From Terminator Wiki

The timeline in the Terminator universe is greatly complicated by time travel. Many events have been altered as to when, and/or how they happened (such as the creation of Skynet, and Judgment Day). There has also been a series of events that have been undone or postponed due to interference from the travels of the machines and the resistance back into the past, such as Miles Bennett Dyson's involvement in Skynet, or who constructed Skynet (From Cyberdyne Systems Corporation to Cyber Research Systems). Some events also seem to be a predestination paradox of sorts, where time travel seems to be required to maintain a timeline (rather than to alter it).

Understanding timelines and time-travel

To understand the timelines, one needs to have a basic understanding on how time-travel and timelines works. A good source is M.J. Young's analysis of the Terminator movies and his theories on time-traveling. Keep in mind that there are many theories when it comes to time-traveling. When it comes to understanding the timelines of the Terminator saga, some make their conclusion on theories in real life, while others let the movies speak for themselves or use theories from other movies.

The very fundamental understanding of time-travel is that something cannot happen before it happens. In Terminator 2: Judgment Day when the viewer learns that John Connor sends back a terminator to 1995 to protect himself, he first need to live out his life, without meeting this terminator, to the very point in the future where he send back the terminator. From this point, when the terminator arrives in 1995, a new timeline is created, a new future is set, and the previous timeline–from 1995 into the future–ceases to exist. However, the "future artifact(s)" (the reprogrammed terminator and anything else sent back from its time) still exists because its/their own past has not been changed.

This means that events evolving in time occurs on two axis: which are by the actual date and by timeline. Time move forward in a axis from left to right. If someone arrives from the future to the past, the timeline are shifted down, and the time starts moving from that point in the past, forward again, but on a different track. In the movie Back to the Future, Part II, Doc Brown explains that at some point, an event causes the timeline to skew to a new tangent and is then reality for all those who have not existed prior to the event causing the skew.

When does a timeline start?

When referring to the different timelines, like the Terminator 2: Judgment Day timeline, some may think it starts and stops at the same time as the movie does. It doesn't. A specific timeline starts from the point where something arrives from the future. It's also important to know that all information from the robot about events, belongs to the previous timeline , not the current timeline, in this case The Terminator-timeline. All actual events occurring after its arrival (which you see in the movies) belongs to a new timeline, the Terminator 2: Judgment Day-timeline.

The terminators or Kyle from the future know only what happened in the future from the previous timeline, they don't know whats going to happen in the current timeline. Information in a source may go back several timelines. Like in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines it is revealed that Kate and John, as children met and kissed the day before the T-800 in Terminator 2: Judgment Day arrived. So this is actually events going back to The Terminator-timeline.

It's not enough to know when something is sent from the future, you also have to know in which specific timeline it was sent from. In some cases a hidden timeline can exist between two timelines:

Let's use five mythical, apples that never rot or grow stale. Say "Person A" on 01/01/1950 sees the 5 apples and he eats one apple. This event occurs in 01/01/1950 until 01/01/2000 this action belongs to Timeline 1. Then, on 01/01/2000 (we assume he comes from Timeline 1) "Person B" goes back to 01/01/1960 and says to "Person A": "You ate one apple on 01/01/1950." Now, "Person B" also say that "Person C" was sent from 01/01/2000 to 01/01/1940. If "Person C" ate one of the five apples, his actions changed realits for "Person A" as well as "Person B." Before "Person B" says "Person C" ate an apple, we correctly assumed he came from Timeline 2a. Once he says "Person C" ate the apple, this statement becomes incorrect; he actually comes from Timeline 2b because "Person C" changed history for both "Person A" and "Person B." However, if "Person C" did not eat the apple on 01/01/1940, then it created Timeline 2a, in which case "Person A" saw the five apples on 01/01/1950 and ate one. We can resolve the timelines like this:

• Timeline 1: "Person A" saw the 5 apples on 01/01/1950 and ate one apple on the same date. On 01/01/2000, "Person C" goes back to 01/01/1940.
• Timeline 2a: "Person C" arrives from Timeline 1 and creates Timeline 2a by NOT eating an apple. On 01/01/1940, he sees the 5 apples and eats none. Thus, on 01/01/1950 "Person A" sees five apples and eats one. This timeline exists until the year 01/01/2000 when "Person B" goes back to 01/01/1960 to talk with "Person A."
• Timeline 2b: "Person C" arrives on 01/01/1940 from Timeline 1 and creates Timeline 2b. He sees the five apples and eats one; thus, "Person A" sees four apples and also eats one. When "Person B" arrives on 01/01/1960 to tell "Person A" he ate one apple on 01/01/1950 AND "Person C" ate one apple on 01/01/1940, it is the first mention "Person A" has ever heard of the apple eaten by "Person C." "Person A" now realizes there were originally five apples, not four. Also, "Person B" could have only heard of the fifth apple if he had been told of its existance by either "Person C" or another historical source; "Person A" could not have told him about it in this timeline.

Regarding the timelines below

To fully understand the story and the timelines in the Terminator saga, it is divided up in sections. It's not possible to combine and retain all information in one single timeline, because some events cease to exist in a later timeline. A new timeline for each source (in this case all movies and the TV series). In a given timeline, this is the only timeline that exist.

The sources we use, in this case movies, novels, comics, games, holds the information on when and the circumstances on the how a new timeline are created. Sometimes, like in the movies, it contains several time travels, like Kyle and the T-800 in The Terminator. This means there are actually two timelines in The Terminator, but on this page we try to make it simple, by letting it be one timeline.

Problems connecting the timelines

A simple overview of all timelines.

According to which theories and "truths" you accept by the creators of the whole Terminator saga there are certain timeline problems which occurs.

The plot in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines reveal dates which doesn't add up with the timeline in Terminator 2: Judgment day:

• We know Terminator 2: Judgment Day happened in 1995. In the opening narration (of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines) John Connor says that he was attacked by the T-1000 when he was 13 years old. This is an inconsistency. In Terminator 2: Judgment Day, John Connor was only 10 years old, as shown on the police computer when the T-1000 accesses it.
• In Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, Sarah Connors' grave site says she was born in 1959. In previous movies, her birth year had been given as 1965.

Prior to the release of the TV series The Sarah Connor Chronicles a interview with writer of the show, Josh Friedman were published.^[1]:

• Josh Friedman states that the TV series is set in an alternate timeline, which means the timeline of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines is not "ceasing" to exist, but it has never occurred from the TV series point of view. The pilot of the show begins four years after the events of Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

With some speculation, the two timelines from The Sarah Connor Chronicles and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines can be forged together. Be aware this is pure speculation:

• After the events of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines the war starts between humans and machines. John becomes leader of the resistance. Skynet manage somehow to make advanced robots earlier than the previous timeline (maybe from the remaining parts of the T-X and T-850), which lead to creating the "Cameron"-model and using it on the battlefield. After the previous attempts of killing Sarah and John Connor (T, T2 and T3), the war still goes on, and it's getting tighter. Skynet now use all resources on the battlefield. In a last effort they send a T-888 (an older model) back to 1999 to kill John Connor. As a counter attack, the Resistance are able to catch a terminator from the battlefield (a "Cameron"-model) and send it back to protect John Connor. Sending terminators back before the previous timeline results in "erasing" the Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines-timeline completely.

Timelines of the Terminator saga

Since the release of The Terminator the most highly debated issue is the predestination paradox of Kyle from the future impregnating Sarah and then become his father. Some just overlook this fact while other try to find solution to this paradox. Most fans want Kyle to always be John Connor's father, but in the original timeline it is possible that John Connor previously had another father, and later Kyle impregnated Sarah.

The original timeline

This is the timeline Kyle Reese remember and talk about in The Terminator, a unaltered timeline where no time travel has occurred. While in the movie, two time travelings already has occurred it is then considered altered and a new timeline has been created. Since there actually are two time travels in The Terminator, it also means there have to be two timelines before The Terminator; one where only the Terminator arrives, and the second where the Terminator and Kyle arrives; but it is only presented as one to keep it simple.

• 1959 or 1965
  • Sarah J. Connor is born.
• After 1984
  • John Connor is born with a unknown biological father.
  • John is raised by Sarah Connor, maybe even by a biological father.
• Unknown
  • Cyberdyne develops and create robots.
  • Skynet is built and becomes self-aware.
  • War breaks out and John Connor becomes the leader of the Resistance.
• 2008
  • Kyle Reese is born.
• 2021-2027
  • Kyle Reese fought with the 132nd under Perry.
• 2027-2029
  • Kyle Reese was assigned to Recon/Security under John Connor.
• 2029
  • Skynet decide to send a terminator Series T-800 back in time to kill Sarah.^[2]
  • John Connor decides to send back Kyle Reese, to 1984 protect Sarah.^[3]

The story continues in the The Terminator-timeline in 1984.

The following timelines (grouped by sources)

The following timelines are ordered chronologically, based on the movies, novels, comics and games. The main link would direct to the product itself, and the little (t) direct you to the timeline-page of the product.

• Cross-over comics are not included.
• The gray fields represent unknown events which has to happen in order to make the timelines before and after connect together.
• Bold text are the main source. Italic text is references in the source to another timeline.

Timeline leading to Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

Timeline leading to The Sarah Connor Chronicles

Year index through the saga

1956 1959 1965 1984 1985 1994 1995 1997 1999 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2013 2016 2021 2025 2027 2028 2029 2032 2041

References

1. ↑ "Exclusive Interview: Writer Josh Friedman fights the future for 'Terminator's' tv 'chronicles'"
2. ↑ The Terminator
3. ↑ The Terminator
4. ↑ Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, The T-850 states that Katherine Brewster sent back the terminator.
5. ↑ Episode 101: Pilot, Cameron states that someone are sent back to 1963 to build a weapon and a time machine.
6. ↑ Episode 102: Gnothi Seauton, Cameron states that there are Resistance fighters sent back to help them.
7. ↑ Episode 101: Pilot, Cameron are sent back to protect young John Connor.
8. ↑ Episode 101: Pilot, Cameron states that someone are sent back to 1963 to build a weapon and a time machine.

External source

• TerminatorFiles.com - Timelines
• TerminatorFiles.com - Chronology
• M.J. Young's theories on time-traveling
• M.J. Young's analysis of The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day
• M.J. Young's analysis of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines