The world is about to plug back into the Matrix, but will Laurence Fishburne be on the other side this time around?
Warner Bros. dropped a bombshell on August 20 when it announced that filmmaker Lana Wachowski – one half of the directorial duo behind the original Matrix trilogy – is set to write and direct the long-awaited fourth Matrix film. Keanu Reeves will reprise his role as Neo, and his co-star Carrie-Anne Moss is confirmed to step back into her role as Nebuchadnezzar crew member and Neo’s love interest Trinity.
That news break came as a welcome surprise, and it seemed that The Matrix 4 would be one big Matrix family reunion. The only problem? There was no mention of Laurence Fishburne’s involvement in the film. Fishburne starred opposite Reeves and Moss in all three Matrix movies, playing Morpheus, the Nebuchadnezzar captain who recruited Neo to aid in the fight to break humanity free from the virtual reality known as the Matrix. Considering Morpheus, Neo, and Trinity are the core trio of the Matrix franchise, and given that Reeves and Moss are locked in for The Matrix 4, you’d assume that Fishburne would also come back for the upcoming film.
However, that might not end up happening.
According to Variety’s Justin Kroll, Fishburne may not return because the film might not include his character at his current age. The Matrix 4 will reportedly feature a younger version of Morpheus, and Warner Bros. is said to be on the hunt for the perfect person for the gig. Shortly after the initial news broke, Kroll wrote on Twitter:
“If you’ve asked yourself, ‘Where’s [Morpheus],’ sources have told me this may point to where and when the film is set as I’ve heard execs are looking at a variety of actors to possibly play ‘young [Morpheus].’ Stay tuned on that front…”
Now, just because Warner Bros. is apparently in an active search for the right person to portray a fresh-faced version of everyone’s favorite freedom fighter doesn’t completely rule out the possibility that Fishburne will appear in The Matrix 4. Someone new to the Matrix franchise might step up and portray young Morpheus, with Fishburne still appearing as the regular-aged version of himself. Anything can happen in in the Matrix.
Perhaps Warner Bros. knows exactly what it’s doing here, and is purposefully holding out on announcing Fishburne’s inclusion to build additional buzz around the new Matrix. The studio already hit us with huge news when it confirmed that the project was happening. Maybe Warner Bros. brass doesn’t want to give franchise fans everything all at once, and is holding onto the juicy tidbit that is Fishburne’s potential involvement until a later date.
On that note, there’s also the chance that Warner Bros. is still negotiating with Fishburne about returning as Morpheus. It isn’t every day that an actor learns that the franchise they last appeared in 16 years ago is getting another installment, and Fishburne could very well be conflicted about the idea of being a part of the new movie. He has remained incredibly busy in the time since The Matrix Revolutions debuted in 2003 – appearing in films like Mission: Impossible III, Days of Wrath, Predators, Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and two of the John Wick films.
Fishburne has also found success on the small screen in his post-Matrix life, playing Dr. Raymond Langston on a handful of CSI series, Jack Crawford on Hannibal, and Earl “Pops” Johnson on Black-ish and Grown-ish. Clearly, the guy has been doing pretty well for himself over the years. This considered, it’s plausible that Fishburne is completely satisfied with his professional life and may not be interested in reprising his Matrix role that he hung up so many years ago.
It’s a mystery for now whether Fishburne will be involved in The Matrix 4, but for our part, we’re holding out hope that we’ll get to hear him say a few iconic lines at least one more time.
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