What Happened to John Connor After Terminator 2?
John Connor’s Storyline After Terminator 2
John Connor’s storyline after Terminator 2: Judgment Day varies across the Terminator franchise.
- In Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, John is portrayed by Nick Stahl and is set 10 years after the second film. Now a young adult, he has been living off-the-grid after the events of the second film, even as the original Judgment Day deadline in 1997 came to without incident. His mother, Sarah, eventually develops leukemia and dies before the film’s events. In this film, John crosses paths with Katherine ‘Kate’ Brewster, a former classmate from when he was living with his foster parents. Additionally, John is attacked by a T-X Terminator sent from the future.
- Moving to Terminator Salvation, John is portrayed by Christian Bale, set in 2018. He is now an older, battle-experienced Resistance soldier. Kate Brewster, now a medic played by Bryce Dallas Howard, is pregnant with his child. Since Judgment Day, John has been broadcasting radio messages to both the Resistance forces and surviving refugees to maintain morale and hope.
- In Terminator Genisys, John is portrayed by Jason Clarke. Following a confrontation with a T-5000, John is forcibly transformed into the T-3000 cyborg as a result of a Skynet program that uses nanites to convert living flesh into machine matter. Although all other recorded test subjects for this process were left irreversibly insane and died during the transformation, John comes through the process reasonably intact but now as a sociopath dedicated to ensuring Skynet’s rise at humanity’s cost.
- Furthermore, due to Sarah, John, and the T-800 successfully destroying the laboratory of Cyberdyne Systems, Skynet is never created, and Judgment Day never occurs. By the year 2027, John Connor is a U.S. Senator and has a child.
- John Connor’s early life was filled with training by various persons his mother Sarah had met as they lived off the grid after the attempt on her life by the Terminator. Much of his training concentrated on weaponry, computer technology, and espionage.
- John Connor, the son of Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese, emerges as the leader of the worldwide human Resistance, as well as the more specialised Tech-Com during the War Against the Machines. Skynet, the supercomputer mainframe of the machines, decides that John is the focal point of the rebellion, and his termination would end the opposition.
In Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, following the successful destruction of Cyberdyne that happens in Terminator 2, the future dystopia where Skynet rules the planet is delayed, but it is not completely resolved. The film sees a new threat sent back in time to disrupt John Connor’s uprising and victory, namely the T-X.
The Future of Terminator 7: Will It Revive John Connor?
The Future of John Connor in Terminator 7
There are several fan theories regarding the revival of John Connor in Terminator 7 that provide intriguing insights into the franchise’s complex timeline.
- Skynet Doesn’t Want To Kill John Connor, It Wants To Discredit Him: This theory suggests that the Terminator movies make more sense if we understand that Skynet isn’t trying to kill John Connor. Instead, Skynet aims to sabotage him and ruin his revolution, attempting to make him a worse leader rather than martyr him.
- Terminators and Alternate Timelines: Another interesting theory posits that the time travel in the series only affects alternate timelines. Each time someone jumps back into the past, it creates a new timeline. This is evidenced by the logistics of sending Kyle Reese back after Skynet dispatched a T-800.
- Majestic Time Paradox: One theory suggests that when the original John Connor sent Kyle Reese back in time, he may have unwittingly killed himself, creating another John Connor. Before Sarah understood judgment day, she had a child with an unknown man, which could lead to the formation of a new John Connor when Kyle Reese time travels.
- Time Loop Implications: The first Terminator film implies a stable time loop: John Connor sends Kyle Reese back to fall in love with his mother, thus completing the time paradox. The original John Connor, who is now erased from history, was the child of Sarah and an unknown man.
- Original John Connor’s Existence: Believers in the original timeline argue that before time travel was utilized, there existed a different John Connor whose biological father was not Kyle Reese. Then, following Skynet’s rise to power, this original John Connor eventually became a notable leader.
- Skynet’s Objective in the First Movie: The stance is taken that Skynet’s goal was not to kill John Connor, but to disrupt history. Despite setbacks in the first movie, Skynet’s ultimate aim was to effectively alter the timeline.
- John Connor as a Figurehead: This leads to a version of John Connor who might be a leader in name only. The introduction of complications such as the T-1000 could give Skynet an early advantage in gaining sentience.
- The Evolution of John Connor: The franchise has depicted John Connor as a robot since Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Notably, he becomes part-machine in the distant future, which has sparked discussions about his character’s future.
- Complicated History: If Kyle Reese changed history by fathering a different John Connor, this could potentially endanger the resistance. The original John Connor was a resistance fighter, but the timeline has become convoluted due to alternate realities created through time travel.
Given the myriad theories swirling around John Connor’s future, it remains uncertain how Terminator 7 will treat his character amidst such complex lore.
Analyzing the Impact of John Connor’s Character on the Terminator Franchise
John Connor is the main protagonist of the Terminator franchise. He is the son of Sarah Connor and Kyle Reese, involved in an arms race against an event known as ‘Judgement Day,’ a timeline ruled by catalytic machines led by Skynet. His great influence and the dependence of the survivors initially abolished their enemies and Skynet, making them ruthless in eliminating John at all costs.
Initially, John starts as one of many foot soldiers in the Resistance movement based in California. Despite his extensive prior knowledge of the machines and Skynet’s capabilities, he is largely dismissed and considered a nuisance by General Ashdown, who runs the guerrilla paramilitary organization.
The story introduces a new character named Marcus Wright, along with a younger Kyle Reese. John begins to organize the resistance and states that although this battle has been won, the war is far from over.
John Connor’s character is pivotal as he is destined to lead the human resistance against Skynet, a self-aware artificial intelligence system. His existence drives the plot of the franchise, influencing characters’ actions and shaping the narrative’s direction. The transformation of John from a vulnerable child to a leader symbolizes hope and resilience against technological oppression, making his character integral to the emotional and thematic depth of the series.
The character’s journey and development throughout the franchise reflect broader themes of sacrifice, leadership, and the human spirit’s struggle against overwhelming odds. His portrayal reinforces the notion that humanity’s survival relies not only on technological prowess but also on courage and unity in the face of adversity.
Moreover, John Connor’s impact extends beyond his immediate storyline; he represents the future of humanity’s fight against the machines. His character serves as a symbol of resistance, inspiring both the characters within the franchise and the audience, thereby solidifying his role as a central figure in the Terminator mythos.
Although John Connor does not appear in the original film, the future birth of Sarah’s son with Kyle Reese serves as Terminator’s raison d’être. It is crucial for John Connor to be at the forefront of future Terminator installments to honor the character’s significance.
John Connor was so important to The Terminator universe that the very nature of his existence literally bent time and space. While the movies failed to properly pay off this significance, one comic series successfully did it justice.
Fans of the Terminator franchise are well aware of John Connor and his timeline-splitting impact on the overall universe, as he is the one promised to lead humanity to victory over the oppressive machines.
