Warner Bros.' The Matrix 4 was one of the biggest films to shut down production earlier this year due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, and it now sounds like it will be among the biggest films to resume filming this summer. Variety is reporting that WB is hoping to restart principal photography on the highly anticipated action sequel by early July.
To accommodate for the new shooting schedule, the studio has signed its main cast - including Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II - to eight-week extensions that will keep the core group of actors on hold until at least July 6.
Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss will both reprise their iconic roles as Neo and Trinity from the original trilogy, while Jada Pinkett Smith (Gotham) has also been confirmed to return as Niobe from Reloaded and Revolutions, and Lambert Wilson (Benedetta) is rumored to return as The Merovingian.
The new cast will be comprised of Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen), Jessica Henwick (Iron Fist), Neil Patrick Harris (Gone Girl), Jonathan Groff (Mindhunter), Max Riemelt (Sense8), Toby Onwumere (Sense8), Eréndira Ibarra (Sense8), Brian J. Smith (Sense8), Andrew Caldwell (iZombie), Ellen Hollman (Spartacus), and Priyanka Chopra (Don - The Chase Begins Again).
After helming the previous three installments with her sister, Lana Wachowski will be the sole director on the sequel, working off a screenplay she co-wrote with Aleksander Hemon (Sense8) and David Mitchell (Cloud Atlas).
While this date is subject to change, The Matrix 4 is currently still slated to hit theaters on May 21, 2021.