Warner Bros. is Preparing to Reboot ‘The Matrix’, Because Why Wouldn’t They?

It’s been almost 20 years since The Matrix first debuted in theaters, coming from seemingly out of nowhere and inspiring a whole new era of vinyl skintight outfits and CGI-enhanced fight sequences.The sci-fi thriller won four Academy Awards, spawned a series of controversial sequels and is generally considered to be one of the most influential genre films ever produced.

But twenty years may as well be a lifetime as far as Hollywood is concerned. Indeed, quite a few films that came out after The Matrix have already been rebooted, including Fantastic Four and Spider-Man (twice). So it’s hardly shocking to learn that Warner Bros. is reportedly developing a reboot of The Matrix, one of their best known films, and a franchise that they haven’t touched in over a decade.

But it may be disheartening to learn that The Wachowskis, who wrote and directed the original Matrix trilogy, are – according to Hollywood Reporter – not currently involved in the reboot. That may be subject to change but the news that the film is already in motion without them, with Zak Penn (whose writing and co-writing credits include X-Men: The Last Stand and Pacific Rim: Uprising) in talks to develop a treatment, doesn’t make it sound like they’ll be given a lot of input in the production.

Warner Bros.

Also: The 60 Live-Action Marvel Movies: Ranked From Worst to Best

Warner Bros. is reportedly looking to Michael B. Jordan as a possible new star for their Matrix reboot. The actor has a good history with Warner Bros., having previously headlined their blockbuster, Oscar-nominated Rocky spin-off, Creed.

The Matrix, as if you don’t know, is an ultra-stylish action thriller about a hacker who discovers that the whole world – the real world, the one in which we live – is nothing more than a computer simulation. There was a war between humans and machines, the machines won a long time, and now humans are fighting back within their virtual reality prison. But once you know you’re in a computer program you can hack it, so the revolutionaries download special skills, weapons and abilities to save the human race.

It’s still a cool idea, damn it. And the first The Matrix is still a watershed moment for the action genre. But that may pose a problem for Warner Bros., since the novelty of the original film is no longer a factor, and the characters were – very much by design – archetypal, and lacking in the way of subtlety. Audiences were arguably more engaged with the innovative action spectacle and the mind blowing once-in-a-lifetime revelations than they were by the protagonists and the plot. It’s one thing to tell a new story with beloved characters. It’s another to give audiences something completely unexpected within the trappings of nostalgia.

It’s still early, and these sorts of projects fall through all the time. We may get this reboot of The Matrix and we may not, or it may evolve into a very different version of the project that Warner Bros. is talking about now. But this is not going to be the last we hear about rebooting this franchise. It’s too big, too popular, and too iconic. The franchise-driven studio system will get to it sooner or later but they will get to it, and as always, most of us can only hope for the best.

Ten Eye-Popping Psychedelic Films

Top Photos: Warner Bros.

William Bibbiani (everyone calls him ‘Bibbs’) is Crave’s film content editor and critic. You can hear him every week on The B-Movies Podcast and Canceled Too Soon, and watch him on the weekly YouTube series What the Flick. Follow his rantings on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.