Buffy creator bids for Terminator

Whedon's other credits include Buffy spin-off Angel

Buffy The Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon has offered a bid of just $10,000 (£6,057) to acquire the rights to the Terminator movie franchise.

In a light-hearted post on a website, Whedon suggested making a "Terminator of the Rings" and giving a lozenge to gravel-voiced actor Christian Bale.

But the screenwriter later said he "loves the franchise" and had "learned a lot from it".

The latest film, Terminator Salvation, earned $371m (£224m) around the world.

'Never hurts to ask'

The company that acquired the rights in 2007 for around $25m (£15.1m) has declared bankruptcy and is likely to auction off the franchise next year.

Whedon's ideas for rebooting the Terminator series included "more porn" and stopping the series from "getting less cool".

Christian Bale starred as John Conner in the most recent movie

In Terminator Of The Rings, he explained, the ring would have "no power" over the titular cyborg, allowing him to "carry it, and Frodo, and Sam" at the same time as fighting off orcs.

"This stuff just comes to me," he wrote on fan site Whedonesque, adding, "I will also offer $10,000 for the Lord of the Rings franchise".

Whedon wrapped up his "bid" to take the Terminator to the next stage by declaring: "End this bloody bidding war before it begins, and put the Terminator in the hands of someone who watched the first one more than any other movie in college, including Song of Norway."

In his subsequent interview with Entertainment Weekly, the film-maker denied his open letter was a "slam" on the movies, "even the later ones".

"Not since they auctioned off frames from The Little Mermaid have I wished I had more money this much. So you know what, it never hurts to ask.

"But mostly, it's just me being a dumb-ass, because that seems to be what I do best - I'm not even very good at that.

"So, no, I do not think they're going to call me and say 'Congratulations! We'll have that $10,000 now,'" he added.

The first Terminator movie, which starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, was released in 1984.

Two sequels were released in 1991 and 2003 before Terminator Salvation came to cinemas earlier this year.