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David Ellison:Sure.
We hope its of the scope and scale that fans have been excited about.
Its the first in a completely stand-alone trilogy based on the universe that James Cameron created.
In that world there are characters you know and are familiar with.
Theres a Sarah Connor, theres a Kyle Reese, theres a John Connor.
Theres going to be a respect for canon.
David Ellison:Yes, yes.
In terms of touchstones,Star Trek2009 JJ [Abrams] first movie, is very much that.
One of the big reasons for doing that was, we constantly asked ourselves, Why now?
And theres no point in remaking what he did brilliantly.
There are going to be Terminators that are evil.
Theres going to be time travel.
There are certain tenets to the canon that, for us, are touchstones.
Who are these people within the context of this movie?
Who will they be over the course of the next two movies?
As David likes to say, and its true, we know the last line of the third movie.
Were not going to share it, but we know it.
Does James Cameron have a part in these new stories?
Have you consulted him for ideas?
David Ellison:Absolutely.
Thats a significant part of this movie.
Now that being said, the significant theme in this movie is mankinds relationship with technology.
We didnt want to solely stick to characters youve met before.
Therell be new people, original ideas in this movie.
David Ellison:Yeah.
He has a significant part across all three movies.
Is the present in this film 1984, or is it 2015?
David Ellison:Terminatormovies are always, at some point, present-day movies.
Ours is just the same.
But obviously, in the original Terminator, Sarah Connor was about 19 or 20 in 1984.
David Ellison:Well, Emilia Clarke is playing Sarah Connor, so yes, shes in her 20s.
Can you tell us about Jason Clarke and Emilia Clarkes casting?
David Ellison:Certainly.
I met Jason Clarke onZero Dark Thirty,when my sister [Megan Ellison] made the movie.
I also saw him inChicago Codeand I was just blown away.
We wanted to work with him since that time.
When it came to casting John Connor, there was simply nobody else that ran through our head.
The level of depth and emotion he brings to this part is truly phenomenal.
For us, there was no decision.
Arnold is the Terminator.
Hes fantastic in this film.
And its a different character he plays in this film, without question.
Ill let you quiz him about that.
We were lucky enough to work with him onJack Reacher,which we made with Tom Cruise.
Jai played a very different character in that movie he played a straight villain, a pretty evil guy.
Jai has always been that for us.
This movie cant feel like inside baseball.
And that was definitely something we took very seriously when going to make this film.
Going further along the line, youve conceived this as a trilogy.
How complete is this one film?
Does it answer all the questions it sets out?
David Ellison:Almost.
Dana Goldberg:It answers a lot of questions.
The reality of a really good movie is, it always leaves you wanting to know a bit more.
We hope we successfully do that at the end of this film.
You constantly lean in, hopefully wanting to learn more.
WhatTerminatorfilm is this closest to in terms of tone?
David Ellison:Terminator 2!
Dana Goldberg:Terminator 2.Its a really easy answer.T2.
So not as dark as the first one.
Dana Goldberg:No.
What are your plans for the sequels?
You learn a lot when you make a movie.
You learn a lot about where you want to take a character, and the actors youre working with.
Things change as youre making it.
Could you talk about your choice of director?
He wanted to talk about the love story.
Terminator 2had both CG and great practical effects.
How much is this film taking the canvas further in terms of action?
And weve said, No, we did that for real.
Theres CG in this movie, obviously, but again, we wanted to stick close to home.
Theres going to be a lot of practical action here.
I think it holds up beautifully today.
This is a big movie.
So we very much hope were delivering on the visual spectacle, because were really excited about it.
Dana Goldberg:We know its a high bar, but were trying to jump it.
Each film introduces its own Terminator.
Does this one have that?
David Ellison:Absolutely.
And its a really tall task, and we think weve succeeded doing it.
We cant tell you what it is, but that is absolutely a big aspect of this movie.
Is this film taking anything fromTerminator Salvation?
That film diverted from the formula quite a lot in terms of story and tone.
Dana Goldberg:Honestly, no.
No offence to that film, but again, its going back to the beginning.
Those are the two that set the tone.
David Ellison:Also, James Cameron created the universe.
What he created absolutely served as the foundation of this movie, but its standalone.
So its notTerminator 1,Its notTerminator 4,its completely standalone.
How much will the technology in this film resemble what weve seen in earlier films?
For example, inPrometheus, the technology is a million times more advanced than it was in the originalAlien.
David Ellison:There are going to be a lot of things youll recognise from the original movie.
So theres definitely some things youll be familiar with, and some that are completely new and different.
The first three films are essentially chase movies.
Will this one follow that format?
David Ellison:Absolutely.Terminatormovies are all chase movies!
David Ellison and Dana Goldberg, thank you very much.
Terminator Genisysis out in UK cinemas on the 3rd July.
