{ "id": "epj9apjnsp", "slug": "terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series", "title": "Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv", "label": "Scripted television and comedy series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted", "label": "Adapted and franchise screen series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series", "label": "Television series based on films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series.animated-series-based-on-films", "label": "Animated series based on films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series.animated-series-based-on-films" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series", "label": "United States · 2001 to 2020: Television series based on films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001", "label": "United States · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv", "label": "Scripted television and comedy series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted", "label": "Adapted and franchise screen series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series", "label": "Television series based on films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series is a 2009 six-episode machinima web series, a prequel to the film Terminator Salvation, made with the video game's engine, following Moon Bloodgood's Blair Williams hunting the hacker the Ghost.", "snippet": "Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series is a 2009 six-episode machinima web series, a prequel to the film Terminator Salvation, made with the video game's engine, following Moon Bloodgood's Blair Williams hunting the hacker the Ghost.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_scripted_tv_adapted.film_based_series.animated-series-based-on-films", "markdown": "# Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series\n\n*Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series* is a six-episode American animated web series released in 2009 as a prequel to the film *Terminator Salvation*. It was produced by rendering real-time computer animation inside the engine of the *Terminator Salvation* video game, a technique known as machinima, and follows the resistance fighter Blair Williams on a mission set before the events of the film.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Format | Six animated webisodes made with the game engine and assets of *Terminator Salvation: The Videogame*[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) |\n| Run | First aired May 18, 2009; final episode June 24, 2009; average runtime about 12 minutes[2](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series) |\n| Creative team | Story by Andy Shapiro; directed by Tor Helmstein (with Ian Kirby); produced in association with McG and Machinima Inc.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) • [3](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby) |\n| Lead voice | Moon Bloodgood as Blair Williams, the role she plays in the film[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) |\n| Setting | The future war in 2016, before the film's events; sources describe it as two years, or two and a half years, before the movie[4](https://www.terminator.popapostle.com/html/episodes/Machinima.htm) • [1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) |\n| Distribution | iTunes, Amazon Video on Demand, Xbox Live, and the Sony PlayStation Network; later a DVD release[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) • [3](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby) |\n| Reception | IMDb rating 5.3/10 from 738 user votes[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1446633/ratings/) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Story and voice cast\n\nThe story is set during the future war in 2016, before the film. Blair Williams, an A-10 pilot and resistance fighter, is sent to a decimated Los Angeles, a known hot zone after the nuclear destruction of Judgment Day, to find a threat called \"The Ghost\" that is interfering with Resistance communications and leaving fighters defenseless against Skynet's machines.[7](https://terminator.fandom.com/wiki/Terminator_Salvation%3A_The_Machinima_Series) • [8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aTmkMpUm8I) The Ghost turns out to be a man named Laz Howard, who has discovered a method of scrambling [Terminator](https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator) signals; the same ability that incapacitates the machines also disrupts Resistance communications, leaving Blair to question whether he is working with them.[7](https://terminator.fandom.com/wiki/Terminator_Salvation%3A_The_Machinima_Series) • [3](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby)\n\n[Moon Bloodgood](https://www.edgepedia.org/moon-bloodgood) voices Blair Williams, repeating her role from the film, with [Cam Clarke](https://www.edgepedia.org/cam-clarke) as Laz Howard and [Jim Meskimen](https://www.edgepedia.org/jim-meskimen) as Command; Dee Bradley Baker and Heather Halley supply additional voices.[7](https://terminator.fandom.com/wiki/Terminator_Salvation%3A_The_Machinima_Series) • [2](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series) The press release frames the series as revealing the genesis of Blair Williams's involvement with John Connor's resistance unit, though the story itself does not feature John Connor.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series)\n\nThe six episodes average about 12 minutes each, telling a story of roughly 72 to 74 minutes in total.[2](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series) • [4](https://www.terminator.popapostle.com/html/episodes/Machinima.htm) • [9](https://www.scmp.com/article/687232/get-game) Episode 1 opens in the midst of the action and then jumps back three days, with the story catching up to its opening moments only in the final episode.[4](https://www.terminator.popapostle.com/html/episodes/Machinima.htm)\n\n## Production and release\n\nThe series was announced on May 19, 2009 by Halcyon Games, a division of The Halcyon Company, together with Warner Premiere and Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, which described it as the first full-length machinima series.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) It was produced in association with McG, director of *Terminator Salvation*, and Machinima Inc., and was entirely produced using assets from the *Terminator Salvation* video game, a third-person shooter built on Grin AB's Diesel engine.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series)\n\nMachinima, a portmanteau of \"machine\" and \"cinema\", describes computer-generated animation created in real time by leveraging video game engines and environments.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) McG framed the technique as a production advantage: it lets a writer and director think cinematically while executing shots that would be cost-prohibitive or impossible on a physical set.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series)\n\nThe first episode went on sale on the iTunes Store on May 18, 2009, with new episodes following weekly until the sixth on June 24, 2009.[6](https://www.macworld.com/article/196752/terminator.html) • [7](https://terminator.fandom.com/wiki/Terminator_Salvation%3A_The_Machinima_Series) Pricing was reported as $2.99 per episode in HD and $1.99 in standard definition, with a season pass at $14.99 HD or $9.99 SD, in the Warner Bros. press release; Macworld's report listed $3 HD, $2 SD, and a $15 season pass.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) • [6](https://www.macworld.com/article/196752/terminator.html) The series was also available on Amazon Video on Demand, Xbox Live, and the Sony PlayStation Network, and was later issued on DVD with a \"making of\" supplement and an interview with Moon Bloodgood.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series) • [3](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby)\n\n## Reception\n\nThe series received mixed reviews. A retrospective review praised the story and the voice acting, noting that Moon Bloodgood added depth to a character the film had treated as one-note, while criticizing the presentation: environments built from game assets looked bland, mouths hung slack during dialogue, and backgrounds and character movement had a choppy, unfinished look.[10](https://drkwaitingroom.com/2024/08/15/screen-time-terminator4/) • [3](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby) The Exclaim! review concluded that the technology was not yet evolved enough for dynamic viewing, comparing the experience to watching someone play a sub-par video game for an hour.[3](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby) On IMDb the series holds a 5.3/10 rating from 738 votes, with individual episode ratings between 5.6 and 6.1.[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1446633/ratings/)\n\n## Place in machinima\n\nThe series marked a step from short-form fan work toward licensed mainstream narrative. Machinima had previously been known for YouTube videos using *World of Warcraft* characters, stories told in Valve's *Half-Life 2* engine, and the *Red vs. Blue* series featuring *Halo* characters; the *Terminator* production applied the same real-time game-engine technique with a studio budget, professional voice cast, and multi-platform paid distribution.[6](https://www.macworld.com/article/196752/terminator.html) Warner Bros. positioned it as a complement to the film's release rather than a replacement for conventional animation, and it remains an early example of a franchise using its own licensed game as the production medium for canonical storytelling.[1](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series)\n\n## References\n\n1. [WB Revives Terminator Salvation in Machinima Series, Animation World Network (Warner Bros. Digital Distribution press release), May 19, 2009](https://www.awn.com/news/wb-revives-terminator-salvation-machinima-series)\n2. [Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series, TheTVDB.com](https://www.thetvdb.com/series/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series)\n3. [Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series, Exclaim!, review by Robert Bell, November 24, 2009](https://exclaim.ca/film/article/terminator_salvation_machinima_series-directed_by_tor_helmstein_ian_kirby)\n4. [Terminator: Machinima, PopApostle episode study](https://www.terminator.popapostle.com/html/episodes/Machinima.htm)\n5. [Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series (TV Series 2009) - Ratings, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1446633/ratings/)\n6. [Terminator movie spawns 'machinima' series on iTunes, Macworld, by Peter Cohen, May 18, 2009](https://www.macworld.com/article/196752/terminator.html)\n7. [Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series, Terminator Wiki (Fandom)](https://terminator.fandom.com/wiki/Terminator_Salvation%3A_The_Machinima_Series)\n8. [Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series Episode 1, Warner Beyond the Lot, YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aTmkMpUm8I)\n9. [Get in the game, South China Morning Post](https://www.scmp.com/article/687232/get-game)\n10. [Screen Time: Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series, Dr. K's Waiting Room](https://drkwaitingroom.com/2024/08/15/screen-time-terminator4/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Adapted and franchise screen series › Television series based on films › Animated series based on films*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series](https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series](https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/terminator-salvation-the-machinima-series. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series is a 2009 six-episode machinima web series, a prequel to the film Terminator Salvation, made with the video game's engine, following Moon Bloodgood's Blair Williams hunting the hacker the Ghost." }