Terminator 4 (previously known as Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, but now rumored to be Terminator: The Return of the Terminator) is the upcoming fourth installment to the Terminator film series, scheduled to be released on May 22, 2009. It is written by David Campbell Wilson, John Brancato, and Michael Ferris, directed by Joseph "McG" McGinty Nichol, and stars Christian Bale as John Connor. Anton Yelchin is playing Kyle Reese, who befriends Marcus, an early Terminator. Sam Worthington is playing Marcus; he was personally recommended to McG by Terminator creator James Cameron. Josh Brolin has been mentioned in a possible role as the Terminator. Moon Bloodgood is reported to be the female lead of the film. She will play "a no-nonsense and battle-hardened member of the resistance". Shooting of the film is expected to start on May 5, 2008 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Stan Winston will supervise the visual effects.
The plot and storyline of the film takes place after the events of T3 around 2019 and focuses mainly on the war between humanity and Skynet in the post-apocalyptic world. John Connor will continue to be the central character along with a new character named Marcus, who will have "equal presence." However, other sources confirmed that Kyle Reese would be the central character and that he'll have a huge part in not just this movie, but in future Terminator movies as well. James Middleton, the associate producer of the film, stated that "It's really about the birth of a new hero," and McG said that it will also be about the development of the Model 101 Terminator. Paul Haggis is in talks to rewrite the script.
On May 9, 2007, it was announced that rights to the Terminator series had passed hands from producers Andrew G. Vajna and Mario Kassar to The Halcyon Company and Derek Anderson. In the Variety article detailing the purchase, it states the fourth film will focus on a 30-year old John Connor in what the producers hope will be a new trilogy. Series creator James Cameron is currently not involved with the project; however, he did encourage McG on the project.
On July 19, 2007, the Terminator 4 project was in legal limbo due to a lawsuit between MGM and Halcyon subsidiary T Asset. According to the article, MGM has an exclusive window of 30 days to negotiate for distribution of the Terminator films. When negotiating for Terminator 4, Halcyon rejected their initial proposal, and MGM suspended negotiations. After the 30 days were over, MGM claimed that the period during which negotiations were suspended did not count and their exclusive period is still open. Halcyon was asking a court for an injunction allowing them to approach other distributors. However, Warner Bros. Pictures will be handling the North American distribution, while Sony Pictures Entertainment will distribute the film overseas.
