Arnold Schwarzenegger Posits The Media “Slaughtered” ‘Last Action Hero’ Because He Campaigned For President George H.W. Bush Against Bill Clinton

Arnold Schwarzenegger as Jack Slater in Last Action Hero (1993), Columbia Pictures

Former Republican Governor of California and the star of numerous action films including Terminator and Kindergarten Cop Arnold Schwarzenegger recently posited that his film Last Action Hero was slaughtered by the media due to his politics.

Fubar. Arnold Schwarzenegger as Luke Brunner in episode 106 of Fubar. Cr. Christos Kalohoridis/Netflix © 2023

In a long-ranging interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Schwarzenegger was asked what his most underrated role was.

He answered, “Last Action Hero. It was slaughtered before anybody saw it. It was literally a political attack because I was campaigning for [former President George H.W. Bush], but Bill Clinton won.”

Last Action Hero was great — it wasn’t fantastic, but it was underrated. Now, more and more people are seeing it and saying, ‘I love this movie,'” he continued.

He went on to reveal, “I’m getting the residual checks, so I know it’s true. It made money — that’s always an important thing for me. Because it’s show business, right?”

Arnold Schwarzenegger stars in Skydance Productions and Paramount Pictures’ “TERMINATOR: DARK FATE.”

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According to The-Numbers, Last Action Hero, which hit theaters in 1993, brought in $50 million at the domestic box office and another $87.2 million at the international box office for a worldwide gross of $137.2 million.

For comparison, the film performed worse than Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania adjusting for inflation. Looking at the inflation numbers the film only grossed $126. 2 million at the domestic box office and another $220.3 million internationally for a global gross of $346.5 million.

Quantumania grossed $214.1 million domestically and another $249.1 million internationally for a global gross of $463.3 million. Quantumania lost money for The Walt Disney Company and Marvel Studios due to its production budget of $200 million. Last Action Hero had an even higher production budget of $214.5 million adjusting for inflation.

Fubar. (L to R) Monica Barbaro as Emma Brunner, Jay Baruchel as Carter Perlmutter, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Luke Brunner in episode 101 of Fubar. Cr. Amanda Matlovich/Netflix © 2023

Rotten Tomatoes notes the film has a rotten 40% Tomatometer score from critics with an average rating of 5 out of 10.

Last Action Hero Rotten Tomatoes Score

On Metacritic the film has a Metascore from critics of 44 based on 19 reviews.

Last Action Hero Metacritic score

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Schwarzenegger next stars as Luke Brunner in the upcoming TV series FUBAR on Netflix. The official description reads, “A CIA Operative on the verge of retirement discovers a family secret. Forced to go back into the field for one last job, the series tackles universal family dynamics set against a global backdrop of spies, action and humor.”

It debuts on the streaming platform on May 25th.

Fubar. Arnold Schwarzenegger as Luke Brunner in episode 101 of Fubar. Cr. Christos Kalohoridis/Netflix © 2023

What do you make of Schwarzenegger’s comments about Last Action Hero?

NEXT: Arnold Schwarzenegger Issues Half-Hearted Apology For Telling Americans “Screw Your Freedom” In Support Of COVID-19 Restrictions: “I Should Have Communicated Better”

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