As I previously explained, two years ago, it was reported that Warner Bros. was developing a reboot of The Matrix, the 1999 Keanu-Reeves starrer that put his Neo inside a robot-created supercomputer that he would eventually free mankind from. If I’m remembering correctly, the trilogy ended with the twist that Neo was actually a virus that would kill the computer and save humans from robot-induced slavery.
There was a lot of hidden social commentary that, at the time, felt more like conspiracy gossip than reality. Now, nearly 20 years later, it holds more relevance than ever. But instead of a reboot, reports made it sound as if the studio and the respective filmmakers plan to revisit the original franchise with a canonized sequel (or maybe prequel?).
There’s been a bit of back-and-forth as to who will direct, but production listings are including the information that the Wachowskis (specifically Lana Wachowski) will return to direct the film that could begin production in early 2020 in Chicago. Discussing Film is running with the story that’s yet-to-be-confirmed, although it was included in last week’s Production Weekly report that lists the shooting title as “Project Ice Cream”.
This is welcomed news because remakes are becoming tiring, while canonized sequels are all the rage. Why disrespect the original franchise when you can continue the story?
Plug me back into The Matrix.
THR previously reported that Zak Penn will write the screenplay and Michael B. Jordan, pictured, will star.
