What is the best order to watch the Matrix movies?

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(Pocket-lint) - Get acceptable for a instrumentality to the Matrix.

The franchise that kicked disconnected the caller millennium implicit 20 years agone is returning successful December 2021 -- with its archetypal sequel since The Matrix Revolutions released successful 2003.

The adjacent installment, The Matrix Resurrections (Matrix 4), is really one of the movies WarnerMedia plans to premiere connected HBO Max and successful theaters astatine the aforesaid clip connected 22 December 2021 and volition prima Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss. 

Lana Wachowski is returning to nonstop the caller film. Lana, with her sister Lilly, wrote and directed the archetypal film. (Lilly won’t instrumentality to assistance with Matrix 4 owed to pre-existing conflicts with a TV amusement she is producing.)

Either way, we’re excited to ticker Matrix Resurrections erstwhile it premieres connected HBO Max and successful cinemas aboriginal this year. 

To assistance get you up to velocity with the franchise, truthful that you tin binge it the close way, particularly fixed the trailer references the archetypal movies,  we’ve rounded up each the Matrix films, including the animated shorts. We’ve listed them chronologically, too, truthful you tin travel events arsenic they happen. 

It's truly rather obvious, considering the merchandise day bid is chronological, but we archer you wherever to slot successful the animated shorts and fixed that the films don't person their fig successful the rubric this should marque uncovering the close bid a small easier. Skip to the bottommost if you don't privation immoderate spoilers - we person a bulleted, glanceable mentation there.

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Matrix movies successful chronological order

NOTE: THERE ARE SPOILERS BELOW.


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The Matrix (1999)

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The archetypal Matrix movie follows Keanu Reeves, who plays a machine hacker named Thomas “Neo” Anderson. Neo begins to announcement immoderate things are not arsenic they look successful his world, erstwhile abruptly helium is picked up by mysterious agents who request that Neo pb them to the determination of a violent known arsenic Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne). However, Morpheus breaks Neo retired and offers him a choice: Take the bluish pill and aftermath up successful your furniture time reasoning this was each a dream, oregon instrumentality the reddish pill and larn the truth. 

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Optional: The Animatrix (2003)

The Animatrix is an animated movie - or, rather, a postulation - of 9 shorts (four of which were written by the Wachowskis) that archer antithetic stories acceptable successful The Matrix Universe. It was primitively released betwixt the 2nd and 3rd Matrix diagnostic films.

The 9 antithetic stories instrumentality spot astatine antithetic points successful The Matrix Universe, making it hard to spot successful our timeline. The crushed we've placed them present is that the archetypal abbreviated successful the Animatrix serves arsenic a nonstop prequel to the events of The Matrix Reloaded, the adjacent movie connected our list. The different shorts mightiness not acceptable successful perfectly with the timeline here, but it's easier for first-time viewers to recognize the Universe with inheritance cognition of the archetypal Matrix film.

For instance, determination are shorts that diagnostic Keanu Reeves' Neo and 2 others that amusement the warfare betwixt antheral and instrumentality that yet destroys Earth. Both are amusive watches but are improved by knowing immoderate of the root material.

If you're conscionable dying to ticker each spot of the Matrix successful chronological order, the database beneath orders the animated shorts chronologically. We've included different database astatine the bottommost of this usher that shows wherever each of the Animatrix shorts acceptable into the movie timeline.

  • Program
  • The Second Renaissance portion 1
  • The Second Renaissance portion 2
  • World Record
  • A Detective Story
  • Kid's Story
  • Beyond
  • Matriculated
  • Final Flight of the Osiris

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The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

Two sequels to the archetypal Matrix movie were released to adjacent retired the archetypal trilogy, and they some premiered successful 2003.

Reloaded debuted successful May 2003 and picks up six months aft the events of the archetypal film. It revolves astir the machines’ effort to destruct Zion, the past quality city. Meanwhile, the atrocious feline from the archetypal film, Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving), is not lone inactive live but has undergone large changes pursuing his confrontation with Neo successful The Matrix.

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The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

The archetypal Matrix trilogy concluded with The Matrix Revolutions, which released successful December 2003. It’s written and directed by The Wachowskis - conscionable similar the different 2 films. 

It picks up instantly pursuing the events of Reloaded. Agent Smith, who had his transportation to the Matrix severed by Neo, has go adjacent much almighty and recovered his mode into the existent satellite by assimilating the assemblage of Bane (Ian Bliss). Neo, meanwhile, has been trapped successful the Matrix’s mentation of purgatory, which leads to Trinity and Morpheus attempting to escaped him. 

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Matrix Resurrections (2021)

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If you’ve made it this acold connected your rewatch, you present cognize that the extremity of The Matrix Revolutions sees (SPOILER ALERT) the 2 main heroes of the franchise some dead. Neo and Trinity sacrificed themselves to assistance guarantee state for humanity and to extremity the warfare betwixt antheral and machine. Well, we already cognize Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Ann Moss and judging from the authoritative trailer it looks similar the 2 characters, present overmuch older, are experiencing a batch of deja vu. 

In summation to the 2 stars, Jada Pinkett Smith is slated to reprise her relation arsenic Niobe from the archetypal films, and Neil Patrick Harris, Jonathan Groff, and Priyanka Chopra are among those expected to articulation the bid arsenic caller characters. The movie is confirmed to beryllium acceptable aft the events of the archetypal trilogy, however.

The implicit Matrix timeline astatine a glance

Every Matrix movie successful chronological order

OK, truthful present is the spoiler-free, glanceable mentation of the usher above:

  • The Matrix (1999)
  • *Optional: The Animatrix (2003)
  • The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
  • The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
  • The Matrix Resurrections (22 December 2021)

*The Animatrix is optional. It contains animated shorts, immoderate of which are prequels to The Matrix. 

Matrix films + Animatrix shorts successful chronological order

The Animatrix shorts are successful bold beneath and arranged chronologically with the live-action Matrix films:

  • Program (Animatrix - 2003)
  • The Second Renaissance portion 1 (Animatrix - 2003)
  • The Second Renaissance portion 2 (Animatrix - 2003)
  • World Record (Animatrix - 2003)
  • A Detective Story (Animatrix - 2003)
  • The Matrix (1999)
  • Kid's Story (Animatrix - 2003)
  • Beyond (Animatrix - 2003)
  • Matriculated (Animatrix - 2003)
  • Final Flight of the Osiris (Animatrix - 2003)
  • The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
  • The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
  • The Matrix Resurrections (2021)

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Writing by Maggie Tillman. Editing by Stuart Miles. Originally published connected 9 February 2021.

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