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034 JULY 2015 JB HI-FI
and allowed him to flex his comic muscle.
“Schwarzenegger’s whole career is based on
his ability to see the humour in apparently hard-
boiled situations,” noted Roger Ebert.
The actor’s flair for perceptive humour was
given free reign in Twins (1988), Ivan Reitman’s
high concept comedy that cast Arnie and
diminutive Danny DeVito as the titular siblings.
The film was a massive hit and Schwarzenegger,
having waivered his salary for 20 per cent of the
profits, pocketed more money than he had from
his action films.
The ‘90s
“I am here to spend. I love to spend
Hollywood’s money!”
Arnie was instrumental in the success of Paul
Vehoeven’s cerebral sci-fi thriller Total Recall
(1990), and not just for his starring role as a guy
who takes a virtual vacation to Mars. Having
convinced producer Mario Kassar to acquire
the script, he also brought Verhoeven onboard
and suggested a more aggressive pre-release
marketing campaign. “I was proud my interest
and passion helped to bring about the movie,”
he says. “But the experience also proves how
important marketing is – how important it is to
tell the people what this is about... and make
them say, ‘I have to go see this movie.’”
That same year he reunited with Ivan Reitman
for Kindergarten Cop (1990), one of the first
examples of an action hero starring with kids,
and a personal favourite of the actor’s. Along
with the desire to do another comedy, he’d
recently become a father, so was immediately
attracted to the story of a detective going
undercover as a kindergarten teacher. Altogether
now: “It’s not a toomah”.
In 1984 he said “I’ll be back” and seven
years later Arnie’s cyborg returned – this time
as the good guy – in James Cameron’s mega-
sequel Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991).
“I always felt we should continue the story of
The Terminator, I told Jim that night after we
finished the first film,” Schwarzenegger recalls.
In addition to his $15 million salary, Arnie also
scored a $14 million Gulfstream plane from
producer Mario Kassar, as a ‘thank you’ for
accepting the role (as if they could have made it
without him?). T2 remains his most successful
film at the box office to date.
The Last Action Hero (1993), a self-aware
and extremely clever spoof of the action film
genre and its clichés (and Arnie himself for
that matter) is an underrated guilty pleasure.
It was also incredibly expensive, slammed by
critics and a colossal flop; opening a week after
Jurassic Park, it didn’t stand a chance at the box
office. As well as being Arnie’s first big bomb, it
was also his first credit as a producer and first
Razzie nomination for Worst Actor.
Cameron and Arnie reunited for True Lies
(1994), which had an even bigger budget
than LAH – at over $100 million, it was the
most expensive film at that time. It’s also
Schwarzenegger’s second highest grossing film
to date. Unfortunately, a rights dispute continues
to stall the film’s Blu-ray release.
The Twins team of Arnie, Danny DeVito
and Ivan Reitman attempted to recapture the
comedy gold of their 1988 hit with Junior
(1994), and failed miserably. The concept
of Arnold as a pregnant man proved to be
as hilarious as it sounds. To prepare, Arnie
reportedly hung out in obstetricians’ waiting
rooms to study the behaviour of pregnant
women – creepy! Roger Ebert, however, found
a silver lining: “Observe his acting carefully in
Junior and you’ll see skills that many serious
actors could only envy.”
Schwarzenegger briefly returned as the
Terminator in 1996, for the Universal Studios
attraction T2 3-D: Battle Across Time, and
followed that with Eraser (1996), playing a US
Marshal in the kind of action flick he used to
make in the ‘80s.
That same year, he also managed to star in a
comedy worse than Junior – Jingle All theWay.
Set to star in Fox’s Planet of the Apes remake,
production delays saw him instead playing a
dad determined to procure a sold-out action
figure as a Christmas present for his son. The
Terminator meets Santa Claus?
Things couldn’t get any worse than JATW,
could they? You better believe it! Arnie’s run of
stinkers continued in 1997 when he was cast
as Mr. Freeze in the universally maligned Bat-
fiasco Batman & Robin (1997). Bald, blue and
spewing bad puns, he nevertheless pocketed
$20 million for six weeks work. Director Joel
Schumacher reportedly stated he’d refuse
to direct the film if Arnold wasn’t cast as Mr.
Freeze – if only Arnie had said “no”.
Arnie underwent heart surgery following
Batman & Robin and found it hard to get work
afterwards, as studio insurance companies were
understandably nervous about him bouncing
back into action. He finally did two years later, as
an ex-cop battling Satan in the millennial occult-
actioner End of Days (1999), which wasn’t the
best comeback vehicle.
The ‘00s
“Staying on top of the hill is harder
than climbing it.”
The 6th Day (2000) was more traditional
Schwarzenegger – a sci-fi adventure involving
a cloning conspiracy which allowed him to play
multiple roles. But it was
no Total Recall, and Arnie
received three Razzie
nominations, two of
which went to his clone
doubles.
The Arnie we know and
love was back (he said he
would be) in Collateral
Damage (2002), as an
LA fireman avenging the
death of his wife and
son following a terrorist
bombing. Originally set
for release in October
2011, the events of 9/11
inflicted collateral damage
on the film, delaying the
release and requiring some scenes to be cut.
By 2003, Arnie was in need of another box
office blockbuster – and got one by returning
to his most iconic character in Terminator 3:
Rise of the Machines (2003), pocketing a then
record fee of $29.25 million. T3 was his last
starring role prior to swapping acting for politics
and becoming the Governor of California (or ‘The
Governator’ as he was affectionately dubbed),
although his last screen appearance before a six-
year break would be a supporting role in Around
theWorld in 80 Days (2004).
The ‘10s
“I’ll be back.”
Arnie always said he’d be back, and in 2010
made an uncredited appearance in Sly Stallone’s
veteran action star vehicle The Expendables
as Trench Mauer – a role he would reprise in
the two sequels (2012 and 2014). This was
the first time Schwarzenegger and Stallone
had appeared on screen together, and the pair
reunited in 2013 for the prison break thriller
Escape Plan.
Last Stand (2013) provided a leading role not
dissimilar to the one he played in Raw Deal – an
LAPD officer turned sheriff of a border town
under attack from a drug lord. This underrated
action flick was a terrific return for Arnie, but not
the box office success it should have been.
A year later he was back battling a drug
cartel in Sabotage (2014), which saw his star
value plummet even further with the lowest
opening weekend take ($5.3 million) for a
Schwarzenegger film in over 30 years.
Arnie now looks set to replenish his stocks
in the biggest role since he returned from the
governorship: Terminator Genisys (2015),
which will be in cinemas everywhere by the
time you read this. But will it knock T2 from
the number one spot as the most successful
Schwarzenegger film?
You can also catch Arnie – as you’ve never
seen him before – on DVD this month in
Maggie (2015). As a grieving father whose
young daughter has fallen victim to a zombie
virus, he delivers the kind of dramatic and
understated performance you don’t associate
with the name Arnold Schwarzenegger.
ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER