TERMINATOR HEADS FOR THEME PARK.

Byline: Dave McNary Daily News Staff Writer

Universal Studios Hollywood announced Tuesday that it has joined forces with director James Cameron to open a Terminator 2 3-D attraction at the theme park this spring.

The project, a 12-minute sequel to Cameron's robots-from-the-future blockbuster with live-action motorcycle stunts and three 50-foot-wide screens, will be similar to the highly successful Terminator 2 attraction that opened two years ago at Universal's theme park in Orlando, Fla. Construction recently started on the park's western side on the site of the Family Challenge theater.

Universal, which faces the task of distinguishing itself from family-friendly Disney parks, noted that a recent Fodor's travel guide called the Florida ``T2'' the world's best theme-park attraction.

``The T2 in Florida is a fabulous convergence of digital film, robotics and live action,'' said Tim O'Brien, Southeast editor at Amusement Business magazine. ``It's the first time these elements have been put together and it works very well. They even have a character saying, I told you I'd be back.''

``T2 3-D,'' using technology developed at Cameron's Digital Domain effects studio, will be the 18th attraction at the California park and will seat 700 people at once. Cameron shot the footage over two weeks at a deserted steel mill in Desert Center in Riverside County.

O'Brien said the attraction has helped boost attendance at the Florida theme park, which hit 8.9 million last year, an impressive tally but still lagging each of the three Disney theme parks in Florida and Disneyland. Universal Studios Hollywood followed with 5.9 million, the magazine estimated.

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PHOTO (Color) Universal Studios Hollywood and James Cameron, ``Terminator'' films director, have teamed up for a Terminator 2 3-D attraction.