Jason Clarke says unused Terminator Genisys sequel ideas were 'really exciting'

In 2015, Paramount Pictures released Terminator Genisys, which played fast and loose with the brand's official timeline in an attempt to reinvigorate the franchise.

Unfortunately, this achieved the opposite effect, essentially killing off the film series until a few years ago, when James Cameron decided to produce a sequel that would ignore all continuity after 1991's Judgment Day. Now Jason Clarke—who played Genisys' John Connor—has offered some fresh intel on the unused sequels that were meant to follow Terminator Genisys.

"Everyone wanted that Terminator to work. The stories that came afterward were really exciting,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “You do look at things and say … ‘I wish James [Cameron] had been more involved, as he is now [with the upcoming 2019 film]; maybe they should’ve hidden the story a bit better.’ Retrospection is easy, but of course, you let them go. There’s no point in hanging on to the what-ifs."

Helmed by Alan Taylor (Game of Thrones, Thor: The Dark World), Terminator Genisys was still a box-office hit (making over $440 million globally), despite the negative critical reaction, and boasted an all-star cast of Emilia Clarke, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jai Courtney, Matt Smith, and J.K. Simmons. Prior to the feature's release, there were reports of a brand-new Terminator TV show that would be tethered to a new trilogy to be kicked off by Genisys. Obviously, none of that ever happened.

The sixth Terminator film, titled Dark Fate, is directed by Tim Miller (Deadpool) and reunites Schwarzenegger (the T-800) with Linda Hamilton (Sarah Connor). Written by David S. Goyer (Man of Steel), the movie time-travels back into theaters Nov. 1, co-starring Mackenzie Davis, Gabriel Luna, Natalia Reyes, and Diego Boneta.

Clarke next appears as Louis Creed in Paramount's remake of Stephen King's Pet Sematary, which opens in theaters everywhere April 5. Whether or not it trumps the first adaptation from 1989, Clarke isn't very worried.

“You never really think about whether we’re gonna improve on the last one. … For me, I always looked at it as a drama. It’s a horror movie and a scary movie, but for me, Louis Creed, it’s a dramatic role. … It’s about a family and a man’s descent into madness," he said to SYFY WIRE on the red carpet of the project's SXSW premiere.