Robert here with your daily "Wait, What?" news: it looks like iconic film franchise The Matrix will be getting a reboot, or a remake, or more sequels. No one is quite sure!
According to industry insiders Warner Bros. is in the beginning stages of revamping the series launched by the now legendary 1999 movie written and directed by Lana and Lilly Wachowski. There have been a lot of rumors since just last night surrounding the project, so let's dive into them after the jump...
First of all, no one is sure what the nature of this project is at this early stage in the game. Many are reporting that it will be a remake of the original film, while others have been more vague about the nature of the project. As of now neither the Wachowskis or any of the original stars of the trilogy are in talks to join this new project. Keanu Reeves has previously said that he would be open to returning to the franchise if the Wachowskis were involved, but given that they are knee deep in their Netflix show Sense 8, it's unlikely they would be brought back as writers or directors of the new film(s), especially as the intent seems to be reboot the series.
There has been one rumored piece of casting, which is that Black Panther star Michael B. Jordan has been tapped to play the lead. Some have speculated that perhaps the new movie(s) will be a prequel following the early life of Morpheus, played by Laurence Fishburne in the original films, which is… an interesting theory. If Warner Bros. is trying to take notes from the way that Disney is milking their newly revamped Star Wars property with spin offs and now the Young Han Solo prequel, Young Morpheus would make sense. Whether that is a good idea for The Matrix is another story all together.
Given the lukewarm reception of the sequels and the lukewarm box office of the third film, The Matrix: Revolutions (all things considered), picking The Matrix as a franchise to reboot really doesn't track. The original movie is firmly in the zeitgeist and as the world churns closer each day into full blown technodystopia its ideas have been viewed as more relevant than ever. That being said, the thing that worked so well about The Matrix was that it was years ahead of its time, and expanding on those ideas in today's political climate will not have the same impact. But given that I lived through Matrixmania while it was happening (first movie I ever watched on DVD!), I may just be biased.
Do you think there is any juice left in this franchise? If Warner Bros. is hell bent on competing in the franchise game with Disney, what else could they bring back from the dead?