The original Matrix was held by many to be a triumph of cinema. It was a story about faith, love, and breaking free of boundaries. It was, at once, a deep religious allegory and a bleeding-edge demonstration of physics-breaking action that blew audiences away. Best of all, it was a total surprise for theatergoers, as details were kept very close to the chest before its release. Well, 22 years later, Lana Wachowski, writer and director of the original trilogy, has returned to the franchise with the upcoming Matrix 4 (sans sister, Lilly Wachowski). And just like before, no one saw it coming.
However, what many folks probably don’t realize is that the fictional universe of The Matrix kept right on existing and growing in the form of The Matrix Online, an MMORPG that ran its course from 2005 through 2009. The scripted events of the game were written by Matrix comic book writer Paul Chadwick and were sanctioned by the Wachowskis as the official continuation of the franchise’s storyline beyond The Matrix Revolutions.
As the release of the fourth film quickly approaches, now is the perfect time for an examination of the game’s lore. Many things happened during those four years of online play that could weigh heavily on the plotline of The Matrix 4, if the game is indeed still considered canon. In fact, what little information has been released about the movie actually makes more sense in the context of the game’s history. Now that could, of course, be entirely coincidental. The Wachowskis may have blessed The Matrix Online as canon only because they thought they were finished with the franchise. But just in case their symbolic passing of the story still holds true, let’s take a deep dive into the events of the game that may impact the plot of the upcoming sequel.
Editor's note: The following contains spoilers for The Matrix Online.
The Return of Neo and Trinity
The first big scripted event to hit The Matrix Online was a competition between the three player factions, the followers of either Zion, the Machines, or the Merovingian. The goal was to find the code fragments of Neo’s residual self-image (RSI) scattered about the Matrix. Once found, Programs called Shapers could be employed to regenerate Neo's mental projection from the fragments.
This was the first hint that there remained some part of Neo’s code within the Matrix after his (supposed) death. Additionally, the non-player character of Morpheus campaigned within the game for the Machines to return Neo’s body to Zion, since they claimed they never recycled it into nourishment for the living, as per the movies. Morpheus’ request was never granted. Later on, the Oracle revealed that it was actually Neo himself that split up his RSI into fragments, as he foresaw they would be needed in the future.
Further rumors of Neo's return continued to sprout up from time to time. Some players claimed that a signal from Morpheus had been found indicating that Neo was actually alive and being held captive by the Machines. A rumor spread that Neo's partially reconstructed RSI was being used by the Machines in an underground fight club. Although accounts such as this were never verified by players, they fueled the idea that Neo was still out there somewhere and would return one day, just as the Oracle had said to Sati at the end of The Matrix Revolutions.
Furthermore, excerpts of a journal were found claiming to have been written by a former Program in charge of the Matrix’s recycling. The journal supposedly stated that this Program had been given specific orders to withhold Trinity’s body from being recycled.
As it is now well-known that both Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss are returning in The Matrix 4 as Neo and Trinity respectively, fans have been eager to learn how they could come back from their seemingly definitive deaths at the end of Revolutions. While there is only the aforementioned scrap of a journal to hint at a purpose for keeping Trinity’s body intact, much of The Matrix Online’s lore was based on a belief that Neo still existed. The idea that Neo purposefully scattered his own code across the Matrix, combined with the withholding of his corporeal remains by the Machines, could point to some method of recreation of Neo’s person.
The Absence of Morpheus
Eventually, Morpheus tired of the Machines’ unwillingness to release Neo’s body to Zion. He implemented a plan to spread a virus that would reveal the code of the Matrix to the bluepills (those willingly oblivious to the fallacy of the Matrix), hoping their realization of the truth would crash the system. As a result, a kill order on Morpheus was sent out to all factions, and sadly, he was soon murdered by a mysterious assassin.
Equally sad is the fact that the great Laurence Fishburne will not be appearing as Morpheus in The Matrix 4. The character having been offed in The Matrix Online would certainly help explain his absence.
The Return of Niobe and The Merovingian
Meanwhile, the assassin behind Morpheus’s death turned out to be a much bigger threat than imagined. He led a splinter faction called the Corrupted that caused much chaos and death for players. The details of this campaign are complicated, but the assassin and his followers were eventually defeated. What is important to note is that Niobe discovered that the Merovingian was behind the appearance of the assassin and his traitorous agenda. And so, she created a splinter faction of her own with the purpose of seeing to the Merovingian’s deletion.
Why is this important? Well, both Jada Pinkett-Smith and Lambert Wilson are returning in The Matrix 4 as their respective characters of Niobe and The Merovingian. In fact, aside from Reeves and Moss, they’re the only two actors from the original cast known to be returning to the franchise. Considering they remained leaders of warring factions at the end of the game’s continuity, thereby making them the most important non-player characters still existing in the franchise’s fiction, it would be quite the coincidence if their re-casting was completely unrelated.
The Return of Kid?
While a tidal wave of other campaigns hit the game over the remainder of its existence, only a few of these are potentially influential to the proceedings of the upcoming movie. For instance, two other splinter factions emerged. The first was called the Cypherites, with the goal of being reinserted into the Matrix in the same fashion that Cypher (played by Joe Pantoliano) desired in the first film. The second was the Zionites, started by Kid (played by Clayton Watson in the sequels) to uphold Neo's values and beliefs, and thereby stand in opposition to the Cypherites.
Kid remained very much alive and active in Zion’s pursuits at the conclusion of The Matrix Online. He also became a hero to the people, as he risked his own life to stop an assassination attempt on the Oracle’s life. Since he was also alive and quite young at the end of the film trilogy, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the character were included in The Matrix 4. While Clayton Watson has not been reported as being in the cast, it’s possible an older (and possibly more experienced) actor would play the part at this point (or that Jonathan Groff or Neil Patrick Harris, confirmed as cast members in the film, are now playing the role).
The End of the Truce and the Birth of a New 'One'
The other important occurrence which could play a factor in the next movie's storyline is that the truce between the humans and the Machines was eventually broken. This occurred slowly, with both parties committing various acts of espionage against the other. As a result, a new Zion was constructed under Niobe’s instruction, and The Architect announced that humans would no longer be allowed to leave the Matrix. This was the state of affairs when The Matrix Online went offline (due to lack of player participation) on July 31, 2009.
One more interesting thing to take note of, though, is that near the end of the game’s cycle, a newspaper article had been found during a mission regarding a 27-year-old woman named Sarah Edmontons (which is an anagram for Thomas Anderson, Neo's Matrix-given name) waking up from a coma and mysteriously vacating the hospital of her own accord. A note had been scribbled on the clipping asking, "Is this him?" On a later mission, it was revealed that the name ‘Edmontons’ didn’t exist in any Machine database, therefore supporting fan speculation that this Sarah Edmontons could be the new Neo. Or rather, as described in the movies by the Architect, a new incarnation of the anomalous code in the Matrix that results in a human being born as “The One” repeatedly. Although no outright comments have been made, developers hinted at the time that Sarah Edmontons would have played a role in the future of the game.
So, what does this have to do with The Matrix 4? Well, Jessica Henwick, by far the shining star and action guru of Netflix’s ill-fated Iron Fist, not to mention the kickass Aimee with one I and two E’s in the recent Love and Monsters, has been cast in a major role in the movie. What role? Well, according to a report by Deadline back in 2019, Lana Wachowski was looking to cast "a female-like Neo character" when Henwick auditioned for her, subsequently blowing the filmmaker away with her performance. Could she be playing Sarah Edmontons? We can only wait and see.
Again, all of the above should be taken purely as conjecture based on the possibility that The Matrix Online is still considered canon by the creators of The Matrix franchise. The Matrix 4 releases in theaters and on HBO Max on December 22, 2021.