Here's everything we know so far about the story of The Matrix 4 - now officially titled The Matrix Resurrections. It's no overstatement to suggest the Wachowski sisters changed the game with their 1999 The Matrix movie, blending cutting-edge visuals with intense action and a sci-fi aesthetic unlike anything seen before. Though 2003's double-barrel of The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions expanded the mythology behind Neo's fictional world(s), neither earned the same acclaim as the original. Nevertheless, Matrix fans have waited eagerly for Keanu Reeves to swallow some brightly-colored pills again, and after almost 20 years of rumor and speculation, The Matrix 4 is ready for another dose.

Directly solely by Lana Wachowski on this occasion (her sister, Lilly, sought to stay away from sci-fi fare), The Matrix 4 wrapped filming in November 2020. But aside from the slew of actors confirmed via various sources - both returnees and fresh faces - very little has been revealed about the plot for Neo's long-awaited sequel. Fortunately, the code of silence surrounding The Matrix 4 is beginning to fade. An official title of The Matrix Resurrections has been announced, and the first footage recently aired behind closed doors at CinemaCon.

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Based on cast members, footage descriptions, interview comments, and a healthy dose of deductive inference, a broad picture of The Matrix 4's storyline can be pieced together. No doubt Keanu Reeves and the gang have plenty more surprises in store, but here's everything we currently know about the plot of The Matrix Resurrections.

Neo & Trinity Are Brought Back To Life

Neo revives Trinity in The Matrix

The returns of Keanu Reeves as Neo and Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity were confirmed from the very beginning. But while bringing the original trilogy's starring duo back for The Matrix 4 makes box office sense, it's worth remembering that both characters were dead when The Matrix Revolutions' credits rolled. Fans have conjured many a theory as to how Lana Wachowski could overcome this minor obstacle. Some suggested The Matrix 4 would feature new versions of Neo and Trinity, others mooted time travel as a solution, and a few questioned whether Reeves and Moss could be playing entirely new characters.

With The Matrix 4 now confirmed under the title The Matrix Resurrections, however, Neo and Trinity will almost certainly be brought back to life. Both characters perished within Machine City during the climax of the original Matrix trilogy, and both might've had their consciousnesses stored somewhere in the simulation (especially Neo, since he's The One). The pair could return as "cached" personalities uploaded into artificial, or artificially restored, bodies.

Neo & Trinity Forget Who They Are

Neo and Trinity in The Matrix

The Matrix 4's CinemaCon footage reveals that neither Neo or Trinty remember who they are. Neo is living in modern-day San Francisco as "Thomas," which indicates his original in-Matrix persona of Thomas Anderson has been restored, and Trinity appears to be suffering the same affliction, as she asks Neo, "have we met?" Both characters seem to have been "reset," reverting back to the lives they inhabited before taking Morpheus' red pill.

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Strangely, Neo is experiencing the events of the original Matrix trilogy as dreams and flashes, and visits a therapist (played by Neil Patrick Harris) to make sense of these distorted memories. This effectively debunks the theory of Keanu Reeves playing an entirely new character, though it's not clear why "Thomas" doesn't believe his Neo dreams are real. Has his memory been altered? Has the timeline changed? Or is the "Matrix within a Matrix" theory true?

Based on leaked images from The Matrix 4's on-location shoots, it's Trinity who figures out the truth first. She's seen in the franchise's traditional leathers leading Keanu Reeves - who's dressed in ordinary civilian clothes - through the city. Carrie-Anne Moss' character always was the sharper of the two.

Young Morpheus Helps Neo

Yahya Abdul Mateen In The Matrix 4 As young Morpheus

Trinity isn't the only returning hero lending Neo a hand - Morpheus is back too, this time played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II instead of Laurence Fishburne. Even before The Matrix 4 was officially announced, rumors suggested Warner Bros. was eyeing a project based around a younger Morpheus, and once Mateen was confirmed among the new cast additions, he was immediately linked with Neo's philosophical friend. The CinemaCon footage supports this theory, with Mateen's character described as a more youthful Morpheus, and offering Neo a red pill, effectively occupying the same role Fishburne did in 1999.

Is Time Travel Involved?

Laurence Fishburne as Morpheus in The Matrix

One of the biggest questions The Matrix 4 leaves unanswered is why Morpheus looks younger (like a new man, in fact), while Neo and Trinity are both older. Since Laurence Fishburne's character was the only member of the fabled trio to survive the original Matrix trilogy, he should be the one with a few more frown lines. The younger Morpheus scenes feed into another long-held Matrix 4 theory - that time travel will somehow be involved, with characters using the Matrix (and prior versions of it) to skip through eras. Given how Neo is back to being Thomas Anderson, The Matrix 4's villain might've even undone that initial meeting between Neo and Morpheus, forcing the latter's younger self to take action.

Related: Can Robots Really Run On Human Power? The Matrix's Science Explained

The arrival of a younger Morpheus certainly adds fuel to that fire, but doesn't explicitly confirm The Matrix 4 will be meddling with the timeline. Yahya Abdul Mateen II might be an alternate Morpheus to go along with this strange new Matrix simulation, or could be a descendant of Fishburne's Morpheus from far into Zion's future, continuing his father's work.

Neo Must Remember Who He Is

Neo stops the bullets in The Matrix.

The first act of The Matrix 4 sees Neo trying to piece together his identity. As mentioned above, he receives guidance from Trinity, visits a therapist (who might have more sinister motivations for telling Neo his dreams aren't real...), and takes another red pill from a brand new Morpheus. In another callback to the original Matrix movie, Reeves' Neo and Mateen's Morpheus do battle in a training dojo, with The One accidentally destroying their arena while sparring. Once again, this proves the original Neo is still lurking beneath the surface with all his fearsome power and knowledge of kung fu. Another shot reveals The One pulling out a few classics - stopping bullets with telekinesis and tossing a missile toward a helicopter. Evidently, it doesn't take long before Neo is back to his usual self.

Mirrors Are Important

Mirrors played a significant role during Thomas Anderson's initial transition into Neo. After swallowing Morpheus' red pill, Keanu Reeves' protagonist was consumed by silver goop from a nearby mirror phasing out of sync with reality. Lana Wachowski seems to be reusing that metaphor in The Matrix 4, with trailer footage apparently showing Neo emerging from a mirror when he reunites with Trinity. Another shot from CinemaCon describes a blue-haired girl taking Neo through a mirror's reflection to reveal the true nature of the Matrix. Expanding on Wachowski's preexisting Through The Looking Glass influence, mirrors could serve as some kind of gateway through whatever strange world The Matrix 4 takes place in.

The Agents Are Back

Daniel Bernhardt as Daniel Bernhardt as Agent Johnson in The Matrix Reloaded

There's currently no word on the identity of The Matrix 4's main villain. Neil Patrick Harris' therapist remains a possibility, and the dual-resurrection of Neo and Trinity suggests the Machines could be allies instead of enemies this time around, but the The Matrix 4's real antagonist is still an enigma. On the other hand, we do know the Agents are back in The Matrix 4. The return of the Machines' smartly-dressed police force was hinted at previously when Daniel Bernhardt (Agent Johnson) joined the cast, and Hugo Weaving later claimed to have been contacted about reprising his Agent Smith role.

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The CinemaCon trailer proves The Matrix 4 will indeed feature Agents, and though Weaving isn't returning, Smith could potentially still appear in a different guise. Some fans suggested the Agents might be friendly or exiled in The Matrix 4, but footage showing Trinity and the Agents clashing fists debunks those theories.

Is This A Different Matrix?

Keanu Reeves as Neo in The Matrix

The Matrix Revolutions ended with Neo forcing the Machines into a truce, as The Architect agreed to free humans into the real world. Based on what we know of The Matrix 4's story, however, there's no sense of a truce whatsoever. Far into the future, the Machines (or maybe even human bluepills) might've reestablished the Matrix's dominance over humanity. But the way The Matrix 4 seems to be ignoring the previous ending implies Neo and Trinity could now exist in a completely different Matrix, similar to the old one but not quite the same - a "dream" as Neo describes it to his shrink. Along with the main villain, how The Matrix 4 bridges from the original trilogy's finale remains one of the film's biggest lingering mysteries.

More: The Matrix Trilogy Ending Explained: Neo's Sacrifice And New Reboot

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