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Terminator: Dark Fate director refuses to work with James Cameron again after box office flop

'It has nothing to do with whatever trauma I have from the experience'

Jacob Stolworthy
Saturday 23 November 2019 05:14 EST
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The director of the latest Terminator film has said he’ll never work with James Cameron again.

Tim Miller made the admission while reflecting on Dark Fate, which was one of the year’s biggest cinematic flops despite being more acclaimed than the third and fourth films in the franchise

“I’m sure we could write a book on why it didn’t work,” Miller told KCRW, adding: “I’m still not sure and I’m processing, but I’m very proud of the movie.”

In a previous interview with Collider, Cameron – who directed the first two Terminator films, and served as a producer on this one – said: “The blood is still being scrubbed off the walls from those creative battles. This is a film that was forged in fire. But that’s the creative process, right?”

Referencing this, Miller acknowledged that many decisions he made on the the film was a “fight” with not only Cameron, but Skydance’s David Ellison also.

“Even though Jim is a producer and David Ellison is a producer, and they technically have final cut and ultimate power, my name is still on it as director,” he said. “Even if I’m going to lose the fight... I still feel this obligation to fight because that is what the director is supposed to do. Fight for the movie.”

Miller, who dropped out of the Deadpool franchise after “creative differences” with Ryan Reynolds, says he didn’t have “ultimate control” over his film.

“You can work that way as a director, quite successfully, but I can’t,” he said, adding that he would say “no” to the opportunity of working with Cameron again.

“It has nothing to do with whatever trauma I have from the experience,” he said. “It’s more that I just don’t want to be in a situation again where I don’t have the control to do what I think is right.”

According to Miller, Cameron cleared the air with him in an email, which read: “I know we clashed a little bit. I put it all down to two strong, creative people with differences of opinion and I think it made the movie better. I’ll be back in LA in December. Let’s go get a beer.”

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