18 Best Terminator Quotes: We Know You'll Be Back For More

Supriya Jain
Dec 12, 2023 By Supriya Jain
Originally Published on Feb 09, 2021
Edited by Luca Demetriou
Video collection of the movie The Terminator final edition.

The first 'Terminator' movie is a cult classic and spawned into a franchise with six films, a television series, and a web series.

The Terminator’s initial story was written and directed by James Cameron and starred Arnold Schwarzenegger in a career defining role along with Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn, Robert Patrick, and others. The futuristic story is based on Kyle Reese, a human resistance soldier from the post-apocalyptic world in the Terminator’s first instalment.

In this world, machines have taken over everything, and humans are on the verge of extinction. There is a deadly nuclear war by an artificial intelligence called Skynet.

This fight with other non-humans is fought with the help of Connor John. The first Terminator movie is set in the future 2029, followed by 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day', 'Terminator Salvation', 'Terminator Genisys', and the latest 'Terminator: Dark Fate'.

The web and television series are parallel storylines in a parallel universe.

The famous “I’ll be back.” Said by Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 1 and “Hasta la vista, baby” said in 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day', are two of the most memorable and often quoted lines from the franchise. You'll find the best of The Terminator quotes, plus quotes from the protagonist, Sarah Connor.

Along with Terminator quotes, you can also read Arnold Schwarzenegger movie quotes and Rambo quotes here.
 

Iconic Arnold Schwarzenegger Terminator Quotes

The first Terminator movie, made on a $6 million budget, became one of the highest-grossing films of that year with $78 million earnings at the box office. Here are some of the most popular quotes from 'The Terminator'.

1. “I need your clothes, your boots, and your motorcycle.”

- 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'.

2. “Come with me if you want to live.”

- 'Terminator'.

3. Kyle Reese: “Cyborgs don’t feel pain. I do. Don’t do that again.”

Sarah Connor: “Just let me go.”

Kyle Reese: “That Terminator is out there...It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are dead!”

- 'Terminator'.

4. “John Connor: Jesus! You were going to kill that guy!

The Terminator: Of course. I’m a Terminator.

John Connor: Listen to me very carefully, okay? You’re not a Terminator anymore, alright? You just can’t go around killing people.

The Terminator: Why?

John Connor: What do you mean, why? Because you can’t.

The Terminator: Why?

John Connor: Because you just can’t. Trust me on this.

- 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'.

5. Kyle Reese: “All right, listen. The Terminator’s an infiltration unit: part man, part machine. Underneath, it’s a hyperalloy combat chassis, microprocessor-controlled. Fully armoured; very tough. But outside, it's living human tissue: flesh, skin, hair, blood - grown for the cyborgs.”

Sarah: “Look, Reese. I don’t know what you want from...”

- 'Terminator'.

6. “Terminator: I’m a friend of Sarah Connor. I was told she was here. Could I see her please?

Desk Sergeant: No, you can’t see her. She’s making a statement.

Terminator: Where is she?

Desk Sergeant: Look, it may take a while. Want to wait? There’s a bench over there. [points to bench]

Terminator: [looks around,’examining the structural integrity of the room, then looks back at him] I’ll be back.”

- 'Terminator'.

7. “If a machine, a terminator, can learn the value of human life, Maybe we can, too.”

- The Terminator, 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'.

8. “This is the world now. Logged on, plugged in, all the time.’’

- The Terminator, 'Terminator Genisys'.

Dramatic Terminator Quotes

Both the Terminator movies have the least dialogues for their main lead, Arnold Schwarzenegger, which means that you don’t need to be verbose to make your presence felt. Maybe we must let our personality do the talking. Here are some more 'Terminator' quotes.

9. “The Terminator’s an infiltration unit. Part man, part machine. Underneath, it’s a hyperalloy combat chassis, microprocessor-controlled, fully armoured. Very tough...But outside, it’s living human tissue. Flesh, skin, hair...blood. Grown for the cyborgs.”

- Kyle Reese, 'Terminator'.

10. “Kyle Reese: The 600 series had rubber skin. We spotted them easy, but these are new. They look human... sweat, bad breath, everything. Very hard to spot. I had to wait till he moved on you before I could zero him.

Sarah Connor: Look... I am not stupid, you know. They cannot make things like that yet.

Kyle Reese: Not yet. Not for about 40 years.

Sarah Connor: Are you saying it’s from the future?

Kyle Reese: One possible future. From your point of view... I don’t know tech stuff.

Sarah Connor: Then you’re from the future, too. Is that right?

Kyle Reese: Right.

Sarah Connor: Right.”

- 'Terminator'.

11. “Sarah Connor: What’ve we got? Moth balls, corn syrup, ammonia. What’s for dinner?

Kyle Reese: Plastique.

Sarah Connor: That sounds good. What is it?

Kyle Reese: Nitro-glycerine-base; it’s a bit more stable. I learned to make it when I was a kid.”

- 'Terminator'.

12. “John Connor gave me a picture of you once. I didn’t know why at the time. It was very old - torn, faded. You were young like you are now. You seemed just a little sad.

I used to always wonder what you were thinking at that moment. I memorized every line, every curve... I came across time for you, Sarah. I love you. I always have.”

- Kyle Reese, 'Terminator'.

13. “The Terminator: Why do you cry?

John Connor: You mean people?

The Terminator: Yes.

John Connor: I don’t know. We just cry. You know, when it hurts.

The Terminator: Pain causes it?

John Connor: No, it’s when there’s nothing wrong with you, but you hurt anyway. You get it?

The Terminator: No.”

- 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'.

14. “The Terminator: In three years, Cyberdyne will become the largest supplier of military computer systems. All stealth bombers are upgraded with Cyberdyne computers, becoming fully unmanned. Afterwards, they fly with a perfect operational record. The Skynet Funding Bill is passed.

The system goes online August 4th, 1997. Human decisions are removed from strategic defence. Skynet begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, August 29th. In a panic, they try to pull the plug.

Sarah Connor: Skynet fights back.”

- 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'.

15. “Dr. Silberman: You broke my arm!

Sarah Connor: There are 215 bones in the human body. That’s one.”

- 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'.

16. “The future has not been written.

There is no fate but what we make for ourselves. I wish I could believe that.

My name is John Connor, they tried to murder me before I was born, when I was 13, they tried again. Machines from the future...Terminators. All my life my mother told me the storm was coming, Judgment Day, the beginning of the war between man and machines.

Three billion lives would vanish in an instant, and I would lead what was left of the human race to ultimate victory. It hasn’t happened, no bombs fell, computers didn’t take control, we stopped Judgment Day.

I should feel safe, but I don’t, so I live off the grid - no phone, no address, no one and nothing can find me. I’ve erased all connections to the past, but as hard as I try, I can’t erase my dreams, my nightmares.”

- John Connor, 'Terminator 3 – Rise Of The Machines'.

17. Thank you, Sarah, for your courage through the dark years. I can't help you with what you must soon face, except to say that the future is not set. You must be stronger than you imagine you can be. You must survive, or I will never exist.

- Kyle Reese, 'The Terminator'.

18. "Pain can be controlled, you just disconnect it"

- Kyle Reese, 'The Terminator'.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly quotes for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 'The Terminator' quotes, then why not take a look at ['Lord Of The Rings' quotes] or 'The Matrix' quotes.

main image credit: Stefano Chiacchiarini '74 / Shutterstock.com

second image credit: Urbanscape / Shutterstock.com

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Written by Supriya Jain

Bachelor of Commerce, Master of Business Administration specializing in Marketing

Supriya Jain picture

Supriya JainBachelor of Commerce, Master of Business Administration specializing in Marketing

As a skilled member of the Kidadl team, Shruti brings extensive experience and expertise in professional content writing. With a Bachelor's degree in Commerce from Punjab University and an MBA in Business Administration from IMT Nagpur, Shruti has worked in diverse roles such as sales intern, content writer, executive trainee, and business development consultant. Her exceptional writing skills cover a wide range of areas, including SOP, SEO, B2B/B2C, and academic content.

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