Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Terminator Zero.
Terminator Zerotakes place in at least three timelines, all of which are ramifications of theTerminatormovie timelines.Terminator’s time travel rulescan be very confusing, especially because most of the movies afterTerminator 2: Judgment Daytried to do their own thing instead of being a direct sequel to their predecessor. Netflix’sTerminatoranime is the franchise’s second TV show, but unlikeThe Sarah Connor Chronicles, it focused on original characters rather than the iconic heroes from the films.
TheTerminatormovies and showshappen in several timelines, to the point it can be incredibly difficult to track where everything starts. TheTerminatorwas paradoxical by default, with Kyle Reese being John Connor’s father all along. Fortunately, not only doesTerminator Zerotry to explain how the franchise’s time travel works, but it also has a very consistent story that avoids major plot holes.InTerminator Zero, we see characters and events from more than one timeline, but they all get intertwined at some point.
Terminator Zero Cast & Character Guide
Terminator Zero, Netflix’s sci-fi action anime series set within the Terminator universe, introduces a new cast of characters to the franchise.
Terminator Zero’s Original Timeline
The Timeline Where Skynet Is The Only Threat
Terminator Zero’s original timelineis the one whereEiko gave birth to Malcolm in 2024, here a doomed future where Skynet was winning the war against what was left of humankind. This version of 2022 is virtually the same as the post-apocalyptic future shown in most of theTerminatormovies, with Skynet hunting down the remaining humans. Not much is shown from how the Resistance operates, and we never get to see John Connor. That said, Malcolm mentions how Skynet kept sending Terminators back in time to eliminate potential saviors.
This strongly suggested thatTerminator Zero’s first timeline – the one before Malcolm went back in time to launch Kokoro in the 1990s – was already a ramification of the movies’ timelines.Terminator Zerosuggests that there are countless timelines born from the events of the movies, as the Prophet says that, every time someone is sent to the past, a new ramification is created. Regardless, for practical purposes,Terminator Zero’s story chronologically begins in a future that isn’t much different from what we saw inTerminator 2: Judgment Day.The only difference is that Malcolm is aware of Skynet’s time-travel missions.
2003~2004
Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
2017
2020s
Terminator: Dark Fate
Malcolm Lee does not agree with the Resistance’s leaders and believes that humanity and Skynet are stuck on an endless cycle. He believes that the only thing that could stop, or at least could have stopped, Skynet is an artificial intelligence that is just as powerful. However, to avoid another A.I. going rogue and mimicking humanity’s worst destructive traits, Malcom created a robot that wouldn’t have a particular mission. This robot named themselves Misaki and served as the basis for Malcolm’s Kokoro project. Afterthe Resistance found out what Malcolm Lee was doing, they tried to shut down the project.
Malcolm killed the Resistance’s leaders and went back in time with Misaki to 1983. This is whenTerminator Zero’s original timeline deviates for the first time. As a time traveler born in 2024, Malcolm’s very presence in 1983 was enough to change history. He planned to continue developing Kokoro in Japan, where he would have enough resources and time to launch his A.I. just before Judgment Day. It’s important to note that,in Malcolm’s original timeline, Judgment Day happened on June 08, 2025, similar to what was supposed to happen inT2.
Terminator Zero’s Post-Kokoro Timeline
Malcolm’s A.I. Becomes A Threat As Big As Skynet
There is a very important timeline inTerminator Zeroof which we don’t see much – the one where Kokoro was activated normally and eventually became as much of a threat to the world as Skynet.This is the timeline in which Eiko was sent from 2022 to 1997to prevent Kokoro from ever being activated. In this timeline, Eiko does not become a mother, or at least not yet. She is chosen by the Resistance to be sent to 1997, similar to how Kyle Reese was picked to go back and protect Sarah Connor.
We can only assume that the Terminator and Eiko were sent from the same timeline since they arrived in the “same 1997.”
In this timeline, humanity had two faces not only Skynet but also Kokoro. Eiko had a brief conversation with the Prophet about how time travel works before entering the time machine. While a Terminator was sent to prevent her from doing so, Eiko was able to enter the machine and go back in time. However, she was not the only agent sent from this timeline to 1997. We discover at theend ofTerminator Zerothat an adult version of Kenta, Malcolm’s son, made a deal with Skynet and sent a Terminator to 1997 to stop Kokoro from being activated.
Terminator Zero’s Rewritten Timeline
Eiko And The Terminator Changed The Past
Terminator Zero’s final timeline is the one created as soon as Eiko and the Terminator arrived in 1997. Their respective missions to stop Malcolm Lee from launching Kokoro may have failed, but just the fact they interfered with the process was enough to change everything. Malcolm’s encounter with Eiko and the Terminator led him to reconsider things, although he still chose to activate Kokoro. However, unlike whatever happened in the first timeline where Kokoro was activated, Malcolm’s A.I. did not turn against humanity immediately.Kokoro is not sure about whether humans should be saved, but it protected Japan from Skynet’s attack.
Eiko and theTerminatormade some big changes to the timeline, including but not limited to interacting with Malcolm’s family and revealing they are from the future. Malcolm meeting an alternate version of his mother was not necessarily a paradox since this Eiko comes from a future where Malcolm had not been born yet. Regardless,Terminator Zeroends with Kenta deciding not to turn off Kokoro, even though his future version sent the Terminator to do so. With Malcolm dead,Kenta decided to trust his father’s creation and gave Kokoro a chance.
Terminator Zerohas an open ending and sets up a potential season 2.
Judgment Day still happened in this timeline on July 21, 2025. This is another confirmation thatTerminator Zerotakes place in different continuities from the movies, especiallyT2andTerminator 3: Rise of the Machines. In those films, Judgment Day was postponed from 1997 to 2004. Whether Kokoro will eventually try to destroy humanity like what happened in the previous timeline remains to be seen.Terminator Zerohas an open ending and sets up a potential season 2. Kokoro, Misaki, and Malcolm’s kids are now living in a post-Judgment Day world.
