Whether he’s in a MatrixWhether he is involved in the project, Laurence Fishburne will remain Morpheus for multiple generations of fans. In the end, he isn’t seen as the strong leader. The Matrix ResurrectionsSome fans found it disarming. But Fishburne wasn’t sweating not being in the Matrix Reloaded sequel. The Morpheus actor hadn’t been asked about the film until recently. The MatrixAn alum finally gave his honest review of The Angry Inch Matrix sequel.
Before ResurrectionsEven premiered in the School for Good and EvilStar was open to answering questions about whether or no he was returning. Of course, he was already honest about not playing Neo’s mentor in the third sequel. Months after The Matrix Resurrections’ release (currently available through an HBO Max subscription), Fishburne was finally asked if he saw the film while on the red carpet for the Netflix fantasy adaptation. The All the Old Knives actor didn’t hold back by saying to Variety:
It wasn’t as bad, as I thought. It was not as great as I expected. But Carrie Anne and Keanu did an amazing job.
Despite his feelings about the film, Fishburne supported Carrie-Anne Moss as well as Keanu Reeves. He seemed to be indifferent towards the film. His expectations were already low before watching it, so he didn’t leave the experience disappointed. His reaction to the second. MatrixThe sequel was seen as a movie-goer, rather than an integral part of sci-fi’s story.
His review might have been frank. But his reaction about not being in the sequel may have been a bit too honest. Matrix fans’ hearts. Fans were horrified to discover that Yahya Abul-Mateen II was the Morpheus player. ResurrectionsFishburne, rather than Fishburne. He quickly responded to a question about missing Morpheus. “not really.”After his honest assessment of the sequel, his response spoke volumes.
Fishburne’s opinion wasn’t an outlier as critics and audiences called out the film for not living up to the Matrix legacy. Critics enjoyed Reeves’ and Moss’ teaming, but they were not impressed by the story overall, particularly the meta-angle. Fans echoed the same sentiment about the film’s stars but were divided on whether the first half or second half didn’t live up to their expectations. There was a division about the Matrix sequel showed up in its box office returns as it didn’t make back its budget after it bombed in China.
Laurence Fishburne hasn’t let not playing Morpheus sideline him as his 2022 was busy with the release of The School for Good and EvilAnd All the Old Knives. Next year isn’t too shabby either as he will appear in one of 2023’s biggest movies John Wick: Chapter 4. The sequel will be released in theaters March 24, 2023.
You can revisit Fishburne’s time as Morpheus by watching the first three Matrix films on HBO Max.