Will Smith will not star in Matrix 5 despite a cryptic teaser

Will Smith will not join Warner Bros. and director Drew Goddard in a new Matrix film for studio, insiders say The Hollywood Reporter.

That leaves open a mystery that Smith sparked Monday with a cryptic Instagram post noting how Smith passed on the lead role of Neo in the original 1999 sci-fi epic. The matrixdirected by Lana Wachowski and Lilly Wachowski.

The Instagram post — featuring Matrix-computer style — said: “In 1997, the Wachowskis offered Will Smith the role of Neo in The Matrix. Smith refused. He chose Wild Wild Westthinking it suited him better at the time. But the question remains: what would The matrix Was it like with Will Smith in the role of Neo? Wake up, Will…The Matrix has you…”

The matrix became a success that marked a generation, while that of Barry Sonnenfeld Wild Wild West was panned by critics and failed at the box office. Smith starred alongside Kevin Kline and played a former Civil War hero, in a rare miss for the 1990s box office king.

It’s unclear what, if anything, Smith’s post on Monday is teasing.

Goddard, the writer-director behind The Martian, the cabin in the woods And World War Zwas asked to write and produce a new Matrix feature film for Warner Bros. last year. This will be the first Matrix film not directed by a Wachowski sibling, although Lana Wachowski will serve as executive producer on the new project.

Released a little over 25 years ago, The matrix swept the public imagination with a mind-bending story, boundary-pushing special effects and a defining performance from Keanu Reeves. The film, which grossed $467 million worldwide at the time, became a pop culture touchstone. The Matrix Reloaded And Matrix revolutions were released consecutively in 2003 to expand the film franchise, with The Matrix: Resurrections arriving in 2021.

Smith rose to fame as a rapper and ’90s sitcom star The Fresh Prince of Bel-Airand became one of the biggest movie stars in the world, directing films such as Independence Day (1996) and Men in black (1997). He scored a hit last year with co-star Martin Lawrence in Sony’s Bad Boys: Ride or Die, which was aimed in part at reviving Smith’s film career after he faced scandal after slapping Oscars host Chris Rock on live television in 2022.