Arnold Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-born American actor, politician, and the 38th Governor of California. His real name is Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger. After arriving in the United States in 1968, he fulfilled the American Dream by becoming a multiple-time bodybuilding champion, one of the highest-grossing leading actors of all time, and later a major political figure. He starred in globally successful films such as The Terminator, Total Recall, Predator, and Conan the Barbarian. Influenced by Richard Nixon and aligned with Republican values, Schwarzenegger eventually entered politics.

Arnold Schwarzenegger was born on July 30, 1947, in Thal, Styria, Austria. His father, Gustav Schwarzenegger, was a police chief who struggled with alcoholism and had joined the Nazi Party following the 1938 Anschluss. His mother, Aurelia Jadrny, was deeply devoted to Catholic traditions. Arnold grew up in a strict household and often described his relationship with his father as distant, stating, “There was a real wall between us.” Despite this, they enjoyed going to the cinema together, and Schwarzenegger recalled that the first film he ever saw was a John Wayne movie.

Growing up under modest economic conditions, Schwarzenegger was an energetic and cheerful student. One of his most vivid childhood memories was the day his family bought their first refrigerator. Feeling physically weak in his youth, he turned to bodybuilding, inspired by legendary figures such as Reg Park and Steve Reeves. In 1965, he joined the Austrian Army for mandatory military service and won the Junior Mr. Europe bodybuilding competition the same year.

At just twenty years old, Schwarzenegger won the Mr. Universe title in London in both 1967 and 1968, becoming the youngest competitor ever to do so. He arrived in the United States for the first time in September 1968 with very limited English skills and began training at Gold’s Gym in Santa Monica under the guidance of Joe Weider. In 1969, he met English teacher Barbara Outland Baker, with whom he would have a five-year relationship. That same year, he competed in Mr. Olympia but lost to three-time champion Sergio Oliva.

In 1970, Arnold Schwarzenegger finally won the Mr. Olympia title and continued winning the competition every year until 1975, when he announced his retirement from professional bodybuilding. His first film role came in Hercules in New York, directed by Arthur Allan Seidelman. Due to his limited English, his dialogue was dubbed, and producers temporarily credited him as “Arnold Strong.”

The transition from bodybuilding to acting was challenging, particularly following the deaths of his brother Meinhard in a car accident in 1971 and his father in 1972. However, Schwarzenegger persevered. In 1976, he appeared opposite Jeff Bridges in Stay Hungry, earning a Golden Globe Award for Best New Male Star. The following year, he starred in the documentary Pumping Iron, which chronicled his bodybuilding career and solidified his public image.

After appearing in television series such as The Streets of San Francisco, Schwarzenegger achieved cinematic immortality with Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer. In 1984, he reached global superstardom with James Cameron’s The Terminator, portraying the iconic half-human, half-machine assassin. His popularity continued through the 1980s with films such as Commando, Red Sonja, and the Academy Award–winning special-effects spectacle Predator.

The 1990s marked another peak with films like Total Recall, adapted from a story by Philip K. Dick, and the groundbreaking sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day, which became the most expensive and highest-grossing film of its time. Schwarzenegger successfully diversified into comedy with Twins, co-starring Danny DeVito, proving his versatility beyond action roles.

On April 26, 1986, Schwarzenegger married journalist Maria Shriver, a niece of John F. Kennedy. The couple had four children: Katherine Schwarzenegger, Christina Schwarzenegger, Patrick Schwarzenegger, and Christopher Schwarzenegger. Following personal controversies, the couple separated in 2011, and their divorce was finalized in 2017.

Deeply interested in politics from a young age, Schwarzenegger officially entered public life in 2003. On January 8, 2003, he was elected Governor of California, becoming the second foreign-born individual and the second film star after Ronald Reagan to hold the office. His candidacy announcement on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno was considered one of the most significant moments in television political history.

Filmography and Television Work

Actor:
2024 – Secret Level (King Aelstrom – Voice) (TV Series)
2024 – Agent State Farm (Short Film)
2021–2023 – Superhero Kindergarten (Arnold Armstrong – Voice) (TV Series)
2023 – The Elevator (Netflix Feature Film)
2023 – FUBAR (Luke Brunner) (TV Series)
2023 – Chief Action Officer (Netflix Feature Film)
2022 – World of Tanks: Holiday Ops (Short Film)
2022 – Little Demon (Voice) (TV Series)
2022 – BMW: Zeus and Hera (Zeus) (Short Film)
2020 – Predator: Hunting Grounds (Dutch – Voice) (Video Game)
2019 – Terminator: Dark Fate (The Terminator) (Feature Film)
2017 – Aftermath (Roman Melnyk) (Feature Film)
2016 – I Am Not Your Negro (Feature Film)
2016 – 478 (Viktor) (Feature Film)
2015 – Terminator Genisys (The Terminator) (Feature Film)
2015 – Maggie (Wade Vogel) (Feature Film)
2014 – Sabotage (John “Breacher” Wharton) (Feature Film)
2014 – The Expendables 3 (Trench Mauser) (Feature Film)
2013 – Escape Plan (Emil Rottmayer) (Feature Film)
2013 – The Last Stand (Ray Owens) (Feature Film)
2013 – Generation Iron (Himself) (Documentary)
2012 – The Expendables 2 (Trench Mauser) (Feature Film)
2011 – Revenge of the Electric Car (Himself) (Documentary)
2010 – The Expendables (Trench Mauser) (Feature Film)
2009 – Farrah’s Story (Himself) (TV Film)
2008 – Bigger Stronger Faster* (Himself) (Documentary)
2008 – Being W (Himself) (Documentary)
2007 – Darfur Now (Himself) (Documentary)
2005 – I Love the ’90s: Part Deux (Himself) (TV Series, Episode)
2004 – Around the World in 80 Days (Prince Hapi) (Feature Film)
2003 – Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (The Terminator) (Feature Film)
2002 – Collateral Damage (Gordy Brewer) (Feature Film)
2000 – The 6th Day (Adam Gibson) (Feature Film)
1999 – End of Days (Jericho Cane) (Feature Film)
1999 – WWE SmackDown! (Himself) (TV Series, 3 Episodes)
1998 – The 70th Annual Academy Awards (Himself) (TV Special)
1997 – Batman & Robin (Mr. Freeze / Dr. Victor Fries) (Feature Film)
1996 – Eraser (John Kruger) (Feature Film)
1996 – Jingle All the Way (Howard Langston) (Feature Film)
1994 – Junior (Dr. Alex Hesse) (Feature Film)
1994 – True Lies (Harry Tasker) (Feature Film)
1993 – Last Action Hero (Jack Slater) (Feature Film)
1992 – The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (Himself) (TV Program)
1991 – Terminator 2: Judgment Day (The Terminator) (Feature Film)
1990 – Total Recall (Douglas Quaid / Hauser) (Feature Film)
1990 – Kindergarten Cop (Detective John Kimble) (Feature Film)
1988 – Twins (Julius Benedict) (Feature Film)
1988 – Red Heat (Captain Ivan Danko) (Feature Film)
1987 – The Running Man (Ben Richards) (Feature Film)
1987 – Predator (Dutch Schaefer) (Feature Film)
1986 – Raw Deal (Mark Kaminsky) (Feature Film)
1985 – Red Sonja (Kalidor) (Feature Film)
1985 – Commando (John Matrix) (Feature Film)
1984 – The Terminator (The Terminator) (Feature Film)
1984 – Conan the Destroyer (Conan) (Feature Film)
1982 – Conan the Barbarian (Conan) (Feature Film)
1979 – The Villain (Handsome Stranger) (Feature Film)
1979 – Scavenger Hunt (Lars) (Feature Film)
1977 – Pumping Iron (Himself) (Documentary)
1976 – Stay Hungry (Joe Santo) (Feature Film)
1973 – The Long Goodbye (Uncredited) (Feature Film)
1970 – Hercules in New York (Hercules) (Feature Film)

Source: Biyografiler.com