All of James Cameron’s Films, Ranked

As a surprise to audiences everywhere, Cameron’s next production after Piranha II is easily one of his best and one of the best sci-fi movie franchises ever created. In his first film featuring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Cameron set his sights on the bodybuilding champion but he definitely wasn’t the first choice. Sent back to 1984 from 2029, a human soldier (Michael Biehn) attempts to protect a young Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) who would give birth to the key to human salvation, but a near-invincible cyborg is sent back simultaneously to cease the bloodline at any cost. Chillingly emotionless and terrifyingly ruthless, Schwarzenegger’s killer cyborg portrayal is absolutely unforgettable. It’s hard to imagine anyone else in this role would have made the movie as successful as it is, especially if you try to picture Sylvester Stallone or Mel Gibson, both of whom were offered the role before Schwarzenegger. Knowing Cameron and his talent — or luck — for casting just the right actors, it would have all worked out in the end. This is evident in The Terminator, where he takes some relatively unknown actors and creates a universe that is widely referenced to this day, whether or not the person has seen it.

Following Ridley Scott’s profoundly chilling sci-fi horror Alien comes Aliens, the much more in-your-face action-packed sequel that fully capitalized on the concept. When Officer Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) wakes up from hypersleep 50 years after her traumatizing survival of the xenomorph, she finds that humans have discovered their existence and want to research them with her help. Ripley, having seen the horrible things just one of those creatures can do, suggests bombing the hell out of the species to be rid of them. If you’ve seen the first movie, you’re absolutely on Ripley’s side in this scenario but still can’t wait to see what will happen this time. With Cameron behind the camera and taking part in the writing, you know this is going to get crazy. Back again to deliver some awesome performances are some James Cameron familiars: Michael Biehn and Bill Paxton. Both play soldiers entrusted with protecting the squad and destroy any threats they face, of which there are obviously many they encounter. Biehn is awesome as ever, reviving his Galahad-like glory from The Terminator, and even brings his trusty shotgun along for the ride. Though this is a fairly scary sci-fi action thriller, Paxton is still hilarious in his performance as the gung ho and extra vocal private who quickly turns tail after facing the terrifying aliens. “Game over, man. Game over!”