It's being reported that McG (Charlie's Angels) is in talks to direct Terminator 4, currently being written by Terminator 3 scribes Mike Ferris and John Brancato. Not only that, but Vin Diesel (Pitch Black) is being courted to replace Arnold Schwarzenegger as the film's leading cyborg, as John Connor battles machines in the near-future...Following T3 and the upcoming Sarah Connor Chronicles TV series, it's clear to everyone that the once-respected Terminator franchise is being milked by greedy executives. The third movie was weak, soulless and watered-down when compared to its vibrant, gritty, violent predecessors. The only reason it gained a modicum of respect is because it wasn't a total train wreck, Schwarzenegger was back, and the last 10 minutes were kind of cool.
But, without writer/director James Cameron in charge, the key component of what made the Terminator films so great is missing -- and not even Arnold Schwarzenegger's presence could paper over T3's cracks. Anyway, Arnie was a pale shadow of his former self in T3, so I'm really glad he won't star in T4 -- although a cameo would be great fun (particularly if CGI restores him to prime physicality, and we see his original T-800 being sent back to 1984... ) *geek-gasm*
McG is a director I have mixed feelings about. His name is pretentious, and his Charlie's Angels films are slick, brainless, style-over-substance masturbation aides. To his credit, his recent work has created some distance from the Angels' flashy style, in We Are Marshall (a sports drama) and the visually enjoyable Pilot episode of TVs Chuck. It's difficult to say if McG can "grow up" enough to take on T4, but it's not a good sign he produced TVs The Pussycat Dolls: The Search For The Next Doll this year!
As for Vin Diesel... he's an actor I really like. I think he has huge presence and charisma, but has never found an iconic role to burn himself into people's minds. Pitch Black was a wonderful introduction to his cool, macho style -- but his character didn't grab imaginations when headlining his own movie The Chronicles Of Riddick. That was a shame, as Chronicles is an underrated movie. His action thriller xXx also underperformed -- but mostly because all the "better than Bond!"-hype proved to be a lie.
Personally, I think Diesel will take the T4 gig, before they offer it to The Rock. I mean, what else is he going to do these days? The Pacifier 2? Another Fast & The Furious?
