In just a few choice lines, J.K. Simmons’ Detective O’Brien—a newcomer to the Terminator franchise—speaks for all of the audience confusion surrounding the revamped, time-warp plot of Terminator Genisys. In the film’s latest TV spot, a frazzled O’Brien confronts Emilia Clarke’s Sarah Connor with the statement, “I know what’s going on here has to be really, really complicated.” O’Brien is no doubt referring to Sarah’s existence within a new timeline previously unknown to the series, before the events of the original 1984 film, and with two different terminators at play.
With Simmons’ recent Oscar win for his role in Whiplash, it is a no-brainer for Paramount to focus some of their promo on him and his comic-relief supporting character. The spot also features stars Jason Clarke (The Great Gatsby) as John Connor, Jai Courtney (Divergent) as his best friend Kyle Reese, Arnold Schwarzenegger returning as the original Terminator, and Lee Byung-hun (G.I. Joe: Retaliation) as his future state-of-the-art combatant. Directed by Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World), Terminator Genisys hits theaters July 1. Check out the official trailer here.