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Everyone's favorite Cimmerian swordsman was back in Conan The Destroyer. In this frantic action-adventure, Conan undertakes a quest for a magical key, guarded by a wizard (Mako), which will unlock a vast treasure of mysterious significance. Conan sets off on behalf of the wicked Queen Taramis (Sarah Douglas), who wants her niece, Princess Jehnna (Olivia D'Abo) to be the treasure's beneficiary. In return, the queen will use her magic powers to bring Valeria, Conan's dead love, back to life. The expedition includes the virgin princess; Malak (Tracey Walter), a comic sidekick who's none too eager to confront danger; Bombaata (Wilt Chamberlain), the queen's hired assassin; and Zula (Grace Jones), a scantily clad female warrior who becomes Conan's ally. The group faces a number of dangers, topped off by Conan's climactic battle with a hideous monster (designed by E.T. creator Carlo Rambaldi).
For this sequel to Conan The Barbarian, Arnold was called upon to display a stronger sense of humor than before, and an extra measure of charm-facets of is personality that had not been necessary in the saga's previous chapter. Director Richard Fleischer, who termed his star "the biggest and the best," opted for less gore and more physical action than in the original movie. Surprisingly, he wanted his star to display an even bigger physique than in the first film. Arnold recalled that "Fleischer pulled me aside and said,'This is a little difficult to say, but could you put on more muscles?" The actor laughed. "It was quite a shock to me, but it motivated me tremendously." Arnold went on to add 10 pounds, working out five hours a day for a full two months prior to the shoot. And it worked.
"People today want to see the her« look heroic," Arnold told Marquee, "not just act heroically. And I'm not against macho. I'm not against being a man. Americans went through a period where it was a bit negative to say you were rugged, macho. I never felt like that."
Still, the actor stressed Conan's vulnerability as an integral part of his portrayal. "If somebody would've asked me to play Hercules," he said, "I wouldn't have done it. Anyone who can push columns apart - you can't sympathize with a guy like that in a fight. Anyone who wipes out a temple, how can he have any trouble! But Conan is a human being: he's vulnerable, he's fallen in love, and mourns his beloved's death. And you get caught up in his fight scenes because they really are life and death."
Although the sequel didn't win better reviews than its predecessor, and grossed a more modest but still respectable $30 million, Arnold's reputation as a box office draw became further solidifyed. At the very least, Schwarzenegger was aware that he had grown considerably as a screen actor. Discussing his first appearance as Conan with the Cable Guide, he remarked, "I didn't fully rely on my acting. [Now] I had to make the next step and rely less on the body and more on the acting."
"I never had any difficulty with my leadinq ladies - as long as I stayed far enough from Grace Jones. She was hitting everybody with a stick over the head! She's wild. Fantastic. We admired each other right away, and she's become a good pal of mine." A.S.
