If you’ve wondered why Arnold Schwarzenegger hasn’t had much face time on the big screen of late, the answer is simple: from 2003 until January of 2011, the bodybuilder-turned-action-film-star was busy with another job, namely running the state of California.

Now that his political career is behind him, Swarzenegger is once again back to making movies, and his first starring role will be in the upcoming film The Last Stand. PopWatch says it’s pretty formulaic stuff, with Swarzenegger playing the role of a border-town sheriff caught between a cartel kingpin and corrupt big city cops.

So what does the Governator’s return to the big screen have to do with cars? Not much, aside from the fact that he apparently drives a Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 in the film, while (according to GM Authority) his nemesis drives a Corvette ZR1. In other words, GM spent a bundle on product placement in the upcoming film.

We can almost accept the idea of a muscle-bound sheriff with an Austrian accent working in a middle-of-nowhere border town, but we’re having a harder time swallowing his choice of rides. We’ve been to enough border towns to know that most roads aren’t paved, and cars like the ZL1 and ZR1 lack the appeal of a good pickup truck, preferably with four-wheel-drive.

If it’s not too late for some editing before the film’s January release, may we suggest that GM use some CGI magic to substitute a Silverado pickup for the Camaro, and perhaps a Ford F-Series or RAM pickup for the antagonist’s Corvette?

Update: Here's the trailer for The Last Stand, complete with witty one-liners. lots of gun play, plenty of car crashes and more GM-manufactured vehicles than you've ever seen in a minute-and-a-half video.