(Source Collider.com)
Ok, so recently, there was a rumour that Boyd Holbrook (Hatfield & McCoys) and Jai Courtney (A Good Day To Die Hard) were up against each other for the part of Kyle Reese in the upcoming Terminator: Genesis (which is meant to be part 1 of 3 in a new Terminator reboot trilogy). And to be honest, neither are the best option for the role.
Well, Jai Courtney (below) just got the role.
(Source EntertainmentWeekly.com)
Here are 5 reasons Jai Courtney will not only disappoint as Kyle Reese, but could potentially make Terminator: Genesis worse than Terminator: Salvation:
1. Physical appearance
Jai Courtney is a big guy, Kyle Reese was not.
Jai Courtney doesn’t fit the part that Biehn, Jackson and Yelchin have set up – skinny, fit, intelligent, and clever Kyle Reese.
About two years ago, Paul Walker was rumoured to play Reese in the upcoming trilogy, but I’m guessing pre-production began and they decided to delay filming and scheduling conflicts occurred or something… but, Walker would have made a way better Kyle Reese than Jai Courtney will:
Jai Courtney is just too bulky for the part, and looks like he could be related to the other failed-Terminator-reboot star Sam Worthington… Cousins maybe.
(Source Collider.com and JustJared.com)
Not a smart move casting someone who puts the (Kyle Reese’s physical appearance) timeline out of place, and looks pretty much like someone who failed to revive the franchise 5 years ago…
2. Acting chops
Jai Courtney’s mostly known for his roles in A Good Day To Die Hard & Jack Reacher.
(Source ScreenSlam.com)
Here’s why that’s bad – A Good Day To Die Hard is (very) clearly the worst Die Hard and Jai Courtney is partly the reason.
The entire movie tried to make Jai Courtney more of a badass than Bruce Willis – made him part of the C.I.A. whereas Willis was just a cop, made Jai the lead action-star, made him have more gun fights AND gave him the final kill.
MY POINT is that Courtney didn’t live up to the hype, despite all the help from the script writers trying to make him cooler than he actually was AND his acting skills lacked, which led to the movie being more action than acting. Given that Die Hard is not the most intelligent piece of film, that tells you a lot, that Jai Courtney couldn’t stay in Bruce Willis’ league.
Jai Courtney already almost ruined one 80’s action franchise (Die Hard), why throw him in to revive another?
3. He’s popular now. That’s probably the only reason he got the role
(Source EntertainmentWeekly.com)
His rising fame, and current popularity is most likely the reason he got the role – people want to see him in movies, therefore more people will see a FIFTH Terminator if he’s in the lead, especially after the last one failed to reboot the franchise.
Emilia Clarke (Game Of Thrones) has been cast as Sarah Connor, Jason Clarke is set to be John Connor, and Arnold Schwarzenegger is returning as the The Terminator (probably through motion capture technology).
For a while, the rumour was that Dwayne Johnson would be joining The Terminator franchise as a new Terminator model that goes back to kill Sarah Connor’s parents.
Do you think Jai Courtney is the right choice for Kyle Reese? Do you even think there should be another Terminator trilogy? What do you think the plot could be?
Let us know below!
2/20/2014 – 6:40 pm
by James
You clearly are jealous of this hunk of a guy James. You are so worried about terminator being a failure….”again”. Terminator is an action movie and thats all it will ever be and who better to play Kyle than this beautiful man?
Perhaps you’re right Eve. I’m actually more just worried about character continuity, and don’t feel Jai Courtney is the right choice. But, he could surprise me.
– James
You are right James. I haven´t watched the movie for a few years but saw it yesterday after T2 was on TV, so I started searching online after posts and articles about my favorite character Kyle Reese. When I saw what they was going to do I just screamed. He is so wrong for the part. I loved Kyle for years, Michael Biehns portrait was amazing and so was Anton Yelchin-never have I seen a role being approaced with that much respect to the original. This guy Jai, who I never seen acting and can´t judge him on that, LOOKS wrong. He looks like a wellfed footballplayer or a Terminator-light. He doesn´t look like a strarving man raised in the ruins after doomsday. That was part of my love for the original character.He looked genuine and real.
Thanks for the insightful comment Mary!
I agree with the way you said it, Jai Courtney just doesn’t even come close to looking the part. We’ll see how it turns out…
– James
The crazy part is, he had to lose TONS of weight to play the role of Kyle Reese, and he was STILL really big. Don’t get me wrong- the guy is lovely on the eyes. But I think he was miscast. I’ve seen interviews with him, and think he should get into comedy. He’s got a great sense of humor, and it’s sad to see actors type-cast purely based on appearances.
I’m going to throw a curve ball in here, and say that aside from the first Terminator movie, Terminator Salvation is my favorite. I thought the whole thing was incredibly creepy, surprising, and highly entertaining.
In short, I find it hilarious that out of the six or so actors considered to play the iconic Kyle Reese, they wind up choosing the one that looks the least like any previous Kyle incarnation. Every other actor in the running could have definitely passed for the role, especially Boyd Holbrook, Wilson Bethel, and Sam Reid. Of course, this is a “reboot”, so I suppose all the characters should look different…but wait, Arnold’s in it. And just look at Jason Clarke. He definitely looks like he came from Courtney’s loins *extreme sarcasm*. They look nothing alike. Great casting!
Thanks for the comment MegaMac, I completely agree with your points. If Arnold was coming back I would be boycotting this one. We’ll see though.
– J
At least Sarah Conner looks like Sarah Conner.
This article was absolutely spot on! Jai Courtney as Kyle Reese was bad, so bad. If you want proof of how bad Jai Courtney is just compare the original Terminator scene where Kyle Reese asks the cop “What year is it?” with the recreation in Genisys. Michael Biehn felt real, human. Jai Courtney might as well be a terminator.
Thanks for the comment Koohejix! I appreciate that someone else feels the same way as I do!
– J