Production Terminator 2: Judgment Day

1 production

1.1 development
1.2 filming
1.3 effects

production
development

home of legal guardians of john connor

talk of potential sequel terminator arose after release, several outstanding issues precluded such production. there technical limitations regarding computer-generated imagery, vital aspect of film crucial in creation of t-1000 terminator. production of james cameron s 1989 film abyss provided proof of concept needed satisfactorily resolve technical concerns. perhaps more serious intellectual-property disputes between hemdale film corporation, owned franchise , stymied efforts produce sequel, , carolco pictures. given hemdale experiencing financial problems, arnold schwarzenegger urged mario kassar, head of carolco, bid rights: reminded mario ve been looking 4 years, , should him should go all-out, no matter takes make deal. carolco paid hemdale $5 million franchise in 1990, resolving legal gridlock.

filming locations of terminator 2: judgment day (california)

the end of legal disputes coincided willingness , availability of cameron, schwarzenegger , linda hamilton participate in sequel; schwarzenegger, portrayed terminator in first film, commented: felt should continue story of terminator, told jim right after finished first film. , hamilton reprised respective roles first terminator film. after extensive casting search, 12-year-old edward furlong selected hundreds of candidates portray john connor; robert patrick chosen play t-1000 terminator because agility emphasize disparity between advanced t-1000 , schwarzenegger s older t-800 (cameron characterized 2 porsche , human panzer tank respectively). patrick had appeared in action feature die hard 2, furlong had no formal acting experience. joe morton picked portray miles dyson, cyberdyne scientist helped develop new cpu t-800 terminators.

calling t2 productions, james , co-producers stephanie austin , b.j. rack rented office in north hollywood, los angeles, before starting assemble crew terminator 2. adam greenberg, worked on terminator , ghost (1990), became director of photography, while joseph nemec iii, had worked cameron on abyss, tasked production design. team conducted national search steel mill suitable film s climax, selecting dormant mill in fontana, california, after weeks of negotiations. locating potential cyberdyne building more difficult, site host numerous stunts, shootouts, , explosions. industrial park in fremont, california, rented duration of film s production. cameron , william wisher completed 140-page screenplay draft on may 10, 1990, , july 15, first shooting draft had been distributed cast , crew; particulars of technically detailed scripts shrouded in secrecy. both six-week turnaround script , film s accelerated production schedule enable 1991 fourth of july release.

filming

intersection of plummer st , hayvenhurst ave in san fernando valley, site of truck falling flood-control channel underneath

principal photography of terminator 2 spanned 171 days between october 9, 1990, , march 28, 1991, during crew filmed @ mojave desert before visiting 20 different sites throughout california , new mexico. these locations ran gamut crowded santa monica place shopping mall, 2 terminators converged on john, brief shots coming westfield mainplace , los cerritos center, flood control channels in san fernando valley, played host chase between terminators , john; river had redirected allow filming on otherwise wet channels. cameron , crew filmed terminator 2 @ corral bar , lake view medical center (known pescadero state hospital criminally insane in film), both located in lake view terrace. external shots of cyberdyne systems corporation filmed on location @ office building on corner of gateway boulevard , bayside parkway in fremont, california. working 1,000 crew members, production team oversaw numerous stunts , chase sequences, notable of took place on los angeles–long beach terminal island freeway, prior terminator 2 s climax. ten miles (16 km) of electric cables laid illuminate night-time chase, saw full-scale helicopter crash, sliding tanker, , other elaborate paraphernalia.

hamilton s twin sister, leslie hamilton gearren, used in shots required 2 sarahs, including scene sarah , john perform repairs on terminator s head (deleted theatrical release, restored on extended edition), , in of shots t-1000 impersonates sarah. gearren playing whichever sarah farthest camera, alternating between real sarah , t-1000 based on camera position. set of twins, don , dan stanton, used depict scene t-1000 mimics guard @ asylum.

an unprecedented budget of $102 million (1991 dollars)—3.5 times cost of average film , approximately 15 times $6.4 million budget of terminator—was reserved terminator 2. significant proportion of actor , film-crew salaries. according daily sentinel , daily beast, arnold schwarzenegger given $11–12 million gulfstream iii business jet, while $5–6 million allocated towards james cameron s salary. production itself, included special effects , stunts, totalled $51 million. despite significant expenditure, film had recovered budget prior release. worldwide rights sold $65 million, video rights $10 million, , television rights $7 million.

effects


the visual effects used t-1000 highly advanced time, combining state-of-the-art cgi, prosthetics, , editing allow t-1000 demonstrate shapeshifting ability. (0:20)

terminator 2 made extensive use of computer-generated imagery (cgi) vivify main 2 terminators. use of such technology ambitious since 1982 , 1984 science fiction films tron , last starfighter respectively, , integral critical success of film. cgi required particularly t-1000, mimetic poly-alloy (liquid metal) structure, since shapeshifting character can transform touches. of key terminator effects provided industrial light & magic (ilm) computer graphics , stan winston practical effects. creation of visual effects cost $5 million , took 35 people, including animators, computer scientists, technicians , artists, ten months produce, total of 25 man-years. despite large amount of time spent, cgi sequences total 5 minutes of running time. enlisted produce articulated puppets , prosthetic effects stan winston s studio, responsible metal skeleton effects of t-800. ilm s visual effects supervisor, dennis muren, remarked, still have not lost spirit of amazement when see ... [the visual effects on t-1000] coming up. such role , creation of cgi visual-effects team awarded 1992 academy award best visual effects.

for sarah s nuclear nightmare scene, robert , dennis skotak of 4-ward production constructed cityscape of los angeles using large-scale miniature buildings , realistic roads , vehicles. pair, after having studied actual footages of nuclear tests, simulated nuclear blast using air mortars knock on cityscape, including intricately built buildings.