? While Hollywood is often cruel to the more mature actors, we’re betting he’ll be back and in fine form at that.