The official title of the long-anticipated Matrix sequel has finally been announced as The Matrix: Resurrections, and after the film's first trailer was unveiled during Warner Bros' CinemaCon reel, there's a lot of speculation about exactly what that title might mean. The Matrix changed the face of sci-fi back in 1999, and after two sequels were released in 2003 to flesh out the trilogy, it seemed that the franchise had come to a natural end. Given that Keanu Reeves' Neo met his end in the war against the machines, the biggest question is exactly how Neo survived, but there are likely more meanings - and implications - to the Resurrections subtitle.
The Matrix followed Thomas Anderson's liberation from the titular simulation and his awakening as Neo, mankind's savior. The series later went on to have him fight in a futuristic war for the survival of humanity alongside Trinity (Carrie Ann Moss) and Morpheus (Lawrence Fishburne). It seemed for a long time that the trilogy played out exactly as intended, with a definitive beginning and end to the story, and that there was really no need for any future installments. At one point, the Wachowskis even went as far as to express their disinterest in continuing the franchise, but with Reeves' role as John Wick making him one of this generation's most beloved action heroes, popular demand won out, and Resurrections is now slated for a December 2021 release.
One of the biggest problems Resurrections will face has seemingly already been solved by its name, though. The Matrix Revolutions' ending saw Neo sacrificing his own life in order to free humanity, and the upcoming sequel's title is quite clearly a reference to Neo's return - but it also hints at an awful lot more, including the possibility that it is the Matrix itself that has been resurrected, as teased by Matrix 4 footage shown at CinemaCon.
Neo is one of cinema's most iconic and obviously messianic figures - a prophesized savior of humanity with powers beyond that of normal humans who ultimately sacrifices himself so that mankind can survive - and so his apparent return from the dead isn't altogether surprising. However, early footage from the film reportedly shows Neo (living once more as Anderson) inside the Matrix, only subconsciously aware that he's living in a simulation. This hints that maybe the titular resurrection isn't about Neo, after all, and that maybe it's the machines' stranglehold on humanity that's been revived.
It is also already known that Carrie-Ann Moss will also be returning as Trinity and that she, like Neo, is apparently living in blissful ignorance inside the Matrix. The Resurrections subtitle could simply be a reference to the two characters' reemergence, but it also denotes the rebirth of a franchise that many considered to be long-finished. It also carries with it the religious connotations that were inherent in the original trilogy, which signifies that this newest installment will also seek to match the tone of its predecessors. With what is already known about The Matrix: Resurrections, and with what can logically be surmised, it certainly seems that the subtitle can be taken both literally and metaphorically on multiple levels.
