In a surprising revelation on his YouTube channel, Will Smith disclosed how he turned down The Matrix due to difficulty grasping the concept during the pitch by The Wachowskis.
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The Matrix franchise is known for its high-concept visuals and action sequences. Of course the one who made it all the more iconic is Keanu Reeves, and it’s difficult to imagine The Matrix without him. His portrayal of John Anderson, which evolved into Neo, is still appreciated to this date.
Keanu Reeves as Neo in The Matrix films
But there’s another actor who could have been in place of him. The actor was none other than Will Smith, who could have brought his signature wisecracking and motor-mouthed style to the character.
Will Smith Was The Actor Who Was Initially Picked for The Matrix Role Before Keanu Reeves
Will Smith in a still from Hancock
On his YouTube channel of the same name, Will Smith talked about how he turned down The Matrix. He said that after they “made Men in Black,” The Wachowskis “made a pitch for The Matrix.”
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Smith continued, “And as it turns out, they’re geniuses. But there’s a fine line in a pitch meeting between genius and what I experienced in the meeting.” The Hollywood star struggled to grasp The Matrix concept when the siblings pitched the idea. They asked him:
“So, dude, we’re thinking like, like imagine you’re in a fight, and then, you like, jump. Imagine if you could stop jumping in the middle of the jump,” he continued. “But then, people could see around you, 360 while you’re jumping. While you’re stop-jumping. Right? And then, we’re gonna invent these cameras. And then people can see the whole jump while you stop in the middle of the jump.”
Confused by The Matrix concept, Smith reunited with the Men in Black director Barry Sonnenfeld for Wild Wild West instead. It was a $175m flop that won five Golden Raspberry Awards, including Worst Picture. And it’s easy to see why Smith says he’s not proud of it.
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Will Smith Revealed Val Kilmer Was About to Cast as Morpheus in The Matrix
Val Kilmer
The Pennsylvania native said that he did everyone a “favor” for not appearing in the film because he “probably would’ve messed The Matrix up.” It’s obvious that Will Smith cannot regret the choice that he made. At least not now. So, the actor offered the justification for why he would have ruined the entire action flick while praising Keanu Reeves.
He said on his YouTube channel, “Keanu was perfect. Laurence Fishburne was perfect. If I had done it, because I’m Black, then Morpheus wouldn’t have been Black because they were looking at Val Kilmer.” In his conversation, he revealed that he “was going to be Neo, and Val Kilmer was going to be Morpheus.”
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Considering Kilmer’s reputation, Smith’s concerns about behind-the-scenes issues were valid. And the success of The Matrix and its sequels totally supports Smith’s decision.
