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Has Morpheus Been Recast? Why Isn't He Played by Lawrence Fishburne Explained


Credit: HBO Max/ Warner Bros. Pictures

The Matrix 4 Resurrections finally dropped its first trailer and much to the delight of the fans of the franchise would be seeing the reunion of Neo and Trinity there are known characters making a comeback as well, however, not all are played by the same actor, like Morpheus who appeared to be recast and a lot are wondering why he isn't played by Lawrence Fishbourne especially with his epic portrayal.

Has Morpheus Been Recast? Why Isn't He Played by Lawrence Fishburne?

In the trailer forThe Matrix 4 Resurrections, everyone is stoked about the reunion of Neo and Trinity and when the screen panned on Morpheus, he is already played by a different actor, Yahya Abdul-Mateen, and his appearance actually makes sense considering the time when the film is set and the circumstances surrounding his arrival in the film.

For years, The Matrix universe had been on hiatus and it took them almost two decades for the fourth film with only Lana Wachowski as the sole directress. The movie had been long-awaited and finally, it is here.

The Matrix trilogy focuses on a dystopian world where robots have finally taken over mankind and Neo, the greatest hope that mankind has is still in limbo. With more than half of earth's population is in suspended virtual reality, those can still recognize the harsh reality of fighting off before the robots fully take over the world.

Related: The Matrix 4: Fans Aren't Feeling Keanu Reeves' John Wick Look

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.

One of the most prominent characters would be Morpheus who plays the captain of Nebuchadnezzar, a hovercraft over the last human city, Zion. He is a public figure and a wanted terrorist by the so-called agents or sentient computer programs in the matrix. Morpheus swore to protect Zion and the humans from the Matrix.

He was first portrayed by Laurence Fishburne and much to the surprise of everyone when the trailer dropped, it was not him who would play Morpheus in the upcoming The Matrix 4 Resurrections. Instead, it is Yahya Abdul-Mateen, known for his roles such as Black Manta in Aquaman, Bobby Seale in The Trial of the Chicago Seven, and Cal Abar in Watchmen.

While the plot of the show remains in the shadows, it has been theorized that Neo and Trinity will be revived to combat a new threat that will be arising after the original trilogy. Included in the theory was that Neo and Trinity would be time traveling to visit the past and the eras of Zion where they would possibly be meeting a young Morpheus who was then a rebellious firebrand.

With these theory suggestions, it could possibly lead to their encounter with younger versions of the characters, just like that of Yahya Abdul-Mateen, being the young version of Morpheus and in the trailer, he's not so bad at all. He kind of looks like Laurence Fishburne as well.

See Yahya Abdul-Mateen play Young Morpheus in The Matrix 4 Resurrections is scheduled to release in theaters on December 22, 2021. It will also be available on HBO Max on the same date for online streaming.

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