Terminator: Gensis Tests Jai Courtney, Boyd Holbrook, And More For Kyle Reese
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In 2015, comic book and genre fans will be treated to an array of familiar summer blockbusters like The Avengers: Age of Ultron, Jurassic World, and Man of Steel: Batman Vs. Superman, among others. One of the biggest movies of summer 2015 will also likely the beginning of the new Terminator series, Terminator: Genesis. Casting well underway for the fifth installment in the franchise, and Anapurna Pictures, Skydance Productions, and Paramount Pictures are looking for new talent to fill the role of the soldier caught in time, Kyle Reese. The studios are also looking to cast an unknown actor in the role, and already have their eye on a few.
According to Variety, Terminator: Genesis is testing actors Jai Courtney, Boyd Holbrook, Wilson Bethel, Sam Reid, and Tom Cocquerel for the key role. Apparently, Paramount wanted Nicholas Hoult (X-Men: Days of Future Past) or Garrett Hedlund (Tron: Legacy), but the actors refused to read for the part.
Courtney is probably the most well known out of the bunch. He recently played opposite Bruce Willis in the terrible A Good Day To Die Hard. He will also appear in this year’s I, Frankenstein and the new young adult film adaptation Divergent. Holbrook appeared in Stephenie Meyer’s The Host, while Bethel was in the TV series Hart of Dixie. Reid was in Roland Emmerich’s Anonymous and Cocquerel is a mostly unknown commodity. Interestingly, actors Michael Biehn and Linda Hamilton are also rumored to be reprising their roles as Reese and Sarah Connors, respectively, which points to Terminator: Genesis featuring multiple timelines. Bring Anton Yelchin back!
Recently, Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke was cast to play Sarah Connor, while Jason Clarke (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’), no relation, was cast to play her son John. Considering the big age difference between the two actors, it’s going to be interesting to see how, again, time travel will play into the reboot. Incorporating more leaps through time into the Terminator franchise could give the new installments their own identity without negating the original films.
It was also announced that screenwriters Zack Stentz and Ashley Miller (X-Men: First Class, Thor) will write episodes of the new Terminator TV series, while Genesis screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis (Avatar) and Patrick Lussier (Drive Angry) will serve as executive producers, and help the series lineup with the events in the new movies. The series is said to work in continuity with the new trilogy, but it’s unclear on how exactly this will work. It’s also hard to imagine the former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger being a regular on a TV show.
Alan Taylor (Game of Thrones, Thor: The Dark World) is also expected to direct the new film, but Skydance, Annapurna, and Paramount have yet to confirm his participation.
Terminator: Genesis hits theaters everywhere on July 1, 2015. Paramount has not yet announced when the new TV series will begin or where it will air.
