Keanu Reeves' Head-Turning Comment On The Script For Matrix 4
It's been 16 years since Keanu Reeves put down his leather duster and sunglasses as he walked away from his role as Neo in The Matrix trilogy. But now that he's returning to the familiar dystopian universe to become "The One" once again in The Matrix 4, he's sharing his thoughts on the new film.
Chatting with Entertainment Tonight, Reeves spoke up about the script for the fourth Matrix film, which was officially announced in August 2019. The actor, who will join original Matrix creator Lana Wachowski and co-star Carrie-Anne Moss for the new movie, made a head-turning comment about the story that's sure to make Matrix fans sit up in their seats.
As Reeves walked the red carpet for Semper Fi, the upcoming British drama film produced by his sister Karina Miller, he told ET that the script for The Matrix 4 is "very ambitious [...] as it should be!" The actor added that he's keen to bring his character Neo, the computer-programmer-slash-hacker who helps free humanity from an artificial reality known as the Matrix, for the new flick.
Admittedly, there isn't a lot to go on with Reeves' comments, but it's still pretty thrilling to hear that he's getting pumped up about returning to one of his many career-defining roles. Plus, "ambitious" is definitely an interesting word considering that the original Matrix trilogy changed the sci-fi movie genre, ultimately defining an entire era of action sequences, special effects, and world-building.
Reeves is far from the only big name in Hollywood whose eagerness to get started on The Matrix 4 is sky-high. Warner Bros. chairman Toby Emmerich said at the time news of The Matrix 4 first dropped that studio brass "could not be more excited to be re-entering the Matrix" with returning director Lana Wachowski, whom he praised as a "true visionary."
Though very little about what Wachowski's script for The Matrix 4 really entails has been announced as of now, beyond the fact that it's "ambitious" according to Reeves, we do know that the film is set to push even more boundaries and deliver insightful, incisive, and interesting commentary on our current society. As Wachowski noted when announcing The Matrix 4, the ideas she and her sister Lilly, who co-wrote and directed the Matrix trilogy, explored 20 years ago with the first film are "even more relevant now."
The end of the Matrix trilogy and the beginning of The Matrix 4
When the first Matrix film hit theaters in 1999, audiences were blown away by the extraordinarily intricate world concocted by the Wachowski sisters, which presented a reality that wasn't actually real. The world everyone thought they we're living in was revealed to be a computer simulation created by machines that humans tried to overpower; everything in this fake "reality" is created for humans by those computers. When he's given the chance to escape the Matrix and learn the truth, Neo sees the dilapidated, dark real world where the sun is blotted out and humans must survive by hiding from the machines both inside and outside of the Matrix itself. In the end, it turns out Neo is the prophesied "One" who can actually control the Matrix while moving within the simulation, and is the only person who has any hope of stopping the machines in their tracks.
After The Matrix: Reloaded was released in 2003, the trilogy definitely seemed like it came to a definitive end with The Matrix: Revolutions, which hit theaters later that same year. At the conclusion of Revolutions, Neo sacrifices himself to save humanity — by letting himself be destroyed, Neo triggers the death of Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving), a sentient program of the Matrix, as part of a peace treaty that he made in order to create a new and improved Matrix.
Neo isn't the only character to dramatically perish in Revolutions. Skilled hacker Trinity (Moss) also died in her attempt to defeat the machines running the Matrix. Though it was suggested that Neo would be able to return somehow, Trinity's death was pretty final, separating the two lovers once and for all.
With all that said, it seems impossible that Reeves, let alone Fishburne or Moss, could possibly return for a fourth installment. But we know that both Reeves and Moss are firmly aboard The Matrix 4 and will reprise their roles as characters who were last seen dying, so clearly the minds behind the new film found a way to resurrect Neo and Trinity. It remains to be seen just how these beloved characters will return to the big screen, though we wouldn't rule out the possibility of The Matrix 4 starting by revealing that Neo and Trinity's consciousnesses are still alive inside a new Matrix, then move to follow the complicated peace treaty between humans and machines.
Reeves' recent career renaissance
Reeves has certainly kept busy in the years since he last played Neo. After appearing in romantic comedies like Something's Gotta Give, The Lake House, and Sweet November (the latter two of which were critically panned) as well as Richard Linklater's adaptation of A Scanner Darkly, he produced a documentary entitled Side by Side (about the use of photo-chemical film in filmmaking) and earned his first directing credit on Man of Tai Chi.
However, thanks to two stuntmen from the original Matrix films, Reeves returned to his action roots in 2014 with John Wick, which ended up becoming its own trilogy. Working with Chad Stahelski, a stunt coordinator from The Matrix, Reeves crafted yet another signature role as Wick, a retired hitman brought out of retirement over a stolen car and a tragedy involving a puppy. (Thankfully, the dog-icide incidents stop over the next two films.) With the release of John Wick: Chapter 2 and John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum, the trilogy garnered excellent reviews, proving that Reeves still just as great of an action star as ever. Alongside these butt-kicking projects, Reeves has taken the time to appear in some comedic projects as well, including a leading role in Destination Wedding alongside frequent collaborator Winona Ryder and self-parodying cameos in the Netflix original films Always Be My Maybe and Between Two Ferns: The Movie.
He may have bounced around genres since the Matrix trilogy wrapped, but Reeves found his way back to high-octane action with John Wick and planted himself firmly in the pop culture canon with his recent film appearances. There's truly no better time than now for a Reeves-topped Matrix 4.
With just one small comment, the actor has given us plenty of cause for excitement about the upcoming Matrix film — and if his recent body of work is any indication, fans can expect plenty of incredible "ambitious" action as more concrete details about this exciting project come to light.