Ridley Scott turned down $20 million to make Terminator 3: "I couldn't do it. It's not my thing"

Legendary director Ridley Scott has revealed that he turned down directing Terminator 3, even though a major payday was on the cards.

Taking reader questions from The Guardian, Scott revealed that he said no to making the sci-fi sequel. "I'm proud about this. I turned down a $20m fee. See, I can't be bought, dude. Someone said: 'Ask what Arnie gets.' I thought: 'I'll try it out.' I said: 'I want what Arnie gets.' When they said yes, I thought: 'Fuck me.'

"But I couldn't do it. It's not my thing," he continued. "It's like doing a Bond movie. The essence of a Bond movie is fun and camp. Terminator is pure comic strip. I would try to make it real. That's why they've never asked me to do a Bond movie, because I could fuck it up."

Jonathan Mostow ultimately directed Terminator 3. Of course, if Scott had directed the film, there would have been some strange poetry there, considering Terminator and Terminator 2 director James Cameron helmed the sequel to Alien, the aptly titled Aliens.

But, while Scott might have walked away from a third Terminator, he is very much going to make a third Gladiator. "Gladiator is in process right now," he revealed, adding: "Another Alien prequel – yeah, if I get an idea, for sure."

Gladiator 2 released last year and continued the story of the first film, but this time focused on Maximus's son, played by Paul Mescal. Original stars Derek Jacobi and Connie Nielsen returned, while newcomers included Denzel Washington, Pedro Pascal, and Joseph Quinn.

Alien, meanwhile, is still going strong with the release of Alien: Earth on Disney Plus, the franchise's first TV show. Scott is an executive producer on the show.

You can keep up with our Alien: Earth release schedule. For more, check out our guide to the most exciting upcoming TV shows of the year.