“Would’ve Been Too Expensive”: $450M Worth Arnold Schwarzenegger “Saved 10–12 Million” by Relocating Shoot to Another Country in 1990

Holly actor and iconic bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger has acted in films across genres—from sci-fics to action—and has aced each one of his roles. For a sci-fi film titled Total Recall (1990) wherein the Austrian Oak starred opposite Rachel Ticotin, Schwarzenegger drew the audience into a tempting roll of spoilers in a talk show!

In an attempt to promote the film, he appeared on The Arsenio Hall Show with the leading lady. Herein, the Terminator actor spilled the beans on why the film was shot outside of the country and how it was beneficial for them.

Shooting abroad helped save millions

During the interview, Arnold revealed the reason why most parts of the movie were shot in Mexico. He cited that shooting a movie that required a futuristic setup would’ve incurred more costs had it been shot in the US.

He said, “It would’ve been too expensive to do it in this country because you know whenever you do a film that is like a futuristic film with Mars and its blue screen shooting and special effects like this. It costs a lot, a lotta money.” He further added that shooting it in a place like Mexico, which already had a futuristic infrastructure in some places, helped them save millions.

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“We saved around 10-12 million dollars by doing it in Mexico and it is still that the movie was like 48 or 50 million dollars the way it was. You know it was very expensive,” said the Total Recall actor. Schwarzenegger also talked about how helpful and accommodating the people of Mexico were to them. This further helped ease the process of shooting abroad.

Arnold Schwarzenegger with his two leading ladies

In this 1990 sci-fi, Arnold had not just one but two love interests. Rachel Ticotin and Sharon Stone played the roles. Schwarzenegger was asked to comment on having two leading ladies. The actor jokingly replied that it was to make up for the times when his movies had no romance angle.

In the 1980s, most of Schwarzenegger’s hit films were action movies and mainly focused on barbaric scenes. Hence, not many romance indulgences were shown in these films. So, according to the Austrian Oak, to make up for his missed on-screen romance, the script included two leading ladies.

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Overall, the film was a massive box-office success. With just $50 million worth of investment, the film grossed a total of $261.4 million. The film’s success aided Schwarzenegger’s acting career. Did you like the veteran actor’s on-screen love interests? Let us know in the comments!