Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of Hollywood’s biggest action stars. The actor delivered some of the finest action films and was the biggest action star back in the 80s. While the actor was a part of numerous hit films, it was the action movie Terminator that raised his coinage as an action star. Even though the actor starred as the lead in the movie, Cameron initially wanted him to play Reese in the film. However, one conversation between him and Cameron made a huge impact on the director’s decision to cast Schwarzenegger.

We are no strangers to the incredible job the Kindergarten Cop star did in Terminator. However, initially, the creators actually wanted a different star to play the part until one conversation between Cameron and Schwarzenegger. As the actor sat down for lunch with the director, the actor started talking about the lead role with great interest. Previously, in an interview with Graham Bensinger, Schwarzenegger revealed how he even brought up Yul Brenner‘s killer robotic performance from Westworld.

Schwarzenegger further advised Cameron about how he should go on with the training for the part. Impressed with his knowledge, the director decided to sign the Austrian Oak in the role. Cameron told Schwarzenegger, “There’s no one who will understand the Terminator better than you, so therefore, I think we’re all in agreement that you should play the Terminator.“

As surprising as it sounds, the director met Schwarzenegger for lunch to cast him as Reese. However, things took a different turn and Cameron believed that no one could do a better job than him. Interestingly, the Governator was not willing to play T-800 as he felt Reese had more lines and was a challenging role in comparison.

It took Schwarzenegger a few days before he convinced himself to play the part and the creators went forward with Michael Biehn as Reese. However, Schwarzenegger was not the first choice to play T-800.

James Cameron wanted THIS actor to play T-800 before Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator

As we all know, Arnold Schwarzenegger did a flawless job with his role in Terminator. The role also played a huge role in cementing the actor as one of the best action stars. However, long before the actor starred in the role, James Cameron had another actor in mind.

Reports by Variety suggest that initially, the Avatar director planned to cast OJ Simpson. Schwarzenegger revealed how Cameron felt that Simpson was not a convincing choice to play a killing machine. The role later went on to the Kindergarten Cop and the rest is history.

Do you think Schwarzenegger should have played Reese? Comment down below.