Page One: “The Terminator” (1984)

Written by James Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd, additional dialogue by William Wisher

The movie version of the opening:

The movie has a pre-credit sequence providing backstory about how the machines waged war against humans:

But the Terminator’s arrival is very much like the script:

You may download the screenplay here.

FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY!

Page One is a daily Go Into The Story series featuring the first page of notable movie scripts from the classic era to contemporary times. Comparing them is an excellent way to study a variety of writing styles and see how professional writers start a story.

For more Page One posts, go here.

You may follow the daily conversation on Twitter as I cross-post there: @GoIntoTheStory.