Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of the greatest movie stars in history. He shaped an entire action branch in the 80s, starred in classics like Terminator 1 and 2 and later reinvented himself with comedy roles. Part of that transformation was the meta-fantasy action film Last Action Hero – which flopped disastrously compared to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s other roles.
The film was released in 1993, and 30 years later the Austrian looked back on the defeat in his Netflix documentary. She still torments him today. Especially since companion James Cameron sprinkled salt into the open wound.
‘It’s embarrassing’: Schwarzenegger just can’t get over Last Action Hero
Netflix
Arnold Scharzenegger in his documentary
In Last Action Hero, Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a caricature of his pithy action heroes. A fan (Austin O’Brien) is magically drawn into the plot of “Jack Slater” and meets his idol there. In the course of the story, the star goes through all the role clichés that he himself has established.
Actually sounds awesome. But hardly anyone wanted to see it in the cinemas at the time: With a budget of 85 million US dollars, the film only brought in just under 50 million again. The superstar wasn’t used to that. And he reacted accordingly hurt. “It hurts. It hurts your feelings”he said 30 years later, as reported by Entertainment Weekly. “It’s embarrassing. […]
I didn’t want to see anyone for a week.”
What Terminator director James Cameron says about the failure
Schwarzenegger shot his sci-fi hits Terminator 1 and 2 with James Cameron, among other things. Cameron is known for his rough tone and he didn’t spare the muscular star either.
In the Netflix documentary, the Avatar director shared his candid memories of: “He sounded like he was crying in bed.” The actor must have enjoyed hearing this vivid description of Schwarzenegger’s grief after Last Action Hero.
Schwarzenegger perceived the flop as deep damage to his brand, Cameron explained. “I think it really shook him.” Of course, Schwarzenegger still wound the flop at some point. Just one year after Last Action Hero he made the hit True Lies – with James Cameron.
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