Timothy Olyphant stars in new ‘Terminator Zero’ trailer
The first trailer for Netflix’s new anime series, Terminator Zero, has been released. It offers viewers a brief glimpse of Mattson Tomlin’s animation outfit, Production IG’s take on the James Cameron classic. Given Tomlin’s previous work on classics such as Batman II and Ghost In The Shell, fans knew the franchise was in safe hands, but the first teaser puts any remaining nerves to rest as it looks stunning.
In the trailer, we can get a better sense of what the eight-part story will be like as we are introduced to the character Malcolm Lee (voiced by André Holland), who is a genius scientist who becomes the target of a time-travelling terminator. The Terminator will be played by Timothy Olyphant, and they are attempting to stop the scientist’s ongoing work with Artificial Intelligence.
The series will be set after Terminator 2: Judgement Day but will not involve any of the Connors. It will see Lee suffering from persistent nightmares of the apocalypse. Lee takes the fight to Skynet, but his plans to avoid the end of the world will be challenged as a terminator steps in to prevent his work.
The trailer gives us a good look at Olyphant’s gun-slinging robot assassin, who has been animated to look like an absolute horror and slasher-style character, who begins stalking Lee with the intention of killing him. A new character, Eiko (voiced by Sonoya Mizuno), also travels back in time to try and save Lee from the Terminator’s fate. The series is clearly going to be a darker offering; with an R-rated edge, fans can expect some of the most action-packed and brooding Terminator action they have ever seen.
The synopsis provides even more information: “Caught between the future and the past is a soldier sent back in time to change the fate of humanity. She arrives in 1997 to protect a scientist named Malcolm Lee who works to launch a new AI system designed to compete with Skynet’s impending attack on humanity.”
It continues, “As Malcolm navigates the moral complexities of his creation, he is hunted by an unrelenting assassin from the future which forever alters the fate of his three children.”
While the trailer isn’t the most dialogue-heavy, Malcom does say, “The end of the world comes tomorrow,” as the Statue of Liberty is engulfed in flames in a horrifying image. This is just one example of how the series embraces a more brooding look for its Netflix adaptation, taking advantage of the freedom of using animation.
The series lands on Netflix on August 29th. Until then, watch the new trailer below.