Hugo Weaving, known for playing Agent Smith in the Matrix trilogy, says he won’t reprise his role in the upcoming fourth Matrix film.
Speaking to Time Out (via /Film), Weaving said director Lana Wachowski is “pushing on ahead” without him due to scheduling issues with The Visit – an upcoming play Weaving is starring in.
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“It’s unfortunate but actually I had this offer [for “The Visit”] and then the offer came from “The Matrix”, so I knew it was happening but I didn’t have dates. I thought [I] could do both and it took eight weeks to work out that the dates would work – I held off on accepting [a role in “The Visit” during that time]. I was in touch with [director] Lana Wachowski, but in the end she decided that the dates weren’t going to work.”
We’ll have to wait and see how The Matrix 4 handles Weaving’s absence. For now, we know that Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss are returning for The Matrix 4, and they’ll be joined by Mindhunter star Jonathan Groff.
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With a release date of May 21, 2021, The Matrix 4 is set to debut on the same day as John Wick 4 – another Keanu Reeves film.
For more, read about what themes from The Matrix trilogy might carry over to The Matrix 4.
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Logan Plant is a news writer for IGN, and the Production Assistant for Nintendo Voice Chat, IGN’s weekly Nintendo show. You can find him on Twitter at @LoganJPlant.
Source: IGN.com The Matrix 4: Hugo Weaving Not Returning as Agent Smith