FILM · 2003 · USA
The Matrix Reloaded
- Directed by
- Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski
- Runtime
- 138 min
- Studio
- Village Roadshow Pictures, Silver Pictures, NPV Entertainment
78 archived facts 6 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026
The Resistance builds in numbers as humans are freed from the Matrix and brought to the city of Zion. Neo discovers his superpowers, including the ability to see the code inside the Matrix. With machine sentinels digging to Zion in 72 hours, Neo, Morpheus and Trinity must find the Keymaker to ultimately reach the Source.
78 Interesting Facts About The Matrix Reloaded
Interesting Facts (56)
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The film's highway chase scene took nearly three months to shoot (longer than the entire shooting schedule of many films). It was filmed at the closed Alameda Naval Air Station (Latitude 37°47'26.69"N Longitude 122°19'8.08"W). The main East and West runways and parts of other runways were partially repaved and striped as a limited-access highway complete with on- and off-ramps. "Sound barrier" walls restricted sightlines and made it easier to insert the CGI silhouette. Satellite and aerial images still show the remains of the highway, but this is very clear to a viewer looking at past imagery (around October 2002).
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Trinity uses a real hack to get into the computers at the power plant. She uses version 2.54BETA25 of Nmap, a real port-scanning tool used by both network administrators and hackers to find a vulnerable SSH server, and then goes on to exploit that server using the 2001 SSH1 CRC32 exploit.
- #009
There were numerous injuries on set: Carrie-Anne Moss broke her leg during wire training, Laurence Fishburne broke his arm in another training incident, and Hugo Weaving herniated a disc in his neck while being pulled back on a wire.
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Keanu Reeves reportedly volunteered to give up his claim to a share of ticket sales amounting to about 38 million dollars after the producers feared they would never be able to cover the film's special effects costs.
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When Smith pulls up next to an Audi at the beginning of the film, its license plate is IS 5416. In the King James Bible, Isaiah 54:16 says: "Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy."
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Marcus Chong was set to return as Tank from the first film, but after a bitter dispute with the Wachowskis and the studio his role was written out and the character was killed off-screen. Officially, he was not asked back because salary negotiations between Chong and the studio broke down (he was offered $250,000 to do both sequels, five times what he was paid for the original, but he demanded $1 million). Chong, however, sued the company for failing to honor the verbal promise and written contract he had for the sequels. He later claimed the Wachowskis deliberately made false statements about him in an attempt to defame him, which led to him being blacklisted in Hollywood. The studio countered that after the failed salary negotiations Chong was arrested for making threats against the directors. In 2018 Chong released a documentary on YouTube titled 'The Marcus Chong Story', in which he made further accusations against the studio and his former colleagues on the film (for example, that they denied him royalties, forced him to sign a fake contract and even tried to silence him).
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During Neo's encounter with the Architect, if you can use subtitles you can see that Neo's other personalities on the screens shout the following: "You can't control me!" "I'm going to smash you to bits!" "I'm going to fucking kill you!" "You can't make me do anything you old white prick!"
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Laurence Fishburne suggested that his character remove his sunglasses while fighting the agent on the tractor-trailer, to remind the audience of Morpheus's fight with Agent Smith in The Matrix (1999), during which he was not wearing sunglasses, and to better express the character's vulnerability.
- #021
In the original theatrical release of The Matrix Reloaded (2003), most of the signs during the highway chase carried eight-character hexadecimal codes instead of their real content, as shown in later theatrical versions and on home video. These hexadecimal codes were the cheat codes for the companion game Enter the Matrix. That game has a hacking mini-game in which these codes are combined with the "cheat" command to enable cheats.
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Many of the textured surfaces that appear expensive, such as the marble floors and columns, were actually printed on grand-format printers with a scratch- and UV-resistant coating. A number of backlit surfaces, such as the amber elements in the Merovingian's restaurant, were also printed, but onto a translucent material.
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When Neo confronts the Architect, the Architect tells him that "(the perfect Matrix's) doom is apparent to me now as a consequence of the imperfection inherent in every human being." During these two lines, the images flashing on the monitor screens include Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Adolf Hitler, the explosion of the nuclear bomb, Saddam Hussein, George W. Bush and United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.
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Promotional material for The Matrix Reloaded (2003) was in such high demand that distributors were extremely worried about it being stolen. To counter this, stands and banners were shipped under the code names "Caddyshack 2" and "The Replacements." Some cinemas, thinking they had not received the materials because of these names, did not put the film into release until the last minute.
- #028
Some unusual sound effects were used while Neo fights the Smith clones (the Burly Brawl). When Neo is kicked and flies through the group of Smiths, knocking them over, the sound of falling dominoes was used. At the end of the fight, when Neo throws Smith by the leg into his clones, the sound of a bowling ball hitting pins was used.
- #029
According to a DVD feature, among all the statements spoken by Neo's monitors are "You can't control me!", "I can say whatever I want!", "FUCKING DICK!", "I'll smash you to fucking bits!", "I'll fucking kill you!", "You old, white, prick!", "You can't make me do that!", "FUCK YOU!" and similar phrases. This gave the film five f-words, including one spoken in French.
- #030
According to Oakland city officials who worked with the filmmakers during the shoot in downtown Oakland, all red and blue colors had to be removed, so the sidewalk curbs were painted. There also could be no greenery or other plant life, so filming took place in the winter months, before the tree leaves sprouted in spring.
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In the beginning of the film, the captains are talking about the final transmissions of the Osiris. The short animated film The Animatrix (2003) (part of The Animatrix (2003)) serves as a prequel to The Matrix Reloaded (2003), and reveals how the Osiris crew managed to warn the other Zion ships about the army of Sentinels digging their way to Zion, which they will reach in 72 hours.
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The Merovingian takes his name from a dynasty that ruled the Franks (in what are now southern and central France and Germany) for roughly three hundred years, from 486 to 751. The name translates as "sons of Merovech," the dynasty's founder, and they are said to be descended from the claimed child of Jesus of Nazareth with Mary Magdalene, who fled to France after the Crucifixion. The Merovingian kings are known for halting Islamic conquests in their lands in Central and Eastern Europe. The dynasty was ended by the Pope, who ordered the deposition of its rulers and the installation of a new ruler from a different lineage.
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For the Burly Brawl scene (Neo against several dozen Agent Smiths), the live-action shots were filmed in eighteen-second intervals to change camera angles and capture the more than 250 moves Neo had to perform. Some parts of the fight were so complex that they were created entirely digitally, with computer-generated versions of Neo and the Smith clones; for this, footage of Keanu Reeves and Hugo Weaving was scanned by the visual effects team on Sony HDR-900 High Definition cameras. Some of these shots were criticized for looking obviously fake, but fans actually found an in-universe explanation for it: since both Neo and the Smith clones are extremely powerful programs performing incredibly complex movements, their code could occupy so much virtual data space that even the Matrix program cannot render it realistically (similar to how video games can run more slowly when the graphical output exceeds what the console's processor can handle). This theory is not too far-fetched, because in The Matrix (1999) it was confirmed that the Matrix can visibly glitch when a program is altered while it is running.
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There are eighteen Cadillacs from different time periods in the Merovingian's garage. These were supplied through the New South Wales Cadillac Association, and because Australia is a right-hand-drive country, most of the cars had fake steering wheels fitted while the original steering wheel was covered up.
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Among the bonus features on the home media release are the directors working with Keanu Reeves and his responses to the Architect, which appear on the monitors in the background of that scene. One of these takes is a long thirty-second rant so disrespectful that it is almost entirely replaced by censorship bleeps.
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The tie-in video game Enter the Matrix contains a live-action scene identical to Reloaded, in which Monica Bellucci's Persephone agrees to help only after being met with a passionate kiss; except that the recipient is Jada Pinkett Smith's Niobe rather than Neo. Just as in the film, Persephone requires two attempts to be satisfied.
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In the Oracle and Neo's first meeting in the city park, Neo offers her a red licorice candy. After some argument, Neo takes it, and then the Oracle unwraps a piece of her own red candy for herself. If you watch closely for just a few frames, you see that she has a red capsule in her hand and brings it to her mouth.
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Rob Dougan composed his section of the soundtrack, "Chateau," at his home in London without access to video editing software. To check whether the music synced with the temporary version of the scene, he would start the track on his laptop and simultaneously hit "play" on the DVD player with his foot. Once the track was composed, the instrumental parts were to be recorded by the film's orchestra in Los Angeles. Dougan, who had no connections in the city but did not want series composer Don Davis's style to dominate the piece, eventually convinced the directors to let a friend orchestrate and conduct the performance.
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For the highway chase scene, Carrie-Anne Moss had to perform a stunt while driving a modified Cadillac, braking into a "sliding 90" in which the car slides sideways directly toward the camera. To do this, she had to perform a move called the Juicy Lift, a complex maneuver she learned at stunt driving school that involves pulling the handbrake and turning the steering wheel in just the right way. She did it in a single continuous shot.
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The model maker of the Nebuchadnezzar put the initials of its name on the rear details of the ship. They are hard to see clearly, but when the ship enters the dock in Zion the rear of the ship fills the frame. Look at the upper left corner for a stylized JHD and the upper right corner for a mirrored version.
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In Neo's conversation with the Architect, it is revealed that Neo is in the sixth iteration of the Matrix and is the sixth version of the anomaly. Another way of referring to him, therefore, would be to say he is "Number 6." The Wachowskis are known to be fans of the TV series The Prisoner (1967) (there is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it nod to the series in the first film). The series' main character, who valued individuality and fought the system, was known as Number 6. Fans of the series will notice an even deeper connection between the two numbers, but that would spoil the ending of a different game.
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Juno Reactor's "Mona Lisa Overdrive" appears on the soundtrack. That is also the title of author William Gibson's novel following his earlier work "Neuromancer." The Matrix concept was heavily influenced by his work. Gibson also wrote the story for the film "Johnny Mnemonic," which also starred Keanu Reeves.
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In the highway scene, which places the metropolis in the background and the highway in the foreground, a sign lists Whipple Avenue, Woodside Road and Marsh Road as highway exits. Since the highway and most of the filming locations were in Oakland and Alameda, the exits are actually those leading to Redwood City across the Bay, opposite the filming locations, off Highway 101. All the exits are in exactly the same order as on Highway 101, leading to or near Oracle's headquarters. Whipple is the exit for Redwood Shores and Redwood City closest to San Carlos, and Marsh Road is the exit for the same cities closest to Atherton, on the border between Redwood City and North Fair Oaks.
Production Story (3)
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The code name for the film's script (while in production) was "The Burly Man." Burly Man is the name of the screenplay Barton Fink works on in the film Barton Fink (1991). While shooting the highway scene, the directors watched the commotion from a vehicle the crew called the "Burly Van."
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Because the twins' Cadillac Escalade EXT was not yet in production during filming, General Motors had to combine fiberglass Cadillac parts with prototype Chevrolet Avalanche trucks to create the black truck seen in the highway chase. The Lincoln Continental from The Matrix (1999) makes a brief cameo near the start of the film. The underground garage where the characters choose a car is filled almost entirely with Cadillacs. The row nearest the door, in order of age, holds a '37 Model 60 V8, then two '57 Eldorado Biarritzes, one black coupe and one silver convertible, a '63 Eldorado, a '66 Eldorado (the '63 and '66 Eldorados were convertibles only, with no hardtop), '69 and '71 Eldorado Cabrios, the aforementioned EXT and a pre-production 2004 XLR. The second row includes a 1933 LaSalle Model 345C, identifiable from a shot in the first row's fight scene. The remaining cars in the second row are harder to identify. There are three DeVilles, definitely a '70 and a '76 and possibly a '73, an '81-'84 Sedan DeVille or Fleetwood, and possibly a late-'90s Catera.
Behind the Scenes (1)
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In an interview on the Team Deakins podcast in the summer of 2020, the cinematographer of The Matrix trilogy described working on the sequels as a negative experience, saying: "Everything that was good in the first experience was not good in the last two. We weren't free anymore. People were looking at you. There was a lot of pressure. In my heart, I didn't like them. I felt we should have gone in another direction. There was a lot of friction and a lot of personal problems, and that, honestly, showed up on screen. It wasn't my most exciting moment, nor anyone else's. The Wachowskis had read that damn Stanley Kubrick book: 'Actors can't give natural performances until you wear them down.' So let's take 90! I want to dig up Stanley Kubrick and kill him."
Characters & Cast (2)
Easter Eggs & References (7)
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When Morpheus's ship the Nebuchadnezzar is destroyed, the line "I had a dream, but now the dream is gone from me." is a reference to the Book of Daniel (Daniel 2:3), in which King Nebuchadnezzar has a dream about a golden statue that Daniel interprets for him. In this context, Morpheus is the prophet who guides the ship Nebuchadnezzar. It is interesting to note that Morpheus is the name of the Greek god of dreams, who changed dreams (literally "forms"). Combined with information from Enter the Matrix, it is possible that Morpheus's real name is Daniel.
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The side of the tractor trailer used in the highway chase scene reads "Big Endian Eggs." This is a reference to Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels: because the Lilliputians were so small, they correspondingly had small political problems. The Big-Endian and Little-Endian parties argued over whether soft-boiled eggs should be opened at the big end or the small end (Big-endian has also been adopted as computer terminology).
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The effects team held "try-outs," where other effects companies could demonstrate any new technology that might be useful for shooting the film, particularly the highway chase. As with the previous film, the Wachowskis had a clear vision of how the sequence should look, but the tools needed to shoot it did not necessarily exist yet.
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Deeper Meaning (9)
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The idea that all programs are born from the Source, an entity made of pure light, and return there once their purpose is fulfilled is a philosophy drawn from the Hindu belief in Brahma, a god made of pure life energy in Hindu mythology. This god created everything, and it is humanity's destiny to return to Brahmand once its fate is fulfilled.
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The multiple Neos seen on the monitors during the Architect sequence are not, as might be assumed, his predecessors (previous incarnations of the One) whose reactions were recorded during their visit to the Source. According to the shooting script, they represent Neo's different possible response options as the camera follows the actual outcome. This ties into the Architect's explanation that free choice is necessary for humans, a theme echoed in this film and in The Matrix Revolutions (2003), and a concept the machines struggle to understand as they live through causality.
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The key of the opening theme heard at the start of every Matrix film (soaring strings and horns) rises with each film. The Matrix (1999) begins in the key of E minor, The Matrix Reloaded (2003) rises a full step to F-sharp minor, and The Matrix Revolutions (2003) rises a half step to the key of G minor.
- #076
When the Keymaker explains to Neo how to reach the Architect, he says they must disable 27 power blocks and that they will have exactly 314 seconds before the power begins to be rerouted. In the Bible, verse 14 of chapter 3 of the 27th book of the New Testament (Revelation) speaks of witnessing the source of creation (the Architect in The Matrix).
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Seraph states that he protects what matters most. The character is probably a metaphor for computer firewalls, implied by the name Seraph, a shortened form of seraphim, a kind of fiery or passionate angel. This fits the series' religious and techno allegory; it also fits the Alice in Wonderland motif, because before meeting the Caterpillar (the Oracle), the animals in Wonderland look at Alice as too big and throw cakes at her to keep her away, just as Seraph fights Neo to keep him away.
Related pages
- The Devil's Advocate — The Matrix Reloaded comes up in the facts on that page
- Team America: World Police — The Matrix Reloaded comes up in the facts on that page
- Spider-Man — The Matrix Reloaded comes up in the facts on that page
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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