Why Sati From The Matrix Resurrections Looks So Familiar
Almost two decades after the third "Matrix" film, 2003's "The Matrix Revolutions," came out, a fourth film has now been added to the series. "The Matrix Resurrections," released to theaters on December 22, 2021, is directed by Lana Wachowski and co-written by Wachowski, David Mitchell, and Aleksandar Hemon. The film is set sixty years after the events of "Revolutions" and follows Neo (Keanu Reeves), who is living a seemingly normal life as Thomas Anderson after being repaired by the Machines and reinserted into a new version of the Matrix.
"The Matrix Resurrections" is full of familiar faces, as many of the original cast members returned to reprise their roles. Alongside Reeves, other returning cast members include Carrie-Anne Moss, Lambert Wilson, and Jada Pinkett Smith. The cast also includes several new names, however, as some older roles have been recast, such as Yahya Abdul-Mateen II taking on an alternate version of Morpheus (formerly played by Laurence Fishburne) and Jonathan Groff taking over the role of Agent Smith (formerly played by Hugo Weaving).
Further, Priyanka Chopra Jonas portrays Sati, a role formerly portrayed by Tanveer K. Atwal in "The Matrix Revolutions." The actress may be familiar to many viewers — after all, Chopra has 80 acting credits to her name (via IMDb) and is married to musician and actor Nick Jonas. If you're wondering where you've seen her prior to "Resurrections," look no further — here, we shall break down her biggest roles.
Chopra got her start in Bollywood
As an Indian actress who got her start in Bollywood, the majority of Priyanka Chopra's acting credits are in Indian films. Some of Chopra's earliest film roles in her home country include 2002's "Thamizhan" and 2003's "The Hero: Love Story of a Spy" and "Andaaz." These roles came after Chopra had won several beauty pageants, including Miss World, that made her a household name in India and opened the door for her film career (via Glamour).
Chopra's role in 2008's "Fashion" as an aspiring model named Meghna Mathur earned her the National Film Award for Best Actress, which is presented annually at the National Film Awards of India. Other notable Bollywood films of hers include 2009's "Kaminey," 2012's "Barfi!" and 2015's "Dil Dhadakne Do." She is now one of the most successful — and profitable — Indian actors (via Times of India).
In 2015, during an interview with Vulture, writer Sona Charaipotra pointed out that Chopra was the first big Bollywood star to break into Hollywood and asked Chopra to talk about the general public's "preconceptions about Indian cinema." Chopra responded, "I think the Indian film industry is underestimated. There's a huge international audience for Indian movies everywhere. They're extravagant and big and celebrations. Hindi movies go beyond the barrier of borders, of language, of culture. I don't look at Hollywood as a big break. Indian film stands on its own. The reason I decided to work here is because the work came to me. I've always gone where my work takes me."
Chopra landed the lead in Quantico
In 2015, Chopra landed the lead in the American television show, "Quantico," marking it as her first major role outside of Bollywood. The thriller follows Chopra's character Alex Parrish, a new FBI agent who soon becomes a prime suspect of a terrorist attack on Grand Central Terminal. The series ran for three seasons and resulted in Chopra becoming the first South Asian actor to ever win a People's Choice Award in 2016 (via Bustle).
Chopra's role as Parrish was also notable for being a complex female character leading an action series — something that doesn't happen all too often. She spoke about the lack of representation of tough women on TV in her Vulture interview. "The women have kickass characters — and the reason that's standing out is because you rarely see a show with all kickass characters for females," she explained. "It's not something we're used to, and so it almost feels lopsided, but really what it's doing is making things equal. The men are awesome, too, but the women stand out because of the disparity that's existed for so long in TV and everywhere else. That's what's new about 'Quantico.' It's extremely balanced."
In another interview, with Esquire, Chopra discussed the ways in which the series takes on topics relevant to current ongoings of the world. "The drama between all the character continues, but the show is so topical and relevant," she said. When you take entertainment and relevant things that need to be spoken about and mix them together, that makes for good TV. That's the recipe of this show."
Chopra had a role in Isn't It Romantic
"Isn't It Romantic," which was released in 2019, follows romantic comedy-hating Natalie (Rebel Wilson), who, after being knocked unconscious during an attempted mugging, wakes up to realize that she has been transported into a PG-13 rom-com world, in which she is the protagonist.
Priyanka Chopra plays Isabella, a model and "yoga ambassador," who Natalie's friend and love interest Josh (Adam DeVine) begins dating within the rom-com world. Isabella's relationship with Josh helps Natalie to realize that she loves Josh. Natalie even considers trying to stop their wedding by intruding at the altar. This, in turn, allows her to realize that all this time, she really needed to love herself.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Chopra revealed that the main reason she wanted to be a part of this film was to support Wilson in the leading role. "First of all, it's produced by a woman, Rebel Wilson, who I admire tremendously, and second of all, as a female actor in Hollywood as well, I love that it's her first leading part," the actress said. "She is making the movie of her dreams, as an entrepreneur as well, and there was no world in which I wouldn't have supported that. I really wanted to be there cheering for her."
Chopra then starred in The White Tiger
In 2021, Priyanka Chopra starred alongside Adarsh Gourav and Rajkummar Rao in Netflix's "The White Tiger," a movie from writer-director Ramin Bahrani based on the 2008 novel of the same name by Aravind Adiga. The film follows Balram Halwai (Gourav), a man from a poor Indian village as he finds ways to escape from poverty. Chopra plays Pinky Shah, the wife of Balram's master, Ashok (Rao).
Chopra spoke to Glamour about what it meant for her to make a film with an all-Indian cast for a major streaming service. She said, "Movies with an all-Indian star cast or stories around India usually end up becoming 'genre movies' or independent movies." The actress added that since the movie was "mainstream," she felt it deserved the attention of a wide range of viewers. She then explained that films that have South Asian leading actors are very rare in Hollywood and in mainstream entertainment, which is why she "wanted to really offer [her] services" as a producer. "I wanted to be able to push it and promote it so that it has as many eyeballs on it as it could," Chopra continued. "It gives me so much joy to see it being number one around the world on Netflix, with a full Indian star cast, Indian writer and an Indian director. It's game changing."