Why James Cameron Thinks 'Terminator 2' Is as Timely as Ever

Just weeks before his iconic action blockbuster starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Linda Hamilton hits theaters again on Aug. 25 -- this time in 3D -- President Donald Trump and North Korea dictator Kim Jong-un have been revving up nuclear fears that Americans haven't really felt since the Cold War ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union.

"I tend to be kind of an apocalyptic kind of guy. I look at all the worst case outcomes," Cameron told the Associated Press in a new interview. The filmmaker that created the "Terminator" franchise in 1984 said he was "spooked" by the Cuban Missile Crisis as a kid, and he "never stopped thinking about those things."

As technology companies continue to make leaps and bounds in artificial intelligence, and Trump promises a "locked and loaded" United States will rain down "fire and fury" on North Korea -- a country that is now reportedly armed with nukes of their own -- Cameron said "Terminator 2" is particularly relevant.

"I think the film is as timely as it ever was, probably more so less on the nuclear side and more on the AI side and dealing with our relationship with our own technology," Cameron said. "And how we do really stand the possibility of making ourselves obsolete?"

"The problem with all of this technology is once the toothpaste is out of the tube, you can't put it back in. And the nuclear genie has been out of the bottle since the '40s. Sometimes we live with it in denial, sometimes it's in our consciousness," he said.

While the threat of nuclear destruction is making headlines again, Cameron is aware it never actually went away.

"All those subs are still out there in the ocean pointed at the opposite guy, so that potential for a really bad day has been here the whole time," he added. "We talk about the Cold War being over, it's really just a relaxation of tensions, but the technology hasn't gone away, and I think it's now back in the public consciousness as yet something else to worry about."

Science fiction, he said, is simply the exaggeration of society's fears and anxieties, and he hopes audiences leave the theater a little more educated about the dangerous possibilities humanity could be facing if proper precautions aren't taken.

"I think that it's we have to be on guard and constantly aware," he said. "So whether it's climate change, or whether it's the threat of an AI potentially replacing us or rapidly altering our word in a negative outcome for humans or weather it's nuclear warfare — these are things we need to be constantly vigilant about."

Although there have been several "Terminator" sequels since "T2," including 2015 disappointment "Terminator Genisys," Cameron is not opposed to starting over. His criteria includes "fresh imagery, fresh characters," and a story that must "feel like a new, 21st-century version of a 'Terminator' story but still stay true to what that means."

Considering Hollywood's obsession with reboots, remakes and revivals as of late, we're sure it will happen at some point.