Terminator Zero: Release date, trailer & plot

Terminator is taking on anime in a new Netflix show from acclaimed studio Production IG, and here are all the details.

True to Arnie’s word, the Terminator has come back time and again. Now, the robotic sci-fi movie icon is making another venture in TV for the new anime show Terminator Zero.

A collaboration for Netflix, this might very well be the show in the arm the action movie franchise has long needed. When you’ve got talent who worked on the Ghost in the Shell franchise and Batman, it’s a promising start.

But when is it coming out? Schwarzenegger isn’t involved yet, but there’s still plenty to be excited about.

Terminator Zero release date

Terminator Zero will release on August 29, 2024, exclusively on Netflix. That date is significant as August 29 is Judgement Day in Terminator lore.

The production was revealed way back in February 2021, so we’ve been waiting a few years. Quality takes time, and it was only in May 2024 that we got a solid date. Now we just have to brush up on everything Skynet before tuning in.

Who’s working on it?

Terminator Zero is being made by Production IG and Skydance Television. Production IG is known for the likes of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Haikyuu!!, with Masashi Kudō, famed character designer on Bleach and Tower of God, serving as director.

Mattson Tomlin, co-writer on The Batman 2, is the showrunner and executive producer, so expect a real marriage of anime and more western ideas. The Terminator for this iteration is being voiced by Timothy Olyphant, from Justified, Deadwood, and more.

Terminator Zero cast so far:

• The Terminator – Timothy Olyphant
• Malcolm Lee – Andre Holland
• Eiko – Sonoya Mizuno
• Kokoro – Rosario Dawson
• The Prophet – Ann Dowd

Terminator Zero trailer

The official Terminator Zero trailer was revealed in July 2024, and it’s gnarly. Olyphant’s cybernetic killing machine takes front and center, on a crusade across time.

The footage makes the show look like a gorgeously apocalyptic chapter in the storied franchise, featuring multiple robots, espionage, and all sorts of futuristic tech. In a franchise noted for cool imagery, Terminator Zero is already delivering some of the best yet.

What will happen in Terminator Zero?

Terminator Zero follows the titular assassin sent back to kill a scientist, Malcolm Lee, who’s building a rival to Skynet in 1997. Of course, we have a protector from 2022 who’s on their tail, trying to prevent the Terminator from completing his mission.

Netflix

Malcolm’s family is being threatened, and in the footage we see, there are multiple layers to what’s going on. Since Malcolm’s from a rival AI company, there’s probably some shady dealings going on between them and Skynet, what being corporate rivals and all.

A clock hangs overhead, ticking ever closer to Judgment Day. Sarah and John Connor managed to prevent that once. Can these people do the same?

Where does it fit in the timeline?

Terminator Zero takes place leading up to Judgment Day, so the events are between the first two movies in the franchise. That places Zero in between The Terminator and T2: Judgment Day.

Terminator has placed fast and loose with its timeline ever since the second movie in 1991. There are three sequels to T2 so far, each presenting an alternate version of what happens after the credits roll.

So, we’ll have to wait and see where Zero ultimately fits, but the area within the first two films is the cleanest spot to fit in.

To see what else Skynet might be up to, check out our new movies and upcoming anime lists.