The Matrix 4 is finally happening. After almost two decades, everyone will be having another piece from The Matrix Saga. With the confirmation of Keanu Reeves coming back, one question immediately pops up, is Neo alive?
The last of the trilogy showed that both Neo and Trinity died: Trinity from the crash of the hovercraft and Neo faced his death after he destroyed Agent Smith. With their deaths, peace reigned among humans and machines; a peace none of the two were able to savor.
So how are they both in The Matrix 4? Both Keanu Reeves and Carrie Moss will be reprising their roles, are they not really dead yet? Both Reeves and Moss were spotted in the set of The Matrix 4 when it began its production in February 2020. How will Neo be back?
Theories arose on how Neo can come back to the fourth installment of the film. The last installment teased his return so fans were speculating how he would be back since then.
Neo as a Digital Entity in The Matrix 4
This is not new in films. The transfer of consciousness has been depicted in various films like that in X-Men: Apocalypse and Avatar where the consciousness of a person is transferred to someone or something else. This is possible for Neo as well.
While his physical body remains dead, Neo's RSI can still be there and Neo may have what The Oracle had in The Matrix Revolutions. The Oracle, who was absorbed by Agent Smith, returned to the land of the living in the final scenes of the film. The Architect had this, too.
Reeves could be playing Neo's lost RSI and living inside the Matrix with no need for a physical form to put itself in and control.
Neo's Code Survived for The Matrix 4
To evade too many questions as to how Neo returns in his physical form, this is another plausible theory: Neo's code surviving and appears in his digital form acting as a mentor to new protagonists of the film.
While his physical body remains dead, his consciousness via his code could remain and take on the same role he had before. He stays as ones and zeroes.
Neo Gets a Resurrection in The Matrix 4
With Neo being an allegory of Jesus Christ, Neo's resurrection could be based on religious scripture that Jesus will come back for the Second Coming. Neo's death in the trilogy could be a metaphor for when Christ died on the cross and being the son of God, He is set to come back in his divine glory.
This arc is also a possible explanation why Neo is alive again in The Matrix 4.
Either way, with the plot of The Matrix 4 still in the shadows and not even a few hints have been given as to how the story will flow, everything remains a mystery. To follow the events of the previous trilogy, The Matrix trilogy is available online and these films might have clues as to how The Matrix 4 could play out.
Joining Keanu Reeves and Carrie Moss are Jessica Henwick, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Neil Patrick Harris, Priyanka Chopra, Jonathan Groff, Toby Onwumere, Max Riemelt, Eréndira Ibarra, Andrew Caldwell, Brian J. Smith, Ian Pirie, Lavish, and Ellen Hollman with no confirmation yet as to who they will be playing.
Lana Wachowski will be back to direct the fourth film of the franchise as The Matrix 4 is scheduled to be back in theaters on December 22, 2021, and available on HBO Max on the same date for online streaming.
Related: The Matrix: Sandra Bullock Imagined as Female Neo in Badass Image
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Cyberpunk