‘Terminator 5′ Casts Jai Courtney as Kyle Reese
After months of rumors and auditions from seemingly every up-and-coming actor in Hollywood, the rebooted 'Terminator 5,' officially titled 'Terminator: Genesis,' finally found its Kyle Reese. Australian actor Jai Courtney landed the role, which will see him appearing alongside franchise star Arnold Schwarzenegger and 'Game of Thrones' breakout Emilia Clarke.
As any science-fiction fan worth his or her salt knows, Kyle Reese was originally played by Michael Biehn in James Cameron's 'The Terminator,' where he travelled back in time to protect Sarah Connor from the evil forces of SkyNet (and because he had fallen in love with her, of course). The character was later played by Anton Yelchin in 'Terminator: Salvation,' but the less said about that, the better.
The hunt for the new Reese was a long and involved one, but it ultimately came down to Courtney and Boyd Holbrook. Although neither of them are household names, Courtney has more experience in blockbuster films, having played John McClane's son in the awful 'A Good Day to Die Hard' and a key part in the hugely underrated 'Jack Reacher.' He'll soon co-star in 'Divergent,' and there was no way director Alan Taylor was going to turn down an actor who has the potential to be a massive star in a few years. In any case, he'll have to play a fine Kyle Reese if he wants us to forgive him for that fifth 'Die Hard' movie.
Plot details remain scarce, but with most of the major roles now filled out, we should start hearing more about 'Terminator: Genesis' very soon. Though we do know 'Terminator 5' will kickstart a new standalone trilogy of films, and that it's currently slated for a July 1, 2015 release.