Terminators are like iPhones — they have a basic function, but every new version comes with fun bells and whistles. The latest robot sent to murder a present-day human is the Rev-9 (Gabriel Luna) in “Terminator: Dark Fate,” out Friday. Here’s a look at how we got to the latest futuristic assassin.
The T-800
The first iteration of the Terminator built by the fictional Skynet, the T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is the OG. The villain of 1984’s “Terminator” and hero of 1991’s “T2: Judgement Day” is the guy who slapped on the shades and said “I’ll be back” and “Hasta la vista, baby.” He also had the most basic design, by James Cameron, with living skin covering a metallic skeleton. When the T-800 was injured, it was up to him to sew his wounds shut. Still, he was a battery-powered killing machine like the world had never seen before.
The T-1000
The bag of bolts from “Judgement Day” was bad to the bone … which could turn into liquid metal. The T-1000 (Robert Patrick) was sent to do what the T-800 couldn’t: kill Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) and her son John (Edward Furlong), who was destined to save the world from cyber-takeover. Being a new model, it naturally had freaky new features. For one, it was entirely liquid and could morph into anything it touched. That made it almost completely invulnerable to attack. The T-1000 was also able to recover almost instantly, and could also mimic any human voice.
The Rev-9
Built by an entirely different company called Legion, the “Dark Fate” killer’s killer-app is a shocker: He is personable. “He’s not a cold, mechanical robotic cyborg,” James Cameron has said. “He’s very personable and very charming, but he’s also extremely lethal.” This, if you can believe it, is a Terminator who can mimic human emotion to complete his deadly mission. And, while he’s made of liquid alloy similar to the T-1000, he can split into two separate beings at once, both capable of fighting.