Why don't Neo and Trinity remember each other in The Matrix Resurrections? The long-awaited fourth installment in the Matrix franchise will be hitting theaters in December 2021, and the first trailer for the sequel has finally given audiences a taste of what to expect. One of the biggest revelations is the fact that Neo — now once again stuck in the Matrix and going by the name Thomas Anderson — doesn't appear to remember his former ally and lover Trinity.
In the original The Matrix (1999), Neo and Trinity first met within the Matrix itself during an operation to locate and "unplug" Neo. Once freed from the simulation, Neo joins Trinity, Morpheus, and their crew in the real world to fight against the machines and unlock his potential as The One. Per a prophesy dictated by The Oracle, a benevolent and all-knowing program within the Matrix, Trinity and Neo fall in love, and remain devoted to each other until her tragic death in the third entry The Matrix Revolutions.
However, it appears both Trinity and Neo (who also seemingly died in Revolutions) have somehow been returned to life in The Matrix Resurrections. In the film's trailer, Neo encounters Trinity in a restaurant, and the two share a brief moment where they believe they've met before. The trailer gives the impression that both characters have somehow had their memories wiped, and the culprit behind this might very well be the franchise's infamous blue pills.
When Neo first meets Morpheus in the original film, he gives Neo a now-iconic choice. He presents him with both a red and blue pill, telling him the blue one will erase his memory and allow him to continue living his life in the Matrix, but that the red pill will free his mind. Naturally, Neo selects the red pill and is subsequently freed from the simulation, leaving the exact effects of the blue pill a mystery within the series.
The Matrix Resurrections will be the first installment to really address the power of the blue pill. Throughout the trailer, Neo is seen taking handfuls of these pills, with piles of them clogging his sink and bottles of pills stacked in his home. While the story behind Neo's seeming addiction to the pills isn't known yet, it seems obvious a malevolent force within the artificial world (most likely Neil Patrick Harris' potential Matrix 4 villain) is using them to suppress Neo's memories. It's possible that Trinity's memories are also being suppressed in the exact same way too, although The Matrix Resurrections trailer reveals both characters do eventually rediscover their past and once again seek freedom from the Matrix and its oppressive guardians.
