AI Creates A 1950s Terminator Movie Trailer & It's Creepier Than The Original

The 1950s were, by and large, a sweet and wholesome decade for pop culture, one where TV shows like "Leave It to Beaver" (even with its toilet controversy) perfectly symbolize how safe the era was compared to today's standards. As such, you may be imagining a major action blockbuster like "The Terminator" to be just as unthreatening — or even cheesy — if it was made in the '50s and not a good three decades later. However, this artificial intelligence-generated trailer for the iconic Arnold Schwarzenegger film suggests the complete opposite.

The concept video in question was uploaded by YouTuber Abandoned Films, and in little over a minute, it showcases characters and plot points from "The Terminator" amid background settings that accurately depict life in the '50s, from the random diner shots to the car and building design. The AI versions of the titular Terminator in its human disguise (Schwarzenegger), Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), and Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) likewise don't look too out of place for the era. But things get really interesting with the titular Terminator's undisguised appearance; while its rendering is fairly accurate, one will immediately notice that its eyes aren't red, even when the cyborg is on a rampage across Los Angeles.

Given the multiple shots of nuclear explosions, the occasional focus on gruesome fight scenes, and the fact that all these chaotic events are supposedly taking place in the decade of Elvis Presley and James Dean, it's easy to argue that Abandoned Films' AI trailer is more chilling than the original 1984 version of "The Terminator." And many fans seem to agree.

At the time of writing, the '50s-themed "The Terminator" trailer has been viewed about 1.3 million times since it was uploaded in April 2024, and fan feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. A number of users commented on what they felt made the AI-generated clip so creepy, with @ArmourBlanche writing, "The aesthetics and vibes make the terminator [scarier] than in the latest movies" and @markd.9538 accurately commenting, "Man... this is so meta. AI creating a trailer for a movie about AI. Its so eerie." Multiple viewers remarked that the video reminds them of "Thunderbirds," a British sci-fi TV series from the 1960s that dealt with futuristic themes. 

Inevitably, some commenters made comparisons to "Fallout," the Amazon series that's blown everyone away with its own blend of retro and futuristic elements and its faithfulness to the video games that inspired it.

Overall, though, it seems a large percentage of users simply wanted to commend Abandoned Films for creating yet another 1950s-style movie or TV show pastiche through AI technology. Aside from "The Terminator," the YouTuber has similar concept videos for series such as "The Walking Dead" and "Vikings," films like "Robocop" (which also looks awesome in a '50s setting), "Shrek," and multiple "Star Wars" installments, and even the "Warcraft" and "Diablo" video game franchises, among others.