Sci-Fi Storm

It appears that Warner Bros would like to revive The Matrix as a franchise – but they are still trying to figure out how.

Deadline reports that Warner Bros is interested in revisiting the franchise in some form, and may form a team of writers to investigate the possible ways to do so.

The original trilogy consisted of three rather different films. The first, The Matrix, established the two worlds – the real dystopian world and the virtual “normal” world, and grossed nearly half a billion dollars globally. The sequel, The Matrix Reloaded, worked to attempt an explanation for the Matrix itself, but got a little weird at the end – but some spectacular scenes helped and it grossed $742 million. The final movie, The Matrix Revolutions, was a pure action flick (so…many…bullets…) and failed to live up to its predecessor, yet still added another $427 million. There was also the direct-to-video The Animatrix, a collection of anime-style stories that were set in the Matrix worlds, and the game Enter The Matrix.

We’re guarded about a return to the franchise, as this appears to be very early on. And as such, there is no rumblings if this would be for the original cast or something all new.

Brother/sister dynamic duo Lana and Andy Wachowski will return to SF with Jupiter Ascending, their first major foray into science fiction since the megahit The Matrix trilogy. Jupiter Ascending is an original idea from the team, and Warner Bros is starting casting for a Spring production start. No details on the plot, but hopefully it turns out better than their last film, the 2008 bomb Speed Racer (although being a fan of the original cartoon, I kinda liked it).

Depending if it could come out more Matrix than Speed Racer, it is expected to be a star vehicle for someone – and potentially a money maker for them as well. Psssst…WB…over here…I’m available…

The Matrix Trilogy has been available on Blu-ray for a while, but only as part of the [sfs=1051]Ultimate Matrix Collection[/sfs] Blu-ray release, the DVD version of which I reviewed way back in 2004. Now Warner Bros. is releasing the individual movies, first with [sfs=1049]The Matrix[/sfs] and now with [sfs=1050]The Matrix Reloaded[/sfs] this Tuesday, September 7th.
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Wow. How do you find the time to review something that consists of 10 DVDs? The Ultimate Matrix Collection is just such a beast – with the [sfs=492]regular version[/sfs] and a cool [sfs=493]limited edition gift set[/sfs]. Nevertheless, I finally plowed through it. This review will start a new type of DVD review to be ironed out, with less emphasis on the feature than the technical aspects.

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