Key Takeaways
- Arnold Schwarzenegger is making his fiction debut with The Protector, a James Patterson collaboration based on a story he says he has carried for decades.
- The thriller follows Father Viktor Brennan, a Catholic priest and military veteran who risks his life—and exposes secrets from his past—while defending his Los Angeles parish from criminals.
- Little, Brown and Company will release the novel on Oct. 4, 2027, as Schwarzenegger also prepares to begin filming King Conan that year.
Arnold Schwarzenegger has played his share of action heroes, but now he's creating one of his own. The 79-year-old Hollywood legend is teaming up with bestselling author James Patterson on The Protector, a new thriller that marks Schwarzenegger's fiction debut. According to the former California governor, he’s been waiting decades to tell this story.
"This is a story I've had in my mind for decades," Schwarzenegger told People, which exclusively revealed the collaboration on Tuesday, Oct. 6. "And I finally found the man to turn my vision into words on a page."
The novel, scheduled for release on Oct. 4, 2027, through Little, Brown and Company, follows Father Viktor Brennan, a Catholic priest with a military background who faces criminals threatening his Los Angeles parish. But protecting his community comes at a cost, as Brennan's actions put his life in danger and begin exposing secrets about his past.
For Schwarzenegger, the character's religious background isn't an afterthought. Both he and Patterson grew up Catholic, and that shared experience helped shape the story's central character.
"I grew up Catholic, I went to church, went to Catholic school, I learned the bible and my catechism," Schwarzenegger explained. "And from those days I remember a phrase that is relevant today: A servant's heart. It means something larger than yourself."
Patterson, who has previously collaborated with Viola Davis and the late Dolly Parton, said Schwarzenegger already possesses the instincts of a storyteller.
"Arnold has had about five careers already. I figured novelist was overdue," Patterson joked. "You don't have to spend much time with Arnold to realize he's a storyteller. He knows what makes a hero interesting, what makes a villain dangerous, and how to keep an audience entertained."
And while the premise sounds like something straight out of Schwarzenegger's Hollywood playbook, Patterson stressed that the book's villains won't simply be obstacles for its protagonist to overcome.
"Our villains must be worthy opponents," he said. "The reader has to believe that the bad guy is fascinating enough, clever enough, and bad enough to defeat our hero."
Schwarzenegger has already established himself as a bestselling nonfiction author, with books including his autobiography Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story and the motivational guide Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life.
His latest publishing venture comes as he's continuing to expand his career well beyond the bodybuilding competitions and action franchises that made him famous.
The promotion followed a Newsweek essay in which he discussed adapting his fitness routine after multiple heart surgeries and a hip replacement.
"Movement stopped being about how my body looks a long time ago," he wrote. "Now I train so I can keep doing the things that matter."
The actor previously confirmed plans to begin filming in 2027, with Mission: Impossible filmmaker Christopher McQuarrie attached to write and direct.
