When OJ Simpson Didn’t Pass as a ‘Killing Machine’ and Lost ‘The Terminator’ to Arnold Schwarzenegger

Star footballer turned actor, OJ Simpson, was destined to play the role of a deadly cyborg assassin in James Cameron’s The Terminator series. However, the part was ultimately given to Arnold Schwarzenegger who, in a 2019 interview, made the revelation, as reported by Decider. Schwarzenegger said, “It was actually OJ Simpson that was the first cast as Terminator. Then somehow [James Cameron] felt that he was not as believable as a killing machine."

He continued, "So then they hired me. That’s really what happened.” He also shared that Cameron created concept art of the Terminator character based on Simpson's appearance. The artwork now hangs in Schwarzenegger's home office. As reported by The Independent, he said, “On the painting that I have at home – it was painted by Jim Cameron. Underneath my face is actually OJ Simpson’s face. It was already painted on it, with the leather jacket and the gun in the hand.”

“I have the painting in my office. So if anyone would ever scrape off the paint of my face, underneath will be OJ.” However, Cameron later refuted Schwarzenegger’s claims. During an interview, he said, “Let me correct that right now. Arnold is literally just wrong. I know it’s hard to imagine! You don’t argue with Arnold.” He stressed, “I didn’t make the painting for him. I made the painting for us, for the production, of him as the Terminator. There’s no OJ under that painting…OJ Simpson was never in the mix at all. That was rejected out of hand before it ever got any traction.”

Cameron reaffirmed his decision to exclude Simpson from The Terminator during an appearance on Chris Wallace’s HBO Max talk show, Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace. The host asked, “Is it true that the studio in this case wanted somebody other than Arnold Schwarzenegger to play the Terminator?” Cameron answered, “Very early on, a highly placed person at one of the two studios that funded that film had a brilliant idea and called me up and said, ‘Are you sitting down?’ I said, ‘Well, no, I am not.’ He said, ‘Are you sitting? O.J. Simpson for the Terminator!’ I said, ‘I actually think that’s a bad idea.’ It didn’t go anywhere.”

Simpson left football for Hollywood, featuring in iconic Hertz commercials in the 1970s. He also appeared in movies like Capricorn One and The Naked Gun series. Earlier this year, in April, Simpson passed away. According to ABC News, his family informed, "On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace."