James Cameron’s Terminator is back with an unexpected spin-off: a Christmas special. Yes, the T-800 is donning Santa’s trademark red-and-white gear on a mission to infiltrate the holiday season, in a twisted dystopian riff on “Night Before Christmas.” It’s not what Terminator fans expected under the tree this year, but it might turn out to be a truly killer gift.
The Terminator: Santa Claus is Coming To Town #1 is written by Paulina Ganucheau, with art by Kendall Goode. It comes out December 3, making it a perfect stocking stuffer for Xmas.
The story is set to ask a question nobody knew they wanted the answer to: what if Santa was a Terminator?
Skynet Declares War On Christmas As The T-800 Infiltrates Santa’s Operation In A New “Terminator” Holiday Special
The Terminator: Santa Claus is Coming To Town #1, Written By Paulina Ganucheau; Art By Kendall Goode; Available December 3, 2025 From Dynamite Entertainment
Here is publisher Dynamite Entertainment’s full synopsis for The Terminator: Santa Claus is Coming To Town:
It’s Christmas Eve in Skynet’s apocalyptic future, and the atmosphere is pretty far from festive. But even in the blasted rubble of civilization, the surviving elders of the Resistance have fond memories of the holiday — and in between drone attacks, the younger members are eager to hear about them.
The story of the jolly old man in a red suit who infiltrated people’s perimeters is especially intriguing. How did he avoid the sentries and guard dogs? What kind of exfiltration technique was he using? And most important, did he have glowing red eyes that matched his fur-trimmed hat — like the hulking figure that’s now advancing on their position?
It’s a tongue-in-cheek twist on both Christmas lore and the Terminator premise. The question is how well the X-mas-themed issue will balance humor with the trademark action and horror that are the foundation of the franchise.
Terminator: Santa Claus is Coming To Town feels like a story that could really only happen in the comic medium. That makes it a novelty; the job of the book’s creative team is to elevate it into something more than that. Conceptually, it would be hard to make the book not fun, but some effort will have to go into making it awesome.
Setting it in the context of the franchise’s dystopian future, and making it a tall tale told by a Resistance member, are smart creative choices that will allow for some fanciful turns and departures from “reality.” As far as Terminator goes, it’s certainly going to be an entry in the franchise unlike any other.
Terminator’s X-Mas One-Shot Could Be The Start Of An Unexpected New Era For The Franchise
The Terminator x Christmas crossover offers ample opportunity for a more humorous take on the cinematic killer robots than fans are naturally used to. It also serves up a natural Jingle All the Way callback, if the T-800 Santa in any way resembles the OG Terminator Arnold Schwarzenegger. Overall, Terminator: Santa Claus is Coming To Town is a fun extension of the franchise.
If successful, expect it to pave the way for more holiday-themed Terminator one-shots. Once the door is open to the franchise taking itself less seriously, there is ton of potential for Terminator stories like Santa Claus is Coming To Town in the comics. And if that doesn’t pan out, it will be a quirky artifact of Terminator history.
Terminator: Santa Claus is Coming To Town will be available December 3, 2025 from Dynamite Entertainment.