Is The Matrix Resurrections woke?
Movie · 2021
The Matrix Resurrections has a wokeness score of 8/10, which we rate as Strongly Ideological. Woke messaging is very prominent and often feels forced or shoehorned in. Characters and plot are primarily shaped to serve the ideology. Many viewers feel the agenda overshadows the entertainment.
Key points
- Reclaims 'red pill' trope from right-wing, portraying it as co-opted by misogynists and incels.
- Diverse rebels vs. white male antagonists, reinforcing 'good diverse, bad straight white males' trope.
- Amplifies trans allegory with Neo-Trinity resurrection mirroring transition and self-actualization.
Wokeness analysis
The Matrix Resurrections exemplifies heavily ideological, message-driven filmmaking where progressive social and political messaging dominates, often at the expense of entertainment and coherent storytelling. Directed by Lana Wachowski, a trans woman who has confirmed the original trilogy's trans allegory, this sequel amplifies those themes while launching a direct assault on conservative appropriations of the franchise. Writers explicitly aimed to 'reclaim' the red pill trope from the right-wing, portraying it as co-opted by misogynists, incels, and political awakenings that view society as debased by liberals—a narrative that feels like a personal vendetta against fans who embraced the original's anti-system rebellion. The film meta-critiques its own legacy, framing sequels and nostalgia as manipulative control mechanisms akin to the Matrix itself, while villains wield rhetoric mocking 'facts don't care about your feelings'—a conservative slogan turned into progressive satire. Diversity is prominent: rebels are diverse, with strong female leads like Bugs, a non-white captain, and recast Morpheus; antagonists are white men like the Analyst (Neil Patrick Harris) and Smith (Jonathan Groff), reinforcing 'good guys diverse, bad guys straight white males' tropes that conservatives decry as forced. Trans subtext permeates, with Neo and Trinity's resurrection mirroring transition and self-actualization, celebrated in queer media but seen as preachy indoctrination by detractors. Plot serves ideology: love conquers binaries, rejecting war for utopian harmony, but action feels secondary to lectures on agency, nostalgia, and cultural theft. Critics from conservative angles call it 'castrating' the original to spite fans, with shoehorned elements alienating audiences who wanted escapism, not a scolding for misinterpreting the Wachowskis' intent. This overt agenda overshadows fun, landing it firmly in heavily ideological territory.
Plot
Set over 60 years after The Matrix Revolutions, The Matrix Resurrections follows Neo, living as amnesiac game developer Thomas Anderson plagued by visions he attributes to his hit trilogy 'The Matrix'—unaware it's real. A rebel crew led by Bugs, who discovers anomalous code replaying the original's iconic scenes, frees a synthetic Morpheus to extract Neo from the upgraded Matrix. They reveal Neo and Trinity were resurrected by machines as batteries fueling a new simulation exploiting emotional bonds via nostalgia and dopamine hits. Neo reunites with Trinity, trapped in suburban bliss, confronting Analyst (Neil Patrick Harris) who weaponizes their love. With diverse hovercraft teams, they battle agents, bend reality, and seek balance beyond destruction, emphasizing choice, love, and rejecting binaries in a meta narrative mocking sequels.
Analyzed by AI on February 15, 2026