Warner Brothers Pictures

Someday, as the movie and television series predicts, the Terminator robots will become powerful enough to reduce the world to a pile of scrap metal and ash. But for now, they just need new owners. Variety reported that the Halcyon Company, which owns the rights to the “Terminator” movies and related assets, plans to sell the franchise at an auction in January as it goes through bankruptcy. When Halcyon purchased the “Terminator” property for $30 million in 2007, it became the latest in a series of owners that previously included the producer Gale Anne Hurd and the now-defunct production company Carolco. Though the latest entry in the film series, “Terminator: Salvation,” grossed $369 million worldwide on budget of $200 million, Halcyon filed suit in August against a hedge fund that had provided the money to buy the series rights, saying that a backer at the fund engaged in fraudulent dealings, and filed for Chapter 11 in September. The company’s founders, Derek Anderson and Victor Kubicek, told a bankruptcy court that the “Terminator” franchise was worth $70 million. In a satirical blog post, Joss Whedon, the creator of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” said he would pay $10,000 for the series, proposing such new ideas as a “Terminator of the Rings” fantasy film and a “Terminator” musical.