It’s been 28 years since we’ve seenLinda Hamiltonin action as Sarah Connor on the big screen, but you know what? It’s well worth the wait. Hamilton returns to theTerminatorfranchise inTerminator: Dark Fatewhere she joins forces withMackenzie Davisas Grace, an individual sent from the future to protectNatalia Reyes' character, Dani.
When asked how stuntwork has changed over the years fromTerminator 2: Judgment DaytoDark Fate, Hamilton replied, “for the better and for the worse.” She noted that there were more stuntwomen onDark Fateand admitted, “I really got a little crazy trying to micromanage … I mean, to every detail.” She continued, “I’m not gonna give one moment away that doesn’t seem real,” and that led to Hamilton taking on some stuntwork that she didn’t have to. Even if it was just a matter of needing to trim a stunt performer’s wig, no detail was insignificant for Hamilton; “You don’t want that one second that’s gonna break the audience concentration.”
Hamilton also offered up one specific example of stuntwork that didn’t feel true to Sarah Connor:
“Or then there would be the stunt girl from Hungary that they’d hired and that’s a whole different school - old school - of stunts. The girl is doing good work but it’s real old school so she’s in a car accident and she’s flinging herself around, selling it. And I’m like, ‘No, no, no! Sarah Connor does not thrash!’ Like, yes, you sell it but you don’t look like you’re an out of control rag doll because this is Sarah Connor.”
Such micromanaging may have negative connotations but it also comes from a place of reverence for Sarah Connor:
“It’s so hard to not get in there. And it’s not so much that I’m a control freak but more like I just, I owe Sarah Connor the dignity. I don’t want to disappoint her, you know? So this was the one film that I’ve done where I was kind ofthatperson, not so great at times because I was protective of every moment.”
This is only a small snippet of our lengthy chat with Hamilton so if you’d like to hear more about her experience makingDark Fate, her early days as an actor, what she values in a collaborator, and so much more, keep an eye out for the full episode of Collider Ladies Night dropping later this week. Also, be sure to catch Hamilton kicking ass on the big screen inTerminator: Dark Fatewhen it hits theaters nationwide on November 1st.
