Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Patterson team up on new book ‘The Protector’

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Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks to students after he received an honorary degree from the Hertie School on Sept. 17, 2024, in Berlin, Germany. The award is in honor of Schwarzenegger’s commitment to climate protection and civil society. (Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Arnold Schwarzenegger is teaming up with James Patterson.

The actor and former governor of California co-wrote an upcoming book titled The Protector with Patterson, one of the world’s most widely read authors. This marks Schwarzenegger’s debut as a novelist. It will be published by Little, Brown and Company on Oct. 4, 2027.

The new novel is set in modern-day Los Angeles. It follows a Catholic priest named Father Viktor Brennan, a military veteran who is new to a small parish plagued by violence.

“Father Brennan confronts the criminals threatening the community he’s vowed to protect, even as his courageous actions endanger his life, and reveal clues to his mysterious past,” according to an official description.

The character of Father Viktor Brennan takes inspiration from both Schwarzenegger and Patterson’s Catholic backgrounds.

“I grew up Catholic, I went to church, went to Catholic school, I learned the Bible and my catechisms,” Schwarzenegger said in a press release. “And from those days I remember a phrase that is relevant today: A servant’s heart. It means something larger than yourself. This is a story I’ve had in my mind for decades. And I finally found the man to turn my vision into words on a page.”

Patterson said that “Arnold has had about five careers already. I figured novelist was overdue.”

He continued, “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.”