Last year, news broke that “The Martian” screenwriter Drew Goddard would be taking over the reins from Lana and Lilly Wachowski for the new “The Matrix,” but Laurence Fishburne has expressed hesitation about reprising his role as Morpheus in the upcoming sci-fi series.
“It really depends on how good it is. If it’s great, yeah, if that makes sense. I don’t know if it makes sense or not,” Fishburne said on stage at New York Comic Con 2025’s “The Matrix” reunion.
Fishburne added that he approached the Wachowskis about appearing in The Matrix, but ultimately they were not invited to appear in the sequel.
“I reached out,” Fishburne revealed. “It didn’t work out. I said, ‘Thank you,’ and Lana (Wachowski) said, ‘Thank you, I’ll think about it.’ That was it.”
During the Matrix panel, hosted by Happy Sad Confused host Josh Horowitz, Fishburne and Joe Pantoliano reflected on the film’s success, the casting process, and the cultural impact of Morpheus and Cypher 20 years later. After being asked about the influence The Matrix has had on a new generation of filmmakers, Fishburne explained the film’s importance to multiple storytelling genres.
“There’s not a sci-fi action movie or a fantasy movie that’s been made after ‘The Matrix’ that hasn’t been influenced by that,” Fishburne said. “It’s everywhere. It’s so pervasive that we almost forget where it came from at this point. People don’t realize it now, but there’s no ‘Matrix,’ there’s no MCU. It (just) doesn’t look the same.”
