In 2017, Terminator 2 was re-released in 3D 4K resolution for AMC and Cineplex theaters, and internationally, debuting at number one in the United Kingdom on its release weekend. A sequel television series, Terminator: the Sarah Connor Chronicles, ran from 2008 to 2009. Other films followed: two sequels, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines in 2003 and Terminator Salvation in 2009 a reboot, Terminator Genisys in 2015 and the Cameron-produced film Terminator: Dark Fate in 2019 which was intended to be an alternate sequel and retcon from Rise of the Machines onward. It received several accolades, including Academy Awards for Best Sound Effects Editing, Best Sound, Best Makeup, and Best Visual Effects, and the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation - Long Form.
It grossed $520 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1991 and of Schwarzenegger's career. Regarded by many critics as superior to the original and one of the best sequels ever made, the film influenced popular culture, especially the use of visual effects in films. It was a critical success upon release, with praise for the acting, action scenes, and visual effects. Terminator 2: Judgment Day was released in the United States on July 3, 1991, by TriStar Pictures. At the time of its release, with a budget of $94–102 million, Terminator 2: Judgment Day was the most expensive film ever made. Its visual effects saw breakthroughs in computer-generated imagery, including the first use of natural human motion for a computer-generated character and the first partially computer-generated main character. Principal photography began in October 1990 and lasted until March 1991. In 1990, Carolco Pictures acquired the rights from Hemdale and production immediately began, with Schwarzenegger, Hamilton, and Cameron returning. Talks of a follow-up to The Terminator arose following its release, but its development was stalled because of technical limitations of the vital computer-generated imagery required to realize a liquid metal Terminator, and legal issues with original producer Hemdale Film Corporation, who controlled half of the franchise rights. The resistance sends back its own reprogrammed Terminator to protect Connor and ensure the future of humanity. In its plot, the malevolent artificial intelligence Skynet sends a Terminator-a highly advanced killing machine-back in time to 1995 to kill the future leader of the human resistance, John Connor, when he is a child. It is the sequel to the 1984 film The Terminator, and the second installment in the Terminator franchise. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, Edward Furlong, and Joe Morton. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (also promoted as T2) is a 1991 American science fiction action film produced and directed by James Cameron, who co-wrote the script with William Wisher.