Warning: Major spoilers for FUBAR season 2 below!The return of Tom Arnold to FUBAR season 2 fixes the weirdest mistake the Arnold Schwarzenegger action-comedy made the first year. FUBAR season 1 was essentially a True Lies sequel, with the premise involving Schwarzenegger’s CIA agent Luke Brunner discovering his daughter was in the same line of work. The new series picks up months after FUBAR’s season 1 finale, where Luke and his family had to go into hiding when his identity was leaked. Most of the core cast has returned, including Tom Arnold’s delightfully sadistic interrogator Norm.
Tom Arnold’s appearance was fitting since he was Arnie’s co-star in James Cameron action movie True Lies. The two Arnolds shared shockingly good chemistry in this 1994 spy thriller, and one of the biggest disappointments about True Lies 2 not happening is that they didn’t get to reunite on the big screen. It appeared FUBAR was setting up this reunion when Tom Arnold was cast, but for whatever reason, he and Schwarzenegger didn’t have any screentime together.
FUBAR Season 2 Finally Reunites Arnold Schwarzenegger With True Lies Co-Star Tom Arnold
FUBAR is the True Lies reunion the world has been waiting for
FUBAR season 2 episode 4 “Astro-Not” makes up for the first season’s bizarre oversight by finally reuniting the two Arnolds. This episode sees Luke and his team call upon Norm’s expertise to get information out of rogue MI6 agent Chips (Guy Burnet, Hollyoaks). The key issue there is that Norm has already brutally interrogated Chips in the past, but got no intel out of him. Despite this, the two are surprisingly chummy – much to the bemusement of Luke and his daughter Emma (Monica Barbaro).
This is one of the funnier passages of FUBAR season 2, and while Norm doesn’t get much screentime, he and Arnie do get to banter with each other again. Tom Arnold has been a highlight in both seasons of FUBAR, to the point where it’s a surprise they haven’t made Norm more a supporting character. If anything, the show could do with losing a couple of extraneous side characters, so if FUBAR season 3 moves ahead, the showrunners should consider making room for Norm.
If FUBAR really wants to commit to the True Lies homage, a third season should bring in Jamie Lee Curtis as a guest star…
The finale of FUBAR season 3 suggests there will be some changes to the line-up, which would be a nice opportunity to give Tom Arnold a bigger role. If the show really wants to commit to the True Lies homage, a third season could bring in Jamie Lee Curtis as a guest star, either as a villain or another former flame from Luke’s past.
FUBAR Season 1 Made A Big Mistake By Not Reuniting The Two Arnolds
FUBAR missed an obvious target
FUBAR season 1 was by no means flawless, as its 50% score on Rotten Tomatoes will attest. It was common for gags to land with resounding thuds, and the action sequences were impacted by obvious CGI. Still, the first season was a fun time with the right mindset and one that weaponized nostalgia for Schwarzenegger’s past movies. That makes the decision not to include a scene between him and Tom Arnold all the more baffling in hindsight.
A True Lies TV series also arrived in 2023, with Tom Arnold making a guest appearance
Granted, the story has their characters split into different storylines, but surely part of the appeal of bringing Tom Arnold onboard would have been to pair him with Arnie again. Perhaps there were production or scheduling reasons that they didn’t share a scene, but it was an oversight either way. Norman’s FUBAR return is audience feedback in action, though again, the episode could have benefited from giving him a bigger role in the story.
Related
FUBAR Season 2 Cast & Returning Character Guide
Most of the core cast of Netflix’s FUBAR returns for the second season, with the Arnold Schwarzenegger action comedy introducing some newcomers too.
Assuming a third season of FUBAR moves ahead, there could be some big changes. The finale ends with Luke retiring, so there’s a small chance that Schwarzenegger himself might take more of a backseat and leave the action to the other characters. This doesn’t feel too likely, given that FUBAR is sold on his persona, but the star might be planning a lighter workload next time around. If so, maybe Luke and Norm could go fishing together, and really up the two Arnolds’ screentime together.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
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FUBAR – Season 2
- Release Date
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June 12, 2025
- Network
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Netflix
- Episodes
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8
