Terminator: Dark Fate Director, Tim Miller, was interviewed by Variety on July 10 2019; about the new footage being shown in Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con, Mackenzie Davis’ character of ‘Grace’, what the Deadpool Director deems “misogyny” within the Terminator Fan community and… the Sonic movie.
Variety asked about Tim’s strategy regarding the winning over of Hall H’s audience at SDCC 2019…
“If I was a nerd, and I am, I always imagine reading about plot or story and how I would feel as a fan. I can be objective that way, like I did with “Deadpool.” When I read online when we announced the film, “‘Terminator 6’? For f–k’s sake, why don’t they let it die?” I understand where those people are coming from. If it’s not great, then we’ve had enough.
Tim Miller
After “Deadpool” there were a lot of projects I could’ve chosen, but I really wanted to see Linda Hamilton come back to personally continue her story as Sarah Connor. Like James Cameron, I always find stories about women are much more interesting than men picking up guns. Jim’s movies are grounded in reality and character and just happen to have time travel and robots. I’m wired the same way. I want to give the audience a story about Sarah and these new characters and make everything else as realistic as possible. I want to sit in the audience and believe that this s–t could happen to me. That’s how I’m approaching it.”
“Mackenzie Davis and her character Grace feel like something very new for a franchise like this. What brought her here?”
Variety
“Before we brought in screenwriters, we did a room with novelists at my request because they’re world builders and we’re reinventing the franchise. One was Joe Abercrombie [the “First Law” series], who pointed out that the “Terminator” films tend to have a trinity of main characters. One of those is the protector, the Kyle Reese character [portrayed by Michael Biehn in the original, Jai Courtney and Anton Yelchin in sequels].
Tim Miller
Joe came out with this idea that a new protector from the future is a machine fighter. It’s a painful life, and they’re scarred and take a lot of drugs to combat the pain of what’s been done to them. They don’t live a long time. It’s a very sacrificial role; they risk death to save others. And from the very first suggestion it was always a woman. We had to look for someone who has the physicality, but I’m very sensitive to actors. I didn’t just want a woman who could physically fit the role but emotionally as well. Mackenzie really wanted to do it; she came after the role. She worked harder than anybody.”
“An early “Dark Fate” poster received backlash, calling Davis and her co-stars “feminazis” and other chauvinist hate speech. How do you think she’ll be received in the room at Comic-Con?”
Variety
“If you’re at all enlightened, she’ll play like gangbusters. If you’re a closet misogynist, she’ll scare the f–k out of you, because she’s tough and strong but very feminine. We did not trade certain gender traits for others; she’s just very strong, and that frightens some dudes. You can see online the responses to some of the early s–t that’s out there, trolls on the internet. I don’t give a f–k.”
Tim Miller
“Do you get feedback from James Cameron?”
Variety
“Jim has moved to New Zealand to focus on “Avatar.” I saw him a couple times when I got back from shooting, and I showed him a director’s cut. Jim will come in and provide clarity in key moments about the goals of the franchise. He’s great about looking at things and saying, “This needs to be reinforced.” He’s like a diver into a pool. He dives to the bottom, jumps out and the pool settles. Dives in again. He occasionally cannonballs. But it’s incredible.”
Tim Miller
“You’re an executive producer on “Sonic the Hedgehog,” which was also due out in November but pushed to redesign the main character after fans protested. How was that experience?”
Variety
“When “Sonic” arrived, the director, Jeff Fowler, was the best guy to do it. The redesign? Look, I was with fans and so was Jeff. This is a franchise, and it has to be great. When the s–t hit the fan, I went over there and said, “The most important thing to do, man, is say, ‘I f–ked up.’” He’d already sent a tweet out an hour before I got there. He’s a good man. It was exactly the right way to handle that. The fans have a voice in this too. There’s a right way to listen.”
Tim Miller
“Have you seen any of the character redesign?”
Variety
“In fact I have. And I think the fans will be pleased.”
Tim Miller
It will be interesting to see how the audience at San Diego Comic-Con 2019 will respond to the new Terminator: Dark Fate trailer – hopefully the footage will revitalise the somewhat flagging interests of the Terminator fan-base following the disappointment of the lacklustre first trailer.
What do you think of Tim Miller’s answers?
Leave a Comment…
We discussed Tim’s responses in our latest video…
6 Comments
Je croise les doigts et espère encore avoir un espoir de cette franchise magnifique (TERMINATOR) Tim Miller a montrer qu’il était un bon réalisateur pour son film Deadpool ! Maintenant j’aimerai le voir assuré sur un film comme Terminator une guerre post-apocalptyque doit envoyer du lourd à l’écran pour les téléspéctateur ! Quant au nouveau personnage de GRACE c’est plutôt interessant ! hate d’en voir plus et de me faire une idée ! MAIS PAR PITIE NE FAIITES PAS DISPARAITRE JOHN CONNOR !!!! J’espère qu’il vivra et on le reverra sinon SARAH CONNOR ET LE T800 j’ESPERE AUSSI QU’IL RESTERONS DANS CETTE FRANCHISE QUI COURT à SA PERTE ALORS QU’IL YA TANT à MONTRER ET à SAUVER LE MONDE <3 ON CROIT EN VOUS !!!! changer l'avenir de cette franchise pour de bon ! on veut l'essentiel et l'importance avec du renouveau.
Something still need to be reminded/re-addressed:
Misogyny issue is real and older than social-media sites, back then they filled imdb message board with pratically every single movie that features a tough woman, way before SJW/PC/feminazi was even a thing.
Anti-SJW is not new SJW, their history is far older than SJW.
They explode at Grace’s tomboy look as “LGBT politic” the moment the first official photo goes online, way before any “dead John Connor” leak, despite Grace wouldn’t look too much different from classical Sarah Connor had her hair been a bit longer.
With each comment about complaining about John Connor possiblybeing removed, several other dozens of comments screams “LGBT feminazi agenda” interweaving along the way.
And “educational” comments like: “yeah right we terminator fans can’t appreciate strong women” simply ignore the fact that most other comments don’t even have anything to do with “JC leak” or quality issue, they are simply bits and pieces of “feminism PC! it’s gonna bomb!” You know you can see those in replies to your YouTube cannel and your social media account.
How else Tim Miller would see and react after reading them, whether T:DF bomb or not? (Even though those who drop “feminism PC” may not even be fans at all, but merely anti-SJW drop by for the sake of it)
It’s a let down that you guys retweeted “they focus on ‘trolls’, politics” panic mode thingy, as if “anti-SJW pretend to be fan” wouldn’t attack politically had T6 be good or there were no “dead JC” leak. These same kind of jerks also severely “corrupted” credibility of “anti-Last Jedi”
“when creators are confident about a film, they let their movie speak for itself. ENDGAME, JOHN WICK 3, ALITA: BATTLE ANGEL” which are really bad examples. Endgame is hardly gender issue, and I’m very certain had there been no Captain Marvel this year, the jerk called out “boycott Captain Marvel and go to see Alita” on TV would screw Alita as hard as he can: “Strong woman lies! Rise up against 1% SJW propaganda movie!” and so on…
The appearance of Mackenzie Davis’- is an aesthetic choice made by the studios to add to the character’s backstory. We have previously defended and explained the possible reasoning as to why ‘Grace’ might look a certain way; short hair? Head lice and lack of hygiene in the future war environment resulting in a shorter style for easier maintenance. Thin frame and prominent musculature? Malnutrition – a scarcity of food and nutrients, again, in the future war environment. Both of these examples can be seen in S.M Stirling’s T2 novel ‘Infiltrator’. All Tim Miller had to do to ease fan concerns about the aesthetic choice was to explain that the finished movie will explain it all.
The director steps in twelve months later? Right before Comic-Con 2019? As the movie’s relevancy appears to be waning? After the disastrous leaks? After fan backlash about a certain notorious scene?
Yes, some comments made after the first image appeared online were unacceptable but that is not an example of the entire fan-base – the majority of Terminator Fans have never had a problem with a strong female lead. The majority of fans were right alongside us, for ten years, demanding the return of Linda Hamilton as warrior goddess Sarah Connor. Most fans could not and would not accept the poor treatment that she [Linda Hamilton/Sarah Connor] received in T3.
Many fans have expressed their opinions, good and bad, about Terminator: Dark Fate; most logical and well thought-out – and it is unacceptable for the people involved with the making of this movie to make blanket statements about fans, statements which were made without clarification.
The comments of Tim Miller are of suspicious timing, and are damaging to the property as they alienate the prospective audience.
Thank you for throughly clearfication! That’s why I said “some” might just a bunch of anti-SJW drop by, not fans 🙂
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I agree with everything you both said. Hollywood is so out of touch these days.
Most of us the fans, I think, have no problem with strong female characters, but with lame/cartoonish/stronger-than-real-life female characters. Sarah Connor in T2 was a very strong character, and she looked VERY REAL (a very credible warrior woman). She was tough but sensitive, worried, responsible, muscular yet feminine. Being female or not is not important as long as the character is good: Kyle Reese, John Connor, The (good) Terminator, Lieutenant Traxler, Hal Vukovich, Dr. Silverman, Ginger, Matt… Hell, all cast of T1 and T2 were very credible persons!! Emilia Clarke, Jai Courtney, Claire Danes, etc… Meh, they were good actors, pretty and all, but fake just like a card board. No depth in their performances. So in a nutshell, HAVE STRONG CHARACTERS, FEMALE OR NOT. PERIOD.