How Terminator 2 Made Skynet's Creator The Most Sympathetic Character
Terminator 2: Judgment Day manages to make Miles Dyson, the man primarily responsible for creating Skynet, into its most sympathetic character. One would think that might be hard to do, seeing as how Skynet will inevitably turn on humanity and cause a nuclear holocaust. Yet, in fiction, there are few characters that can't be redeemed with enough good writing, even if in this particular case - thanks to the magic of time travel - he's being redeemed for actions he had yet to actually take.
After 1984's The Terminator set the stage, it was 1991's Terminator 2 that managed to fully realize James Cameron's epic sci-fi saga, arguably to the point where every bit of goodwill enjoyed by subsequent films in the franchise all traces back to the excellence of T2. While The Terminator used sci-fi trappings as the basis for what was essentially a slasher film, Terminator 2 evolved into an exceedingly enjoyable mix of sci-fi tropes, intense action, dramatic pathos, and indelible characters.
While Sarah Connor, John Connor, Arnold Schwarzenegger's reprogrammed T-800, and the sinister T-1000 are the most memorable of Terminator 2's characters, none of them are the most sympathetic cast member. That honor goes to Miles Bennett Dyson, the man most directly responsible for Skynet's existence.
While it's already pretty apparent from the brief introduction he gets in Terminator 2's theatrical cut before a crazed Sarah Connor busts into his house to try and kill him, an additional scene between Miles Dyson and his family in the extended cut really hammers it home: Dyson is a good person. While he will eventually create the microprocessor that leads directly to Skynet's rise, Dyson has nothing but good intentions, and only wants his tech to cause a beneficial, benevolent outcome for humanity.
Even after Sarah nearly murders him in front of his family, Dyson immediately understands and agrees with the idea that his life's work must be destroyed, once the T-800 proves what Sarah is saying about the future is true. Sure, they might have forced him to participate either way, but Dyson willingly comes along to Cyberdyne so that he can assist John, Sarah, and the T-800 with destroying what he's put so much time into developing. This is despite having already been shot by Sarah, and clearly still being rattled emotionally by the revelation of his original - albeit unintentional - role in the coming apocalypse.
What's more, once the time comes and he clearly won't make it out alive, Dyson signals to Sarah to escape before purposefully blowing himself and his work to smithereens. Miles Dyson is easily the most selfless, courageous, and likeable character in Terminator 2, helped along greatly by a terrific performance from prolific character actor Joe Morton. That's all despite the fact that without his work, Terminators would've never even been possible.