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"I'm the only hope you have".
- Marcus Wright to John Connor, Terminator Salvation.

Marcus Wright (born August 22, 1975) was a human on Death Row in 2003, convicted for multiple homicide and was executed shortly after signing his physical remains over to Dr. Serena Kogan of Cyberdyne Systems Genetic Research Division. He was then entered into Project Angel and converted into a hybrid human alongside Thomas Parnell, which was later activated in the war-torn future.[2]

History[]

Early life[]

"So that's what death tastes like".
- Marcus Wright (after kissing Serena Kogan)

Marcus led a disreputable life of petty crime alongside his brother Sam, who was accidentally killed during a botched car-jacking which also saw the deaths of two cops. Marcus was arrested, convicted and sentenced to death at the Longview State Correctional Facility. During his time on Death Row, Marcus was visited repeatedly by Dr. Serena Kogan, a cancer-stricken scientist who wished for him to sign over his body to her research project. He refused her request up until the day of his execution, upon which he agreed to sign it over in exchange for a final kiss.

Marcus was then strapped onto a cross-like table and shown to his weeping friends and relatives before being executed by lethal injection. It is ambiguous as to whether the injection actually killed him or simply placed him in a coma for Serena's project, however. Marcus' body was taken apart and converted into a unique cyborg, one that still retained his human brain and heart. He was then stored in an underground facility where he would remain in stasis for 15 years as Judgment Day occurred in the world above. Skynet would later discover his body and add further enhancements to his design, completing the seemingly abandoned work of Cyberdyne Research.

Terminator Salvation[]

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MarcusWright5

Marcus arrives in Los Angeles

"What day is it? What year? [...] What happened here?"
- Marcus Wright (to Kyle Reese).

During the TechCom Attack on Skynet VLA, Marcus' "corpse" was on a table, among other dead bodies. Hours after the installation had been blown, and night had fallen, Marcus awakened in the ruins of the Skynet VLA and staggered out into the rain-soaked terrain, covered with mud and disoriented, screaming in horror at the world around him. After composing himself, Marcus took the clothes of a deceased Resistance fighter and started a long walk through the desert, finding a sand-caked road leading into Los Angeles. Upon arriving, Marcus observed the ruined city from atop the Hollywood banner and then descended into the streets where he encountered a Series 600 Terminator patrolling the city.

Marcuskyle

Marcus being questioned by Kyle Reese

Perhaps believing the 600 to be another human, he called out to it, only to immediately come under fire from the machine's mini-gun. Before he could be mowed down, however, Marcus was tackled to the ground by a young man called Kyle Reese; who told him: "Come with me if you want to live". Following Kyle's lead, Marcus bolted for the nearby building while the T-600 struggled to free itself from a snare trap the youth had set. It escaped by shooting off its foot, however, and promptly took chase. Up on the roof, Kyle's young companion, a mute girl named Star, released another trap, crushing the T-600 beneath a box car wheel assembly.

Kyle then held Marcus at gunpoint, accusing him of stealing the uniform of a Resistance fighter, but the cyborg easily disarmed him and demanded to know the date and what happened to the world. At first incredulous that Marcus had no knowledge of events up to that moment, Kyle answered his questions, and Marcus expressed an interest in reaching a Skynet-controlled location. Before they could decide on this, an HK-Aerial flew in overhead, toppling a building as it passed. Knowing their safety had been compromised, Kyle led Marcus and Star back to their hiding place. Here, Marcus demonstrated how to tether the shotgun to his arm to avoid losing it to an opponent.[3] He then fixed their radio, picking up a message from John Connor in the process.

In the morning, they traveled to Griffith Observatory to find transport away from Los Angeles. While repairing an old Jeep, Marcus accidentally cut himself on a wire and was given a band-aid from Star. He then got it working and inadvertently activated the radio, which started playing "Rooster" by Alice in Chains, much to Kyle and Star's surprise. Overcome with sadness at the song being one of his brother's favorites, Marcus switched it off and barked at Star to get out of the passenger seat. They were then attacked by an Aerostats and Kyle attempted to lose it by driving down the hill haphazardly. Marcus eventually destroyed it with a tire-iron, however. Unimpressed by Kyle's driving skills, Marcus promptly kicked him out from behind the wheel.

MarcusSunset

Marcus at the 7-Eleven gas station

Stopping at an old gas station bearing the mark of the Resistance, the trio are confronted by a gang of survivors who view them as a threat. Their de-facto leader, Virginia, offers them food and water, however, much to the annoyance of another refugee named Len. Star then senses vibrations in the ground mere seconds before a Harvester smashes through the roof and snatches Virginia and several other refugees. The trio flee outside and try to get aboard some of the escaping vehicles, but they speed away and leave them behind. Kyle quickly realizes that attempting to escape will only result in their death as the Harvester destroys the fleeing vehicles with its plasma cannon.

Marcus takes a moment to observe the machine before getting into an armored truck and using it to push a gasoline tanker into the legs of the Harvester, which succeeds in toppling it. As they drive away, Kyle tries to shoot the gas with his shotgun, but is unsuccessful in sparking it. Star solves this problem by giving Marcus a flare which he then lights and tosses onto the gasoline, lighting it and causing a big explosion around the Harvester. It is not destroyed, however, and releases two Moto-Terminators that give chase. Kyle is able to shoot out the first, and is saved from being splattered on a school bus by Marcus in the process. The second is disabled when Marcus instructs Kyle to lower the ball-hook, which catches the machine and drags it behind them.

The chase leads them to a bridge where they are cut off by an HK-Aerial, which fires at the bridge, forcing Marcus to screech to a halt. As a result, the Moto-Terminator swings up and around the HK, disabling one of its engines in the process. As the HK struggles to remain airborne, the truck is spun around until it almost topples off the edge. Kyle and Star subsequently fall out of the vehicle and are caught by the Harvester standing upon the HK-Carrier below. The HK-Aerial breaks free and fires upon the truck, forcing Marcus to jump onto the Carrier with an axe, which he then uses to try to free Kyle and Star from the cattle pens. The Harvester grabs him, however, and slams Marcus into the Carrier's hull.

"Yeah, well I've been dead for a while now and I'm starting to get used to it".
- Marcus Wright (to Blair Williams).
Hanging

Marcus finds Blair Williams

Before it can destroy him, the Transport is attacked by two Resistance A-10 Warthogs, one of them piloted by Blair Williams. During their missile attack, Marcus is dropped by the Harvester and falls into the river below. The two aircraft are then shot down by the HK-Aerial and the Carrier escapes. Marcus comes to at the riverbank and makes his way back into the desert where he encounters Blair hanging from a telephone tower, having ejected from her bird before its destruction. He helps her down, and in return, she offers to take him to John Connor, as he might help Marcus rescue his friends from Skynet Central.

MarcusWright4

Marcus, after rescuing Blair Williams

They stop at a derelict racetrack overnight where Blair removes her top in the rain to tend to an injury on her collar, catching Marcus' attention with her semi-nakedness. While Marcus is away gathering kindling, Blair is attacked by a gang of humans who want her supplies. Marcus arrives in time and viciously beats them into submission, stabbing one in the shoulder with a screwdriver. Afterward, Blair curls up to him to share his body heat next to the fire, and notices how strong his heart is before falling asleep in his arms. Marcus wonders if he's a good man and whether or not he deserves a second chance in life.

In the morning, they arrive at the Resistance base and travel through a minefield laced with magnetized landmines. As they pass through, a mine attaches itself to Marcus and explodes, injuring him. He is then carried to the infirmary where Kate Connor tends to his wounds, despite his declarations of being fine. Upon opening his shirt, she discovers the endoskeleton exposed beneath and calls for Barnes, who swiftly knocks Marcus unconscious with the butt of his rifle. He is then chained up and suspended in a missile silo where he is examined by John Connor. Kate Connor tells John about Marcus' human flesh, which heals itself quickly, and his human heart is contained in an endoskeleton. Kate also indicated there was an implanted chip within his skull. She also mentions that his nervous system is half-human/half-machine.

"What did they do to me?"
- Marcus Wright (to John Connor).
Tsalvation-john&marcus-film-interrigation

Marcus being examined by John Connor

Marcus protests that he is human, but John responds by removing the chain holding his head, allowing Marcus to see the exposed metal in his chest. He cries out in horror at what he's become but insists that he is not just some machine. John is convinced that Marcus was sent there to kill him and the leadership, however, and mentions Kyle Reese (his paradoxical father). This prompts Marcus to inform John of Kyle's capture by Skynet, which rattles him significantly.

Marcus is then left alone with Barnes, who shoots him in the chest for his late brother who died on a mission on Skynet VLA a few days earlier. Blair arrives moments later and tells Barnes that John wishes to see him, shooting Marcus herself. Barnes falls for her ruse and leaves, granting her the chance to lower Marcus to the bottom of the silo and release him from his chains. Barnes soon returns, however, and fires a rocket at the escaping couple, but they are able to flee through a ventilation shaft.

They follow it back to the minefield as the Resistance mobilizes to stop them. Blair uses a magnetic wire to trigger a line of mines, allowing them a safe path to the Jeep, only for it to be destroyed by a rocket. Forced to improvise, they flee to a wall where Marcus holds his hand out to draw their fire while Blair shoots out the floodlight, granting them cover of darkness. She is shot in the leg, however, which slows their escape. Marcus shields her from an explosion and gives her his coat, which she wears to confuse the soldiers.

Terminator-salvation 182

Marcus fights a Hydrobot

While she's captured, Marcus steals a bike from a soldier and uses it to jump the perimeter fence and takes one last look at Blair before running through the woods while under fire from John's helicopter. He is briefly incapacitated by John's assault, and is then severely burned when John launches a napalm attack. However, while searching the river for him, John's helicopter is attacked by Hydrobots and the pilots are killed. Marcus intervenes, however, and destroys the last Hydrobot, saving John's life.

"Kyle Reese is in Skynet. You do that; he's dead. I can get you in".
- Marcus Wright (to John Connor).
Trailer4-62

Marcus enters the Skynet Central

He is then held at gunpoint, as John threatens to shoot Marcus in the heart. However, he makes John an offer: allow him to go free, and he will get John into Skynet Central to save Kyle. John agrees, giving Marcus a comm device to contact him with once he's inside. Marcus promises to uphold his end of the bargain before swimming away as the Resistance arrives. He makes his way to the Skynet perimeter in San Francisco and confronts a turret, which positively identifies him and allows him safe passage.

Battledamagemarcus

Marcus in Skynet

Upon making his way into the core building of Skynet Central, Marcus interfaces with Skynet's database by synchronising with his CPU. He orders the turrets at the north entrance to stand down and then transmits Kyle's location to John, who is waiting on the outskirts of town. Afterward, Marcus researches his death and the activities of Dr. Serena Kogan prior to that, learning that she also succumbed to her cancer and that her work at Cyberdyne was adopted by the US Air force. The stress of maintaining the connection overwhelms Marcus, rendering him unconscious.

MarcusWright3

Marcus learns his purpose

He awakens in a diagnostic chair, his damaged flesh fully repaired and his clothes replaced with white garments. Upon happy to see he is "human" again, Skynet appears to him in the form of Serena on the screen and welcomes him "home", and then goes on to explain his purpose as the perfect infiltrator and his mission to find Kyle and lure John to his death, all the while showing him CCTV footage of John fighting the T-RIP, a prototype T-800. Sickened by his use as a pawn, Marcus tears the CPU from the back of his head and snarls at Skynet that he will save John.

Skynet offers him the chance to serve the machines, stating that he's no longer bound by the human condition, but Marcus proclaims that he is human and destroys the glass screen before hurrying to John's aid. He tracks John to the Terminator Factory beneath the building and finds him in the grip of the T-RIP. Marcus charged the machine and tackled it to the ground, allowing John to crawl away. The T-RIP throws him off and heads back to John as the skin on Marcus' left hand was burned away by molten steel.

MarcusWright2

Marcus confronts the T-RIP

Enraged, Marcus attacked the machine from behind and hurled it into a pylon. He then picked up a piece of metal railing and started beating the T-RIP with it, but it caught his wrist and kicked him away. Seeing John working on T-RIP power cells to make an explosive, Marcus decides to sacrifice himself by allowing the T-RIP to beat him repeatedly with a cinder block. It scans his body and discovers his heart, identifying it as a vulnerability, and punches him in the chest with all of its strength. The blow is sufficient to stop his heart, and Marcus is terminated.

Tsf39

Marcus rescues an injured John

However, Marcus is revived by John, who uses a power cable to give him an electric shock while the T-RIP is encased in metal. After reviving him, John is impaled through the chest with a steel bar by the T-RIP. Marcus jumps to his feet and breaks the steel bar, using half of it to decapitate the machine with ease. After terminating the T-RIP, Marcus carries John out of the factory. Then they meet Barnes, who helps Marcus carry John to the helicopter where he is reunited with Kyle and Star. As their helicopter flees the area, John detonates the explosive, destroying Skynet Central.

"Everyone deserves a second chance. This is mine".
- Marcus Wright (to Blair Williams).

Back at a Resistance outpost, Kate Connor tends to John's injuries and informs the others of his imminent death due to the damage suffered by his heart. Believing that John deserved a second chance, Marcus tells Kate to take his heart and give it to John to save his life. He says his final goodbyes to Kyle and Star, and kisses Blair before undergoing the operation. In his final moments, he looks to John, who acknowledges his trust and gratitude towards Marcus with a respectful nod.

By giving his life to save John, Marcus completed his original intention of donating himself to a better cause. Terminator Salvation

Resurrection and the Final Battle[]

"I remember the moment of my death".
- Marcus Wright (to John Connor).
Marcus explains his resurrection

Marcus convinces a wary John that he really is back from the dead

Marcus' heart was regenerated during the year when he was in his grave due to the unique feature of Hybrid's artificial tissue. Instead of death, he merely went into stasis after John and Kate buried him. Once his neural system and heart regenerated, he remained aware and partially conscious Terminator Salvation: The Final Battle issue 7 until Skynet sent the signal to wake him up as a last resort to fight against Thomas Parnell's attempt to take over the whole system of Skynet. Terminator Salvation: The Final Battle issue 6

He rendezvoused with John and provide support for the Resistance to assist Skynet in overthrowing the serial killer Thomas Parnell before Parnell could take over Skynet's mainframe, which would let to destruction of the world along with Skynet.


Post War[]

Marcus and John

Marcus' final scene with John as they destroy the time displacement device after sending the T-850 back to protect John and Kate in 2004

"So what'll it be? Trash compactor? Drawing and quartering with sixteen-wheelers?"
- Marcus Wright (to John Connor).

Following the conclusion of the Resistance and Skynet's last stands against the nightmare created by Thomas Parnell, John bargained with the supercomputer and offers a truce in which Skynet and humanity work together to create peace. Skynet agreeed and the war was finally over.

Marcus tracks down the Terminator that Parnell sent into the bowels of Skynet to murder John while John was synced to the endoskeleton developed to fight Parnell. After being offered several options for destroying the Terminator, John told Marcus to prepare it for reprogramming and then brought it with him to the last time displacement device in Skynet's headquarters.

Marcus and John use the time displacement device to send the reprogrammed Terminator back in time with Dr. Serena Kogan's help to protect John and Kate in 2004. When John asked Dr. Kogan why they could not program the machine to obey his commands rather than Kate's, she explains that she did not have any voice samples from him before the Terminator killed his physical body and it would not recognize his voice as it was now filtered through a bare endoskeleton.

After that, Marcus stood at John's side as they destroyed the time displacement device and effectively rendered themselves incapable of meddling with the past. Terminator Salvation: The Final Battle issue 12

Cyborg specification[]

Main article: Hybrid
Marcus endo

Early concept art of Marcus' endoskeleton

After signing his body over to Cyberdyne Systems, Marcus was entered into "Project Angel" and his body was used in their machinations. Using reverse-engineered Skynet technology[citation needed], a unique endoskeleton is built for him and designed to sustain his human components, such as his brain and heart. Marcus' brain was placed within the metal skull and his heart in the chest, protected by a chest plate that kept the entire abdomen armored. The enhanced heart provides blood and oxygen to the brain, aiding in the regeneration of his skin tissue, and is itself sustained by Marcus' cybernetic components. According to Skynet, the new Marcus could live for hundreds of years.[4]

Endoskeleton[]

Other than the armor along the sternum and stomach region, his endoskeleton lacks the protective casing found on other Terminator series. This leaves motors and sustaining cybernetics vulnerable to attack, though it is fairly obvious that certain Hybrids, such as Marcus Wright, weren't intended to be a combat model and his only real purposes are surveillance, infiltration and espionage. It could be said that he is a "sleeper agent" of sorts.

Abilities[]

Like other Terminators, Marcus possesses enhanced strength, many times that of the humans he resembles. His physical power is sufficient enough to engage a T-RIP in hand-to-hand combat, as he does when protecting John Connor.

Another ability that Marcus displays is capable of connecting with and manipulate the Skynet network (albeit to a limited degree also due to the fact that it causes pain while connecting continuously). While connected,he was able to shut down Skynet base's defense grid as well as accessing databases where he was able to look into news and documents archive.

Notes[]

At the small of his back, upon a plate just above his lower spine, Marcus has the signature M.

Notes[]

  • The packaging of Playmates action figure for Marcus Wright identifies him as a T-700 Terminator,[5] though this seems to be an error on their part as the official novelization does not identify him as such and stresses his unique design.
  • (Speculation) In The Terminator the police officer at the front desk of the police station after Kyle Reese has been arrested has a name tag with the last name of Wright. It is visible during the scene when the T-800 Terminator first enters the LAPD police station asking for Sarah Connor. It is not known whether the officer's name was a coincidence or a subtle clue to Marcus Wright's past (possibly his father). Either way, the possibility has not been discussed.
  • (Speculation) Through dialogue between Marcus and Skynet in the film, Marcus is identified as a "Infiltration Prototype, the only one of his kind", which might suggest that he is the Resistance Infiltrator Prototype Terminator, despite various toy lines referring to the T-800 as T-RIP, which has a different appearance than Marcus Wright's endoskeleton.

Behind the Scenes[]

  • Christian Bale was originally approached for the role of Marcus Wright, but he was more interested in John Connor instead.[6]
  • Daniel Day-Lewis and Josh Brolin were also considered for the part of Marcus before Sam Worthington was cast.[7][8]
  • In the original script (which was later rewritten) John Connor would die of his injuries in 2018, while Marcus Wright was to undergo a surgical procedure to have Connor's face put on his body in order to continue "the legend of John Connor".[9][6] However, before the principal photography had been finished, it became known that Salvation would not have two more sequels directed by McG in the same universe (unlike originally planned), so he decided to keep John alive in case the franchise would be revived by another director.[citation needed]
  • Terminator creator James Cameron personally recommended Sam Worthington, whom he directed in the film Avatar, to McG.
Marcusendo3

Marcus' chest plate (final version)

  • Marcus' endoskeleton seen in the movie differed from that of the original concept. The chest plate design seen in the interrogation scene was not the same and was open, allowing his heart to be visible. There also appeared to be glowing red lights within Marcus' chest that were not visible in the concept art. The design of his hands (most easily viewable in the final scene of the movie) also differs, with the concept art being much more like the T-RIP while Marcus' hands have their own unique design.
  • An early conceptual art of Marcus feature not only a brain and a heart, but also intestines.[10]

Merchandise[]

Playmates Toys[]

Hot Toys[]

Movie Masterpiece Series
  • Marcus Wright (12 inches high collectible figure, 2009)
    • Product code: MMS100
    • Accessories: battle damaged head, battle damaged left arm, harness, knife, shotgun, 3 sets of interchangeable hands, leather jacket, figure stand with Terminator Salvation logo and Marcus Wright nameplate
Marcus Wright at Hot Toys
This character article is a stub, it is missing information on toys or merchandise. You can help Terminator Wiki by expanding it.

DC Direct Busts[]

Appearances[]

References[]

  1. His brother's name is mentioned in newspaper articles during Marcus' infiltration of Skynet's database. His brother also shares the same first name as Marcus' portrayer; Sam Worthington.
  2. "'Terminator Salvation' Director Answers Fans' Burning Questions"
  3. Kyle would later use this trick during his time-travel mission to save Sarah Connor after procuring and sawing off a police shotgun.
  4. Terminator Salvation novel
  5. Playmates Toys figures and packaging - The Terminator Files
  6. 6.0 6.1 What went wrong with Terminator Salvation (featuring a review of the original script; Retrieved from Internet Archive)
  7. Mcg Wants Day-Lewis for Terminator
  8. Exclusive News : McG TALKS TERMINATOR: SALVATION AND HINTS AT A JOSH BROLIN-TYPE TO PLAY A NEW FOE
  9. 4 Big Lies: How to Beat a Twice-Dead Horse (featuring idea from the original script)
  10. Terminator Salvation The Official Souvenir Magazine
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