The Matrix 5 Confirms The Harsh Truth Of Matrix Resurrection’s Meta Jokes

Summary

• The Matrix 5 confirms a new direction with writer/director Drew Goddard taking over from the Wachowskis, possibly leading to a soft reboot.
• The Matrix Resurrections’ meta gags about Hollywood demanding sequels now seem more grimly prophetic with the upcoming release of The Matrix 5.
• Goddard’s The Matrix 5 has the potential to continue the franchise’s meta-commentary elements and poke fun at its own existence, following in the footsteps of the original film’s meta-textual humor.

The Matrix 5 feels like Resurrections meta gags about Hollywood are coming true. The original Matrix was an epoch-shifting moment in blockbuster filmmaking, with its unique mixture of philosophy, martial arts and cyberpunk. Its influence spread quickly, with the likes of Shrek or Scary Movie soon parodying it. The subsequent Matrix movie franchise did not receive the same level of acclaim, with critics and audiences alike finding them by turn baffling, stilted and way too focused on spectacle over story.

The Matrix Resurrections‘ ending may have suggested another story involving Keanu Reeves’ Neo and Carrie-Anne Moss’ Trinity, but that (likely) won’t come to pass now. Instead, The Matrix 5 has been confirmed with writer/director Drew Goddard taking the reins from the Wachowskis. It’s currently unknown if familiar faces like Reeves or Moss will have any involvement, but given the critical and commercial reception that greeted Resurrections, a soft reboot is probably the direction the next chapter will go in.

The divisive fourth movie essentially predicted The Matrix 5

There’s a fourth wall-smashing moment in The Matrix Resurrections where Neo meets up with Jonathan Groff’s Smith. In this version of reality, Neo believes he is a computer programmer who once designed a trilogy of Matrix video games, while Smith is his business partner. During their meeting, Smith underlines their “parent company” Warner Bros has demanded another sequel, and is prepared to make it without them. This was a thinly veiled gag about Lana Wachowski finally agreeing to make another Matrix when she learned Warner Bros would make one with or without her involvement.

It’s a deliciously spiky gag, but one that underlines the sole reason The Matrix Resurrections came to exist – after the directors had always claimed the story ended with Revolutions – was due to studio demand. Wachowski thus made a deeply meta installment that almost felt like a parody of the franchise, to the delight of some and deep frustration of others. This Resurrections scene feels all the more pertinent now The Matrix 5 is happening without either of the original filmmakers directing it.

Again, the plot of the fifth movie is under wraps, but after decades of disappointing sequels, WB will want their new Matrix to be a crowdpleaser. This isn’t necessarily the worst idea, since it felt like Resurrections was intentionally subverting audience expectations in a way that was designed to irritate. The humor was goofy, the action was underwhelming and while it was nice to have an expensive blockbuster that felt so personal to its director, it wasn’t the franchise comeback audiences wanted.

The fifth movie doesn’t have to fully remove The Matrix’s meta-humor

One thing that should be noted is that Goddard is a great screenwriter and director, and by all accounts has a cool idea in mind for the series. Considering the lore surrounding the Matrix is so dense, it might be refreshing to see it rendered onscreen by a new director. Goddard is also a writer who brings a meta quality to his work, which can be seen in his script for The Martian and especially in his horror comedy The Cabin in the Woods.

The story being in the hands of a new director and creative team is bound to be made fun of somewhere during the movie, with
The Matrix Rebooted
feeling like a very ripe title.

The original Matrix may have had a serious tone, but meta-textual humor was always part of its DNA. With that in mind, Goddard’s The Matrix 5 can still retain the franchise’s meta-commentary elements, and even poke fun at its own existence. The story being in the hands of a new director and creative team is bound to be made fun of somewhere during the movie, with The Matrix Rebooted feeling like a very ripe title. It almost certainly won’t have the sharp edge of Resurrections meta-humor, but it no doubt be in the mix somewhere.

Goddard began his career writing for shows like
Buffy the Vampire Slayer,
Angel
and
Alias
.

How Matrix 5 Can Overcome The Franchise’s Own Criticisms & Succeed

The Matrix is too rich a universe to leave unexplored

If Neo and Trinity’s story truly is complete, a fifth installment has a relatively clean slate to dive into new areas of the franchise.

Arguably the best Matrix offshoot is the 2003 anime anthology The Animatrix. This consisted of nine short films from different directors that explored different elements of the Matrix itself. Not every Animatrix segment was great, but they showed just how flexible the concept could be. If Neo and Trinity’s story truly is complete, a fifth installment has a relatively clean slate to dive into new areas of the franchise.

After Resurrections‘ lackluster action sequences it would be nice if The Matrix 5 had some quality setpieces too, while telling told a more human story like the original film. Part of the reason the original worked was that audiences were learning about the world at the same time as Neo was, but once he became “The One,” that more grounded element was lost in later movies. The Matrix 5 might be an obvious case of a studio pushing for another sequel, but it can still learn from the mistakes of the past while moving the saga in a new direction.