Warner Bros. has officially scheduled a 2021 release date for its as-yet untitled a continuation or reboot.
The studio ultimately Neo and Trinity's deaths during Revolutions), with The Matrix co-creator Lana Wachowski directing solo from a screenplay she co-wrote. There've been several casting updates since then ahead of the start of production in early 2020, but now the film has a release date set in stone.
Today, WB announced The Matrix 4 will hit theaters on May 21, 2021. The studio had been holding onto that date for Taika Waititi's live-action John Wick 4, as it happens.
It stands to reason either The Matrix 4 or John Wick 4 will change release dates at some point in the next couple years, if only because pitting two Keanu Reeves action movie sequels (both of which are expected to be Rated R, no less) seems like a bad idea that would hurt both films. Between Lionsgate and WB, the latter already has a fairly packed slate for the rest of Summer 2021, with Micronauts (both of which will gear younger than the John Wick sequel).
Whatever happens, it will be interesting to see how The Matrix 4 performs in theaters. The film has assembled a great cast around Reeves and Moss that includes Neil Patrick Harris, Jonathan Groff, and Watchmen's Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (who may or may not be playing younger Morpheus), and Iron Fist's Jessica Henwick - who, rumor has it, is playing a new incarnation of "The One". And with Wachowski having come out as transgender and continued to refine her examination of themes about evolution and transformation with visually-dazzling work like Sense8 and, yes, Jupiter Ascending since Revolutions was released, it will be fascinating to see what fresh ideas she's come up with for The Matrix 4 at this point. Fingers crossed, the sequel will live up to its potential and deliver an experience that really resonates with audiences in 2021.
Source: Warner Bros.
