Years After James Cameron Told Arnold Schwarzenegger, “Don’t Tell Me How to Write”, the Terminator Reveals an Obsessive Side of the Legendary Director: “On My Sets, We Don’t Have Lunch”

It’s often said people who excel at their craft are also obsessed with it. According to Arnold Schwarzenegger, legendary filmmaker James Cameron fits that description. After a record-breaking career in bodybuilding, Arnold Schwarzenegger teamed up with a then-up-and-coming director, James Cameron. Although they were so-called rookies in Hollywood, Schwarzenegger, and Cameron were unrelenting in their vision. In fact, the two even clashed on the set of their first movie together. 

Now years after that fateful incident, the titans of cinema are still friends. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, 75-year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger revealed the director’s obsession with productivity.

James Cameron goes to extreme lengths during filming 

During the interview, THR reporter James Hibberd asked about Arnie’s upcoming show ‘FUBAR’ and its connection with True Lies. In Cameron’s 1994 blockbuster, Schwarzenegger’s character was a spy who teamed up with his wife to take down the bad guys. However, in FUBAR, Arnie’s character and his daughter find out they are both government agents. After Schwarzenegger confirmed the connection, Hibberd asked if the Terminator actor had a conversation with Cameron.

“We keep in touch. We went motorcycle riding when he was out here for the Golden Globes,” said Arnie. However, the pair didn’t spend time discussing FUBAR during their meeting. However, the 75-year-old couldn’t help but talk more about the Avatar director before moving on to the next question. “I’ve never met anybody in the movie business who has so many different talents,” said Arnie.

However, while praising the Titanic director, the seven-time Mr. Olympia also revealed his obsessive side. “Now he tells me most people mistakenly think they need food to get energy,” Schwarzenegger said. But Cameron believes the opposite. “On my sets, we don’t have lunch because it drags down the performance for the next two hours,” Cameron told Arnie. In fact, during the interview, Schwarzenegger said sometimes the filmmaker did not eat for days and remained energetic.

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While the Austrian Oak’s statement of the director’s obsession with productivity and perfection might sound extreme, it’s something he became familiar with while filming The Terminator in 1984.

The verbal clash between Arnold Schwarzenegger and the filmmaker 

While filming the iconic one-liner “I’ll be back,” the bodybuilding legend suggested it might sound better if he said, “I will.” However, the suggestion ticked off James Cameron. “Are you the scriptwriter now?” the Aliens director retorted. “Don’t tell me how to write. I don’t tell you how to act,” added the 68-year-old.

The Mr. Universe winner bit back at James Cameron. He pointed out how Cameron told him how to act throughout the filming. However, instead of letting things get out of hand, the filmmaker explained how Schwarzenegger’s accent gave the one-liner a unique touch that would be lost if they didn’t use the contracted form of “I will.” The legendary auteur was spot on as the one-liner had become Anire’s most famous dialogue.

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What did you think about Arnold Schwarzenegger revealing the obsessive side of James Cameron? Did you know the pair clashed on the sets of The Terminator? Let us know in the comments.