LOS ANGELES -- With apologies to Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Terminator films have always been about women flexing their muscle.

Linda Hamilton (T1 and T2), Claire Danes (T3), even Lena Headey and Summer Glau on TV's now-defunct The Sarah Connor Chronicles -- all iron-willed, machine-gun-toting and at least as resilient as the metallic alloy of a cyborg's exo-skeleton.

So when it came time to cast Terminator Salvation, the newest sequel about what happens when your BlackBerry decides to kill you, director McG knew that -- even if he couldn't recruit California's governor to join him -- he had a tough-chick quotient to fill.

"I'm a big fan of strong female characters as is (Terminator creator and Aliens director) Jim Cameron," he says. "The strongest female characters in history have got to be Ripley, in the Alien pictures, and Sarah Connor."

Trouble was, by the time of the sequel's post-apocalyptic future, Hamilton's Sarah Connor is long dead (although the actress lends her voice via taped messages to her son, John, played by Christian Bale).

So Salvation introduces two fresh female faces to the terminator-ravaged fray: Bryce Dallas Howard and Moon Bloodgood. The former takes over the role of Kate Connor from Danes, while the latter's character, a resistance fighter pilot named Blair Williams, is an addition to the mythos.

"Moon to me is the third leg of that triangle of Ripley and Sarah Connor," McG explains.

"Moon can damn well do one-handed pull-ups on a psychiatric bed, turned upside down, and that's following in the footsteps of Sarah Connor. She is a survivor and she doesn't have a rich uncle in Hollywood. She's got to pick herself up by her own boot straps and make it happen, and I responded to that. I said, 'I believe you would be the last woman standing, so come be a part of this.' "

Which suited tom-boy and science-fiction fan Bloodgood just fine.

"I love sci-fi. I like Star Trek. I've never been somebody that liked romantic comedies," she says. "I always wanted to see movies that were about the future, like Blade Runner. I liked Arnold, but my favourite (part of Terminator) was always the story of John and Sarah Connor, who was a female with those bad-ass biceps. She was so tough."

Conversely, Howard's Kate Connor is the movie's maternal figure and care-giver -- a nurse and confidante to her T-800-busting prophet husband.

The Michelle Obama of the resistance? Sounds that way.

"Bryce brings a First Lady elegance that I believe, all the way. If you look at Carla Bruni in France or you look at Hillary Clinton or Michelle Obama -- these are very elegant people that I would, personally, believe in," McG says.

"I took one look at Bryce, and I know a thing or two about her upbringing and who she is as a young lady, and I thought that she was effectively a wonderful First Lady choice for this world."

Howard, for the uninitiated, is Hollywood royalty to begin with: the daughter of director and actor Ron Howard. In recent years, she's been winnowing out a place for herself in the industry with roles in The Village, Lady in the Water and Spider-Man 3.

She also says she was a fan of past Terminators, even if she was decidedly girly-girly about it.

"I had no action figures or models, but I always watched this franchise. This is such an incredible moment to appreciate the franchise and be a fan of it, and then to know that you're going to be a part of the next film is amazing.

"It was an awesome, exhilarating moment."

THE TOUGHEST MOVIE CHICKS

Forget Sarah Connor. The Terminator should just cross to the other side of the street when he sees these tough chicks coming:

Ripley (Sigourney Weaver)

Introduced in: Alien (1979)

Pet peeves: Chest-bursting, parasitic extraterrestrial xenomorphs; Paul Reiser. (Yes, those are two different things.)

Weapons of choice: Flame-throwers; assault rifles; airlocks; harsh language.

Last seen: Looking across at Winona Ryder and wondering how it all went so horribly wrong.

Selene (Kate Beckinsale)

Introduced in: Underworld (2003)

Pet peeves: Werewolves (sorry -- Lycans); Bill Nighy; chafing.

Weapons of choice: Pistols; bad dialogue; a straight face; slow-motion.

Last seen: Wondering who let the guy from Felicity onto the set.

Lara Croft (Angelina Jolie)

Introduced in: Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001)

Pet peeves: Secret societies; long pants; authentic British accents.

Weapons of choice: Enormous guns.

Last seen: In 2003's Cradle of Life. If you watched the movie, you know why nobody's seen her since.

O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Lui)

Introduced in: Kill Bill , Volumes 1 and 2 (2004)

Pet peeves: Yakuza lords who question her ethnic heritage; waking up to find herself in an anime.

Weapons of choice: A samurai sword; perpetual cuteness.

Last seen: Performing decapitations in the board room. (At last: a heroine for the global recession!)

Alice (Milla Jovovich)

Introduced in: Resident Evil (2002)

Pet peeves: Zombies; the Umbrella corporation; the end of the world.

Weapons of choice: Anything that makes a sound that ends with an exclamation mark: Boom! Pow! Bam! Crash! Zap! (Okay, maybe not Zap!)

Last seen: Killing something while scantily clad. What -- you were expecting Jane Austen?

More Artists