Jonathan Groff fares irably, but Keanu Reeves as Neo, Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity, and Jada Pinkett-Smith as Niobe. Though Laurence Fishburne is missing, that's only because Morpheus' death facilitates The Matrix Resurrections' plot. The absence of Hugo Weaving, however, is far more curious. Weaving initially agreed to reprise Neo's iconic digital nemesis one more time, but was forced to back out when The Matrix Resurrections' filming schedule unexpectedly shifted.
Instead, Smith is portrayed by Hamilton's Jonathan Groff. Revived via his symbiotic connection to Neo, the new Smith is trapped inside The Analyst's Matrix playing Thomas Anderson's boss at Deus Machina, but once Neo's true self awakens, so too does Smith's. They predictably come to blows, but Neo and Smith soon find their purposes aligning over a shared hatred of Neil Patrick Harris. Thus, Neo and Smith reluctantly team up against The Analyst in The Matrix Resurrections' final act.
Jonathan Groff nails his Doctor Who's Doctor. There are flashes of the former version, but each incarnation represents a distinct, separate entity with its own inflections and personality traits. Groff's Smith is more casual, typically referring to Neo as "Tom" instead of the traditional "Mr. Anderson." Smith 2.0 also replaces Hugo Weaving's seething menace with a cockier slant, his insanity bordering on whimsical. Groff plays a compelling alternate Smith, but therein lies The Matrix Resurrections' problem - Groff is undeniably an alternate Smith.
The Matrix Resurrections plays heavily upon nostalgia, and makes precisely zero attempt to hide that fact. During both Smith's watery awakening and his warehouse basement slug-fest against Neo, The Matrix Resurrections drops deliberate callbacks to 1999 through dialogue, direction, and even combat techniques. Keanu Reeves' Neo vs. Jonathan Groff's Smith is presented as a "rematch of a millennium" - finally, after many years of waiting, these fated enemies are going head-to-head all over again. But because Smith wears a different face - and, more importantly, because Groff plays the villain with a totally different emphasis - their clash feels less like a rematch, and more like Neo facing off against a completely new opponent. Replace Groff's Smith with Hugo Weaving's original, however, and suddenly their Matrix Resurrections' kung-fu frenzy is injected with a true sense of legacy - a connective thread to the past that visual and audio callbacks alone can't match.
Hugo Weaving's absence becomes even more glaring during The Matrix Resurrections' final act, when Smith temporarily allies with Neo. Back in the Wachowskis' original Matrix trilogy, the notion of Neo and Smith fighting on the same side was completely unthinkable - a ridiculous suggestion not even The Oracle would see coming. Smith helping Neo in The Matrix Resurrections' final battle should represent a groundbreaking, landmark moment, and one of the biggest villain twists in movie history. Because Jonathan Groff's Smith is effectively a completely new character, however, the team-up feels nowhere near as shocking as it would if Hugo Weaving were still in the role. Groff-Smith is so chilled out compared to his predecessor a team-up almost seems logical, but imagine the impact if original Smith were to swallow his pride and assist Neo...
Aside from the core story of Neo rescuing Trinity, little else truly matters in The Matrix Resurrections - Smith's comeback included. That's more because Hugo Weaving's original performance was so inimitably iconic than because Jonathan Groff does anything wrong, and is worsened by a creeping realization that Smith's youthful face-lift makes little sense. Neo and Trinity also get Matrix makeovers, but audiences only see Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss. Beyond Weaving's scheduling problem, there's no reason Smith should be an exception. Maybe if The Matrix Resurrections hadn't leaned so heavily into the Neo vs. Smith nostalgia, Jonathan Groff's version could've succeeded on its own merits, but since Lana Wachowski deliberately evokes fond memories from former films, The Matrix Resurrections should've held out for Hugo Weaving.
