Terminator Zero

Did You Know?

• On August 6, 2024, all eight episodes of the series were leaked online before its official release.
• The series was released on Netflix on August 29, 2024, coinciding with the in-universe date of Judgment Day.
• Metacritic assigned the series a score of 69 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating generally favorable reviews.

Production

In February 2021, a Terminator anime was announced, produced for Netflix by Production I.G and Skydance Television, with Mattson Tomlin as showrunner and Masashi Kudō directing. Initially called Terminator: The Anime Series, Netflix revealed during its 2023 Geeked Week that the story would follow new characters in 1997. Tomlin wrote the scripts in English, which were then translated into Japanese for the animation; he later rewrote the dialogue to match the Japanese animation for the English dub.

Tomlin confirmed the series treats all previous films as canon. At Production I.G.’s request for a Japanese element, the setting was moved to Japan, where civilians have less access to firearms. Tomlin envisioned a five-season arc, with future seasons focusing on Malcolm’s children as they grow up during the war, eventually evolving into the future conflict, and developing radically different views on humans and machines. In February 2026, Tomlin announced the series was canceled after one season, citing low viewership as the reason for not renewing the planned two additional seasons.

By June 2024, Timothy Olyphant had been cast as the voice of the Terminator, with additional roles voiced by Rosario Dawson, André Holland, Sonoya Mizuno, and Ann Dowd, whose character photos were also revealed.