Just when you thought the machine uprising was over, The Matrix franchise is returning to theaters. The Matrix 4 is in the works, and everyone from director Lana Wachowski to star Keanu Reeves is returning for the sequel.
Before you don your shades and trench coat and head to the theater, here’s everything we know about The Matrix 4 so far, from the release date to the confirmed cast to what little has been revealed about the plot.
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The Matrix 4 Cast and Crew
While the first three Matrix movies were directed by the Wachowski sisters, only Lana Wachowski is returning for the latest sequel. She’s also producing the film and co-writing the screenplay alongside David Mitchell and Aleksandar Hemon, her co-writers from the Netflix series Sense8. Other Matrix veterans on the crew include producer Grant Hill and storyboard artists Geof Darrow and Steve Skroce.
Several actors from the original trilogy will return for The Matrix 4. Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss will reprise their starring roles as Neo and Trinity, respectively. This is despite the fact that both characters died during the events of The Matrix Revolutions. Jada Pinkett Smith is reportedly in talks to reprise her role as Niobe, and Lambert Wilson has confirmed he’s in talks to again play the villainous Merovingian, schedule permitting.
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Not every main actor from the original trilogy is returning, however. There’s been no word on Laurence Fishburne returning as Morpheus, even though the producers are said to be casting younger versions of both Neo and Morpheus. Wachowski approached Hugo Weaving about coming back as Agent Smith, but due to Weaving’s schedule conflicts, Smith has since been written out of the story.
The Matrix 4 will introduce a number of new actors alongside these returning favorites, though no roles have been confirmed yet. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Aquaman) and Jessica Henwick (Marvel’s Iron Fist) have been cast in leading roles, while Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother) has also been confirmed to appear. The cast also reportedly includes Jonathan Groff (Mindhunter), Priyanka Chopra Jonas (Quantico) and Sense8 actors Toby Onwumere, Max Riemelt and Eréndira Ibarra.
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Earlier rumors pointed to Creed’s Michael B. Jordan starring in a Matrix reboot or a prequel focused on a younger Morpheus. Whether or not there was any truth to those rumors, Jordan doesn’t appear to be involved with The Matrix 4.
Release Date
Though its existence was only confirmed in August 2019, The Matrix 4 already has an official release date. It’s even arriving sooner than you might think. The Matrix 4 is set to hit theaters on May 21, 2021.
Amusingly enough, that happens to be the release date of another action movie sequel starring Keanu Reeves. John Wick: Chapter 4 is debuting the same day, leading many fans to demand May 21 be officially declared Keanu Day. Most likely one or the other of these films will shift release dates before 2021, but it does speak to Reeves’ resurgent popularity lately.
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Is it Officially Called The Matrix 4?
Currently, the fourth Matrix movie has no official title and is being referred to simply as The Matrix 4. We assume Warners will reveal a different title for the sequel down the road. Neither of the previous Matrix sequels relied on numbering (with part 2 being The Matrix Reloaded and part 3 The Matrix Revolutions), so presumably the fourth movie will follow a similar naming scheme. The Matrix Reborn, maybe?
Is There a Matrix 4 Trailer?
There’s currently no trailer or even a teaser poster for The Matrix 4. With filming set to begin in San Francisco in February 2020, it’s likely going to be a while before fans see any official glimpses of the new movie. We’d expect Summer 2020 to be the earliest the studio will release any footage, with a teaser trailer possibly debuting at San Diego Comic-Con or attached to a major summer movie like Wonder Woman 1984 or Tenet.
However, it could just as easily be late 2020 before we get our first look at The Matrix 4. Warners didn’t release the first Wonder Woman 1984 trailer until December 2019, barely half a year before that film’s release date. They may opt to keep The Matrix 4 under wraps for as long as possible.
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What is the Plot of The Matrix 4?
Very little is known about the plot of The Matrix 4, other than that it takes place after the events of The Matrix Revolutions. Revolutions ended with a fragile new peace being established between humanity and its robot overlords, so presumably The Matrix 4 will reveal whether that peace held or if a new war has broken out between man and machine.
Given that Reeves is back, it’s safe to assume Neo will somehow return despite sacrificing his life to stop Agent Smith’s takeover of the Matrix. The same goes for Moss’ Trinity, who also died shortly before the final battle between Neo and Smith. It could be that Neo and Trinity left their physical bodies behind and now live on solely through The Matrix, with allies like Niobe plugging back into the Matrix to track them down. The fact that Weaving was approached to return as Agent Smith suggests the Agents will continue to serve as antagonists and enforcers of the machine regime.
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The absence of Fishburne’s Morpheus raises questions about that character’s fate, particularly in light of rumors about Warner Bros. casting a younger Morpheus. Will the character be killed off between movies, a la Marcus Chong’s Tank? And will the young Morpheus/Neo scenes be flashbacks, or will those characters somehow be rebooted in a new version of the Matrix?
Interestingly, the now defunct MMORPG The Matrix Online previously explored the fallout of Revolutions. Given that the Wachowskis endorsed the game’s storyline, The Matrix 4 could wind up treating The Matrix Online as official series canon. This would explain Morpheus’ absence, as he was assassinated during one of the first major story events in the game. The Matrix Online introduced other plot points that could be used in the new movie, such as fragments of Neo’s code being scattered across the system and a civil war erupting between Zion loyalists and a group of humans aligned with the machines.
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The Matrix 4 Development Details
It’s been nearly two decades since the original Matrix trilogy wrapped up, and the Internet has been inundated with rumors of reboots, prequels, sequels and spinoffs ever since. We cover the full history of those Matrix rumors here, but here’s a quick breakdown of the news surrounding The Matrix 4 specifically:
- February 2014 – Latino Review reports the Wachowskis have turned in a story treatment for a second Matrix trilogy.
- February 2015 – Lilly Wachowski vehemently denies rumors of a new trilogy while promoting Jupiter Ascending, calling it “a particularly repelling idea” in an interview with The Times Colonist.
- October 2017 – When asked about the sequel rumors during a NYCC panel, Reeves tells the panel, “I don’t know anything about it.“
- May 2019 – John Wick 3 director Chad Stahelski stokes rumors the Wachowskis are returning for a fourth movie, though a representative later clarifies Stahelski was referring to “a hypothetical scenario.”
- June 2019 – Discussing Film adds to growing rumors about The Matrix 4 with a report claiming both Wachowskis are returning to direct The Matrix 4.
- August 2019 – Following a scoop by Variety, The Matrix 4 is confirmed by Warners, with Lana Wachowski directing and Reeves and Moss reprising their roles.
- October 2019 – Rumors surface that the studio is casting actors to play younger versions of Neo and Morpheus. Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Neil Patrick Harris and Jessica Henwick join the cast, while Jada Pinkett Smith is reported to be in talks to return.
- December 2019 – Jonathan Groff is reported to be in talks for an unknown role. Warners reveals a May 21, 2021 release date.
- January 2020 – Hugo Weaving confirms he won’t be returning, but Priyanka Chopra Jonas is reported to be in final talks with Warner Bros.
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Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
Source: IGN.com The Matrix 4: Everything We Know About the Sequel