'Alien' Creator Ridley Scott Explains Why He Turned Down Directing 'Terminator 3'

In a recent interview with The Guardian, acclaimed filmmaker Ridley Scott touched on the missed opportunity to direct Terminator 3 after James Cameron stepped away from the franchise. The Alien creator was offered a massive paycheck, yet ultimately chose to walk away from the project.

Speaking to reporters, Scott explained that his filmmaking approach clashed with the more "comic book" style of the killer-cyborg series. At one point, however, he did seriously consider directing the threequel and even asked for the same salary as sci-fi action star Arnold Schwarzenegger. But not even a hefty fee was enough to persuade him.

Ultimately, the director’s chair for the threequel went to Jonathan Mostow, who released Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines in 2003. The film continued the story set up by its predecessor but failed to reach the same critical or commercial heights as Terminator 2.

As for Scott, he has recently returned to the Alien franchise and is currently working on a new installment for 20th Century Studios. Meanwhile, Alien: Earth, a prequel series set long before the 1979 original, just premiered. And in the Terminator universe, fresh gameplay footage from an upcoming video game adaptation was recently revealed.