Will Smith might have missed the boat on “The Matrix” twenty years ago, but that doesn’t mean his family doesn’t have some serious ties to the franchise. Jada Pinkett-Smith came aboard in the sequel, “The Matrix Reloaded,” as the freedom fighter Niobe, and then subsequently starred in the threequel ‘Revolutions,’ as well as the eventual video games “Enter the Matrix and “The Matrix Online” (remember that?). And with the fourth ‘Matrix’ gearing up for production, it appears that Niobe is coming back for another round.
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Deadline is reporting that Pinkett-Smith is in final negotiations to co-star in the upcoming ‘Matrix 4’ from filmmaker Lana Wachowski. She’ll star opposite Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and the recently announced Neil Patrick Harris in the upcoming sci-fi action film. Obviously, considering Warner Bros. remains tight-lipped about plot specifics, it’s unclear how the actress returns to the series.
As mentioned, Pinkett-Smith portrayed Niobe, the captain of her own ship that fought against the machines. She was shown to be the love-interest of Lawrence Fishburne’s Morpheus in the franchise and rose to a prominent role as the series progressed.
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In addition to her role in “The Matrix” franchise, Pinkett-Smith has recently been seen in films such as “Girls Trip,” “Bad Moms,” and “Angel has Fallen.” She’s also the host of her own talk show, “Red Table Talk,” which appears on the fledgling streaming service, Facebook Watch.
Wachowski is directing “The Matrix 4” based on a script she co-wrote with Aleksandar Hemon and David Mitchell. Filming is said to begin in early 2020, with a 2021 release date a distinct possibility.
