10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Matrix Resurrections

Cinephiles are in movie heaven right now, as there are two huge event movies that have just hit theatres. The first is the beloved Spider-Man: No Way Home and the second is the more polarizing The Matrix Resurrections. But while Resurrection isn’t getting quite the reception that Warner Bros. likely hoped for, there are still so many exciting and mind-bending moments in the movie.

And given the series’ history, the movie’s fascinating narrative, and a largely new cast, there are loads of fascinating details behind the scenes. Whether it’s Keanu Reeves’ confusion behind returning or scrapped fight scenes with monsters that were too expensive to shoot, the off-camera stories are just as baffling as the film.

Jessica Henwick Almost Quit Acting Before She Was Cast

One of the biggest appeals of The Matrix Resurrections is all of the returning characters, whether it’s Neo, Trinity, or Morpheus (despite him being played by a different actor.) However, there are a surprising amount of fascinating new characters too, and one of those is Bugs (Jessica Henwick.)

The character fits into the Matrix universe perfectly, and she’s one of the best Matrix Resurrections characters. She’s just as acrobatic and cool-looking as everyone else, and a lot of it is thanks to the way she’s portrayed by Henwick. But it almost didn’t happen, as Henwick came very close to quitting acting. She explained that she was going through a quarter-life crisis, and in the middle of a 40-day hike, she received an email asking to audition for the 2021 movie, which she actually declined.

Keanu Reeves Was Baffled When He Was First Pitched The Movie

When he was first asked if he’d be up for a fourth Matrix movie, Keanu Reeves wanted to do it immediately. But he also admits that he was baffled and had no idea how it would work. He told Lana Wachowski, “but I’m dead,” referring to the end of The Matrix Revolutions.

However, Reeves also said that he was quickly won over by Wachowski after her pitch and that she wrote a wonderful story. But based on the critical reception and general audiences’ feelings on the movie, after seeing the film, everyone is just as perplexed as Reeves was when he first read the script.

Lana Wachowski Shot 20-Minute Long Action Takes

When The Matrix was first released more than 20 years ago, it revolutionized action movies. Nothing like bullet time or any of the other special effects had ever been done before. Even in The Matrix Reloaded, the highway scene was jaw-dropping at the time, and Wachowski is once again attempting to deliver huge, revolutionary action sequences.

According to Jessica Henwick, Wachowski loves long-running takes that can last up to 20 minutes without a single cut. The actor explains that the director often operated the camera herself and that the way she shot was very “distinctive.” However, the fact that Wachowski shot long takes is fairly surprising, as one of the criticisms of the new movie is how the high number of cuts there are in many of the action scenes.

The Original Idea For The Fourquel Was Scrapped

The Matrix series is such an expansive world that isn’t limited to the movies. The Animatrix is an anthology of well-crafted animated shorts, and the video games and comic books have some dense moments and surprisingly great new stories.

But while a lot of these aren’t based on Neo, Trinity, or Morpheus, if the main films ever focused on other people outside of the main characters, there’d be a lot of dissatisfied fans. However, Clayton Watson, who played Kid in The Matrix Revolutions, was told that if the Wachowskis made a fourth Matrix, it’d focus on Kid and Niobe, sidelining Neo. Though that idea was scrapped, an older version of Niobe does have a major role in the new release.

Wachowski Tried To Avoid Making The New Agent Smith A Hugo Weaving Impression

Not only was Morpheus recast for The Matrix Resurrections, but so was Agent Smith. Hugo Weaving delivered an iconic performance when playing the character, and he’s by far the best villain from the original Matrix trilogy, but he’s now played by Jonathon Groff.

Because of this, Wachowski wanted to avoid stepping on Weaving’s toes with the new depiction of the character, as she wanted Groff to avoid simply doing an impression of Weaving. Groff did his best to make the role his own. But at the end of the day, there are still lines from the original trilogy that Groff has to recite, such as, “billions of people just living out their lives… oblivious.” and the classic “Mr. Anderson!”

Warner Bros. Would Have Gone Ahead With The Film Without Wachowski

The Matrix and even its sequels are clearly the results of a visionary director, and no other director could have created such mind-blowing movies with the same screenplays. So the idea of Warner Bros. pressing forward with a Matrix 4 without Wachowski sounds ridiculous, but that was exactly the studio’s intention.

Though the studio was eager to make the movie with the original director, according to producer James McTeigue, it sounds like Warner Bros. would have made a sequel with or without her because of the “money-making capability” of the series. It also speaks to why Warner Bros. is somewhat of a villain in the new movie.

There Was An Epic Fight Scene Between Morpheus And The Machines That Was Cut

Though Lawrence Fishbourne is missed as Morpheus, Yahya Abdul-Marteen does a great job playing the character, as he’s just as cool as ever, looks great in his colorful suits, and is mesmerizing in the action sequences. However, he was still a little underused in the movie, as most of the runtime is spent on Neo and Trinity’s relationship and setting up new characters.

But according to writers Aleksander Hemon and David Mitchell, audiences could have gotten more Morpheus, as there was an action scene between him and a monster that was cut from the screenplay. The monster was giant and mechanical, and it had the name Animalium, which lived in Machine City, but the CGI would have cost too much to build it.

Filming Caused Loads Of Damage To San Francisco

Anyone who has seen the movie knows that Machine City now looks a lot like San Francisco, and the film takes advantage of the city’s picturesque Italiante homes and the Golden Gate Bridge. And as another movie was shot in San Francisco at the same time, Venom 2 used footage of Matrix 4 filming.

However, the Matrix 4 production left San Francisco in a bit of a mess. As the crew was making as much of the action as practical as possible, including explosions, the production caused damage to some vehicles and storefront signs. And a few locals were left irritated, even if it did make for a great show.

Joe Pantoliano Wanted To Return So Much That He Pitched To Wachowski

Cypher (Joe Pantoliano) hasn’t been in the series since he was killed in the first movie. But he was one of the most entertaining characters, he was relatable despite being so horrible, and he’s the best villain named Cypher, of which there are surprisingly many.

However, though there isn’t exactly a logical way for the character to return, that didn’t stop Pantoliano from trying. According to Pantoliano, he had pitched to Wachowski different ways in which the character could return, and he was even lobbying for it. Though Cypher doesn’t return in the movie, it seems to be more of a creative choice than anything.

Reeves And Carrie Anne-Moss Jumped Off A 46-Story Building

The final act of the movie reveals that it’s no longer Neo that can fly, but Trinity (Carrie-AnneMoss), as they leap off a 46-story building in Machine City. Being so dedicated to doing his own stunts, Reeves, along with Moss, did the rooftop jump themselves.

Reeves explained on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that the rooftop jump is one of the scariest stunts that the actor has ever committed to. The two actors didn’t just leap off the building once, but close to 20 times. Given that it’s one of Reeves’s most death-defying stunts, he has set the bar high for the upcoming John Wick: Chapter 4.