Fast and Furious movie star Vin Diesel almost joined a different family: the Terminator family. The actor was initially considered for the role of the T-X, who is now regarded as one of the franchise’s worst villains, after the huge success of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Robert Patrick as the series’ previous antagonists.
The almost-casting came when Vin Diesel’s was starting to churn out consistently solid action movies, cementing himself as a rising star with Pitch Black, Fast and Furious, and XXX all coming out within two years of Terminator 3. These brought him to the attention of the action movie’s creators.
However, it was instead agreed that the role should go to a woman, and the role of the T-X was re-written. Instead of Vin Diesel, Famke Janssen and Jennifer Lopez were considered for the part, before it eventually went to Kristanna Loken.
Vin Diesel will, undoubtedly, be thankful for the change in direction. That’s because it saved him from being in one of the worst Terminator movies, and the one which is credited with the decline of the entire series.
Terminator 3 was badly received when it was released, and has only gone down in estimations since. It marks a significant turning point in the science fiction movie series, where it lost its high quality in favour of generic, unremarkable sci-fi action. Since then, no Terminator movie has managed to come close to the heights of Terminator, or Terminator 2.
In fact, the only unambiguously good thing to come from the Terminator movies since Terminator 2 has been the sci-fi series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. The TV series is an underrated gem, and never received the love or attention which it deserved.
For more Vin Diesel action, check out our guide to his upcoming Fast and Furious 10.