Terminator Salvation - Sequel

Sequel

While Terminator Salvation was initially intended to begin a new trilogy, production of a fifth film has been halted by legal trouble, as well as The Halcyon Company filing for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. While some anonymous sources insisted that Terminator 5 will be moving forward, the majority of analysts predicted that its future is in jeopardy.

In late September 2009, it was announced that the rights for the franchise are once again up for sale as The Halcyon Company tried to pull itself out of bankruptcy. In late October 2009, Halcyon announced it would auction off the rights to future Terminator material and is seeking $60–70 million, though the only offer was made by director Joss Whedon for $10,000. In December 2009, Halcyon issued a statement saying that they are looking at various options including sale and refinancing of the rights with an announcement on the outcome no later than February 1, 2010. On February 8, 2010, an auction was held to determine the owner of the Terminator rights. After studios Sony Pictures and Lionsgate bid separately from 3 PM to 8 PM, Pacificor, the hedge fund that pushed Halcyon into bankruptcy, made a deal for $29.5 million. As of June 2010, Pacificor has hired an agency to sell off the rights to the franchise.

In August 2010, it was reported that a new Terminator film is being developed. The new film would not be a direct sequel to Salvation, but rather an animated reboot of the original series. It will be entitled Terminator 3000 and will be shot by Hannover House. However, Pacificor, the owner of the rights to the Terminator franchise, had not given any official license to Hannover House to develop a new movie.

On February 16, 2011, it was announced that Universal Studios was considering a fifth Terminator film with Arnold Schwarzenegger returning as the star and with Fast Five's Justin Lin directing along with Chris Morgan as the screenwriter. Discussions for the film are in the very early stages. On April 27, 2011 it was announced that a rights package to a Terminator movie, to which Schwarzenegger, Lin, and producer Robert W. Cort are attached, but no screenwriter, is circulating among the studios. Universal, Sony and Lionsgate, and CBS Films are some of the interested companies. According to sources close to Schwarzenegger, he will only commit fully if a good script can be created.

It was reported on May 13, 2011, that Megan Ellison and her production company Annapurna Pictures won the rights to make at least two more Terminator films, including Terminator 5, in an auction deal that is rumoured to have hit the $20 million mark. While Schwarzenegger is said to be up for a substantial role, the film will not be anchored by him; instead a young male actor will take the lead. On December 4, 2012, a year and a half after negotiations were entered, the deal was finally closed with the possible merchandise including possible TV projects and video games. Ellison has said that she and her brother David Ellison are "starting from scratch as they seek out a screenwriter to plot the end".