The Matrix Resurrections is now out, and it’s safe to say the trailers didn’t prepare us for the insane levels of meta-commentary. The film is as much about the problems of making a fourth Matrix movie as it is about Neo’s post-Revolutions story, and is already dividing critics and fans.
But one particularly cool aspect will only be appreciated by hardcore Fortnite fans. In the movie, Keanu Reeves’ Neo is now an acclaimed game developer who created a hugely popular trilogy of Matrix games. He’s developing a new game as we meet him – and one member of staff is played by Donald Mustard, the real-life chief creative officer of Fortnite developer Epic Games.
Mustard pops up when Neo’s office is attacked, commenting that the person responsible is probably “someone pissed about the latest update.”
It’s a fun nod as The Matrix and Epic Games now have a very close relationship. They recently collaborated on jaw-dropping Unreal Engine 5 showcase The Matrix Awakens on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, which is a quantum leap in gaming graphical fidelity.
Beyond that, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Unreal technology was used for Resurrections‘ special effects. The tech was used in The Mandalorian, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and the upcoming The Batman, and is quickly becoming something of an industry-standard as it allows almost instantaneous pre-viz.
There’s also a bunch of Matrix content now in Fortnite. Players have access to an emote showing Trinity’s iconic floating kick and Neo’s bullet-dodging move, as well as a Sentinel glider and Matrix code gun wrap.
The Matrix Awakens was such a good demo I’m hoping it’s expanded into a full game. Let’s hope we hear more soon.
The Matrix Resurrections is now in theaters and on HBO Max.