The testing will begin next next week, with Taylor seeing Game of Thrones’ Emilia Clarke, Brie Larson (The Spectacular Now) as well as another actress vying for the role of young Sarah Connor. Margot Robbie’s name has also surfaced in connection with the role.

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Connor was played by Linda Hamilton in the classic movies directed by James Cameron. The character is the future mother of John Connor, who grows up to be the leader of the human resistance in the war between humanity and cyborgs.

Names of those in contention began surfacing earlier this week.

Taylor will also be searching for his young Kyle Reese, the man who will father John. Those actor tests will occur at a later date but insiders say Garrett Hedlund (Tron: Legacy) is on the short list although sources say reports of Boyd Holbrook are off the mark.

Arnold Schwarzenegger will be back as a Terminator robot in a time-spanning story that sees him tasked to protect Sarah Connor as she grows up.

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But John Connor is also back and sources say Taylor's wish list starts with Tom Hardy (Christopher Nolan's memorable Bane in The Dark Knight Rises), although at this stage not even a meeting has taken place.

The latest Terminator will be the fifth installment of the storied movie series, which began in 1984 as an indie distributed by Orion. Schwarzenegger starred in all but the last one, 2009’s Terminator Salvation.

Annapurna acquired the rights to the franchise in May 2011, then teamed up with Skydance and Paramount in June, with plans to make a trilogy. The movie has a July 1, 2015 release date.

Taylor cut his teeth directing big-budget HBO shows such as Thrones and The Sopranos before making his feature debut with Thor: The Dark World, which is generating solid reviews and is expected to take no prisoners at this weekend’s box office.