Recasting couch

Recast THE MATRIX (1999) -- the winners

SkyPilot — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:22:35 GMT

Winner: jdamer83's picks knocked me out.

Neo is essentially a kung-fu Dirty Harry, so who better than Clint Eastwood? As Dr. Strangelove shows, George C. Scott is a hypnotic scenery-chewer and perfect for Agent Smith. And Ernest Borgnine as Tank! I'm glad we don't see him die on-screen (I don't think I could handle losing Marty). Every choice is inspired: John Cazale as Apoc, Dennis Hopper and Dean Stockwell as the agents, Telly Savalas as the villainous Cypher.

Check out page 2 of this discussion for jdamer83's story surrounding the Robert Evans-produced, Coppola-directed Enter the Matrix.

Enter the Matrix- a late 60s/early 70s extravaganza

Clint Eastwood as Neo.

A no-brainer. Eastwood is one of the biggest stars in the world, and his stoic, other-worldly nature perfectly suits the character. Because of a fear that he will look ridiculous doing kung-fu, Eastwood is initially reluctant to take the role, but he accepts after Evans personally offers to buy a house for him.

James Earl Jones as Morpheus

An iffy choice for Evans, who initially wanted the more well-known Sidney Poiter. Yet, Coppola fought for Jones in the role, and after seeing him say the alphabet on Sesame Street (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxwrVw6Vsjw), Evans admits that Jones is perfect for the role.

Julie Christie as Trinity

Cool, beautiful and ethereal, Christie fits the role of Trinity like a glove.

George C. Scott as Agent Smith

Because the man can play villains so well and he looks like the possible devil incarnate, Scott is offered the role. He accepts, but doesn't want his name in the credits.

And the rest of the cast:

Ruby Dee as The Oracle

Telly Savalas as Cypher

Ernest Borgnine as Tank

John Cazale as Apoc

Tom Courtenay as Mouse

Sandy Dennis as Switch

Jim Brown as Dozer

Dennis Hopper (pre-EASY RIDER) as Agent Brown

Dean Stockwell as Agent Jones

Second place: wadetown for his BBC production. My favorite part is Alan Rickman as Agent Smith--that guy always brings a campy danger to his villainous roles. And I'd love to see Paddy Considine (one of the two Andy's in Hot Fuzz) play Cypher. Considine has an uncouth charm, always greasy-looking and sporting bad facial hair.

The BBC presents The Matrix

Clive Owen ... Neo

When you think about it, this would be a lot like his role in Children of Men. A disillusioned character frustrated with his reality, except with a lot less baby-protecting and a lot more kung fu.

Sir Ben Kingsley ... Morpheus

Morpheus has to be bald.

Cate Blanchett ... Trinity

She can wear her wig from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Alan Rickman ... Agent Smith

This pick hinges on the availability of using a time machine to go back and get the Hans Gruber Alan Rickman from Die Hard.

Dame Judi Dench ... Oracle

A small role for her, but since its Judi Dench she'd probably get nominated for an Oscar.

Paddy Considine ... Cypher

Something about Paddy Considine screams for a role as a double-crossing weasel.

Chiwetel Ejiofor ... Tank

Not much reasoning behind this pick other than the Zion-born humans should be healthy and attractive.

Steve Coogan ... Apoc

Bringing much needed comic relief to this movie.

Freddie Highmore ... Mouse

His first adult role. And I really want to see him whip out two huge machine guns right before his character gets killed.

Thandie Newton ... Switch

Colin Salmon ... Dozer

My only obscure selection. He was in a couple of the Pierce Brosnan Bond films I believe. Plus he kind of looks like Chiwetel Ejiofor's brother.

Jeremy Irons ... Agent Brown

Another Die Hard villiain as an agent.

Hugh Laurie ... Agent Jones

For some reason, all my agents ended up being the snide, sarcastic Brits.

A lot of the contemporary recasts featured Christian Bale, Clive Owen, or James McAvoy as Neo. I think they'd all be good (have you seen McAvoy in Wanted? it's pretty much Fight Club meets The Matrix) but I don't think it's a coincidence that a lot of people reset The Matrix in the 1970s. A sci-fi/kung-fu hybrid, the movie sounds like the quintessent 70s blockbuster/cult hit. Check out this post Paul wrote a while ago in PulpFiction1975:

THE DOT-MATRIX (1970)

During the week, young Tom Anderson (Robert Redford) is a Mathematicion for a "research" company (cover up agency for the CIA) located in a desert airplane hanger. On weekends he's a motorcyclist. Tom runs out of gas one night along a desert stretch of highway and stumbles into a Native American sweat lodge where he meets "The Chief" (Iron-Eyes Cody). After ingesting an ancient herbal tea, The Chief takes Tom on a hallucinogenic journey where he discovers that a super-computer is feeding the thoughts of every American to them. Each human's thoughts are recorded on to a unique dot-matrix card filed away in an underground bunker.

The Chief trains Tom in the ways of "seeing" and gives him a new name, Nubian. Although Nubian's mind is freed by the herbal tea, its effects will only last for 48 hours before he forgets his name and his thoughts are taken over again by the super-computer. So Nubian heads out to find the underground bunker and burn his dot-matrix card, but there's one problem. His bulky, square-jawed coworker, Smith (Rock Hudson), starts following him and proves to be a relentless opponent of Nubian's ultimate goal.

Film buffs note the underground chase sequence on dirt bikes as one of the best (filmed entirely in the Caldecott Tunnel in Oakland, CA). Although many subsequent films later tried to cash in on the success of The Dot-Matrix (Three Days of the Condor, Logan's Run, Billy Jack) none quite captured the politcal undertones that galvanized a generation and earned this film the number 97 slot on the AFI Top 100 list for the 70's.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

timeliebe — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:08:55 GMT

Wait a minute! You mean to tell me Spielberg's people at Warners' haven't already done this?

btnewman:

The Loonatrix!

Neo ... Daffy Duck

Morpheus ... Bugs Bunny

Trinity ... Lola Bunny (I know, the love triangle doesn't work, but few choices for females)

Agent Smith ... Elmer Fudd

The Oracle ... Foghorn Leghorn

Cypher ... Wile E. Coyote

Tank & Dozer ... Sylvester & Son

Apoc ... Taz

Mouse ... Speedy Gonzalez

Switch ... Porky

Agent Brown ... Yosemite Sam

Agent Jones ... Marvin the Martian

The Architect ... Granny!

- Brian "Uneasy Alligator" Newman

Portland, Oregon

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

ElChupaBobra — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:54:01 GMT

Eric Bana ... Neo

As much as I'd love to cast an actor I actually like to play Neo, such as Phillip Seymour Hoffman, the reality is you need a serious guy who's a bit of a badarse. We can't have any personality or charisma getting in the way, which is why ultra serious Eric Bana is the perfect man for the role.

Laurence Fishburne ... Samuel Jackson

I guess its an obvious choice to pick Samuel Jackson, but everytime I see Lawrence Fishburne play a role, I think "Samuel Jackson would probably make this role cooler"

Christina Ricci ... Trinity

Hey, all she does is play characters in dreary worlds whether its beetlejuice or prozac nation, so this is right up Christina's alley

Ben Stein ... Agent Smith

There's only one man in the whole world with a better monotone than Hugo weaving's Agent Smith, and that man is Ben Stein. I always found Ben Stein to be a bit sinister anyway.

Kathy Bates The Oracle ... A wise heavy set smoker woman who hints at being a little bit troubled herself? Kathy Bates, come right up.

Joe Pesci ... Cypher

While I think Joe Pantoliano is perfect in this, if you have to replace him, might as well be with another smartass quick talking Joe.

Vin Deisel ... Tank

Muscly good guy who doesnt really need to emote too much except a little bit of fake crying in the end. I'll take Vin Diesel.

Sylvester Stallone ... Apoc

Why not? It's sylvester Stallone, and this role requres very little acting.

Steve Buscemi ... Mouse

This sounds like a role that the Coen Brothers would have wrote for Buscemi. Fast talking kind of likable squirelly guy who gets killed. Thats half of the characters Buscemi has ever played!

Anne Heche ... Switch

i always thought this was Anne Heche until today when I looked at the credits, so I guess Anne Heche can play her.

The Rock ... Dozer

Muscly good guy. The Rock pretty much has the market cornered on these roles, doesn't her?

Dylan Baker ... Agent Brown

Great actor, and he can definitely play the slimy agent type. His performance in happiness inspired me to pick him for this role.

Matthew Broderick ... Agent Jones

There's usually a slimy desperate guy in most the roles Broderick plays lately (a la Election), so this should be a walk in the park and an easy paycheck.

And Ta Da, a way better matrix cast!

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

btnewman — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:46:23 GMT

The Loonatrix!

Neo ... Daffy Duck

Morpheus ... Bugs Bunny

Trinity ... Lola Bunny (I know, the love triangle doesn't work, but few choices for females)

Agent Smith ... Elmer Fudd

The Oracle ... Foghorn Leghorn

Cypher ... Wile E. Coyote

Tank & Dozer ... Sylvester & Son

Apoc ... Taz

Mouse ... Speedy Gonzalez

Switch ... Porky

Agent Brown ... Yosemite Sam

Agent Jones ... Marvin the Martian

The Architect ... Granny!

- Brian "Uneasy Alligator" Newman

Portland, Oregon

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

rybrac — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:23:26 GMT

Neo - James McAvoy

Morpheus - Ed Harris (?)

Trinity - Rachel Weiss

Agent Smith - Will Arnett

Oracle - Sally Field

Cypher - Ben Foster

Tank - Mos Def

Apoc - Cillian Murphy

Mouse - Jeremy Davies

Switch - Charlize Theron

Dozer - Don Cheadle

Agent Brown - Jason Isaacs

Agent Jones - Guy Pierce

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

Andysays — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:21:14 GMT

I already did my list and will let it stand. However in retrospect I've been tickled by the idea of recasting the Matrix as the B-Movie it really should be. I don't have a full list, just one inspired pick.

As Agent Smith, none other than Mr. David Bowie.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

biglebowski — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:11:13 GMT

Keanu Reeves ... Neo- Christian Bale

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus- Samuel L Jackson

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity- Charlize Theron

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith- Guy Pearce

Gloria Foster ... Oracle- Ruby Dee

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher- Steve Buscemi

Marcus Chong ... Tank- Vin Diesel

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc- Naveen Andrews

Matt Doran ... Mouse- Spike Jonze

Belinda McClory ... Switch- Daryl Hannah

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer- Ving Rhames

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown- Nicolas Cage

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones- Nicolas Cage

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

sa54d — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 15:58:55 GMT

The core idea from The Matrix appears many years earlier in a science fiction book called "Captain Jack Zodiac," by Michael Kandel. This played out as a screw-ball comedy. So imagine The Matrix with a slightly different plot but done as a bizarre off-the-wall comedy:

Neo: Robin Williams (or Billy Chrystal)

Trinity: Carole Kane

Morpheus: Bernie Mac

Agent Smith: Christopher Lloyd

Oracle: Loretta Devine (from "Boston Public")

Cypher: David Paymer (or Rainn Wilson from "The Office")

Tank: Christ Rock

Apoc: Steve Carell

Mouse: Dominique Pinon ("City of Lost Children")

Switch: Britanny Murphy

Dozer: Michael Clarke Duncan ("Green Mile")

Agent Brown: Kevin Smith (in the persona of "Silent Bob")

Agent Jones: Jason Mewes ("Jay")

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

JPX9003 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:38:54 GMT

If I get to pick the director as well, i would like to see Hal Hartley remake this film with the following cast.

Keanu Reeves/Neo Cillian Murphy (Sunshine)

Laurence Fishburne/Morpheus Chiwetel Ejiofor (Serenity)

Carrie-Anne Moss/Trinity Parker Posey (Fay Grim)

Hugo Weaving/Agent Smith Victor Garber (Alias)

Gloria Foster/Oracle Melissa Mccarthy (The Nines)

Joe Pantoliano/Cypher David Cross (Arrested Development)

Marcus Chong/ Tank Nathan Fillion (Slither)

Julian Arahanga/ Apoc Gael Garcia Bernal (Science of Sleep)

Matt Doran/ Mouse Ryan Gosling (Stay)

Belinda McClory /Switch Jennifer Jason Leigh (High Art)

Anthony Ray Parker /Dozer Jason Statham (Transporter)

Paul Goddard / Agent Brown Adam Baldwin (Chuck)

Robert Taylor/ Agent Jones Vincent Cartheiser (Mad Men)

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

whartwell — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 04:18:12 GMT

Keanu Reeves ... Neo … Cillian Murphy. Skinny white guy who could pass as a drug addict…check. A big step up in the acting department.

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus … Forest Whitaker. When I think of Morpheus I think of the look on his eyes as he resists Agent Smith’s interrogation in the skyscraper. Although he has gone through hell and is about to break, something in that look also shows the unyielding obsession that keeps him from giving in. If anyone can pull off this look, it’s Forest Whitaker.

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity … Charlize Theron. Just imagine the leather pants.

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith … Daniel Day-Lewis. This choice is for the voice. Compare “I’m an oil man” to “Mr. Anderson.”

Gloria Foster ... Oracle … Whoopie Goldberg. Think Guinan in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher … Colin Farrell. He’s got the look and the sleaziness.

Marcus Chong ... Tank … Gael Garcia Bernal. A fantastic actor who could add some more complexity to one one of the more interesting minor characters.

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc … Kal Penn. Minor character with a little bit of comic relief.

Matt Doran ... Mouse … Justin Long. Just look at him; like Doran, he's got that young, dorky (for lack of a better word) look to him. Shia LaBeouf was a close second.

Belinda McClory ... Switch … Franka Potente (Run Lola Run)

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer … Michael Clarke Duncan. Ving Rhames was too badass for this one.

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown … Ewan McGregor. Action scene/movie experience plus some potential for the occasional one-liner.

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones … Daniel Craig. All around badass (Sorry, I said badass twice in this entry). I certainly wouldn’t want him chasing after me.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

denmcc — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 03:05:29 GMT

I'm going with another cast of 1970's All-Stars

Neo-Jeff Bridges. He just needs to mix his roles as Starman and The Dude

Morpheus-Billy Dee Williams. Nobody was smoother.

Trinity-Karen Allen

Agent Smith-Warren Oates. He will give it some Peckinpah flavor

Oracle-Cicley Tyson

Cypher-Gene Hackman

Tank-Levar Burton

Apoc-Roy Scheider

Mouse-Geoffery Lewis. He was Clint Eastwood's sidekick in Any Which Way But Loose.

Switch-Sondra Locke. Another Eastwood costar.

Dozer-Jim Brown

Agen Brown-Tim Matheson. The Magnum Force version, not the Animal House version.

Agent Jones-Bruce McGill. D-Day from Animal House.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

indieabby88 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 00:32:02 GMT

wadetown:

The BBC presents The Matrix

Clive Owen     ...     Neo

When you think about it, this would be a lot like his role in Children of Men. A disillusioned character frustrated with his reality, except with a lot less baby-protecting and a lot more kung fu.

Sir Ben Kingsley     ...     Morpheus

Morpheus has to be bald.

Cate Blanchett     ...     Trinity

She can wear her wig from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Alan Rickman     ...     Agent Smith

This pick hinges on the availability of using a time machine to go back and get the Hans Gruber Alan Rickman from Die Hard.

Dame Judi Dench     ...     Oracle

A small role for her, but since its Judi Dench she'd probably get nominated for an Oscar.

Paddy Considine    ...     Cypher

Something about Paddy Considine screams for a role as a double-crossing weasel.

Chiwetel Ejiofor    ...     Tank

Not much reasoning behind this pick other than the Zion-born humans should be healthy and attractive.

Steve Coogan   ...     Apoc

Bringing much needed comic relief to this movie.

Freddie Highmore    ...     Mouse

His first adult role. And I really want to see him whip out two huge machine guns right before his character gets killed.

Thandie Newton    ...     Switch

Colin Salmon    ...     Dozer

My only obscure selection. He was in a couple of the Pierce Brosnan Bond films I believe. Plus he kind of looks like Chiwetel Ejiofor's brother.

Jeremy Irons    ...     Agent Brown

Another Die Hard villiain as an agent.

Hugh Laurie   ...     Agent Jones

For some reason, all my agents ended up being the snide, sarcastic Brits.

Both of my lesser agents were snide sarcastic Brits! They were also obscure. Kudos on the Colin Salmon pick, by the way. Very interesting choice!

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

wadetown — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 17:52:53 GMT

The BBC presents The Matrix

Clive Owen ... Neo

When you think about it, this would be a lot like his role in Children of Men. A disillusioned character frustrated with his reality, except with a lot less baby-protecting and a lot more kung fu.

Sir Ben Kingsley ... Morpheus

Morpheus has to be bald.

Cate Blanchett ... Trinity

She can wear her wig from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

Alan Rickman ... Agent Smith

This pick hinges on the availability of using a time machine to go back and get the Hans Gruber Alan Rickman from Die Hard.

Dame Judi Dench ... Oracle

A small role for her, but since its Judi Dench she'd probably get nominated for an Oscar.

Paddy Considine ... Cypher

Something about Paddy Considine screams for a role as a double-crossing weasel.

Chiwetel Ejiofor ... Tank

Not much reasoning behind this pick other than the Zion-born humans should be healthy and attractive.

Steve Coogan ... Apoc

Bringing much needed comic relief to this movie.

Freddie Highmore ... Mouse

His first adult role. And I really want to see him whip out two huge machine guns right before his character gets killed.

Thandie Newton ... Switch

Colin Salmon ... Dozer

My only obscure selection. He was in a couple of the Pierce Brosnan Bond films I believe. Plus he kind of looks like Chiwetel Ejiofor's brother.

Jeremy Irons ... Agent Brown

Another Die Hard villiain as an agent.

Hugh Laurie ... Agent Jones

For some reason, all my agents ended up being the snide, sarcastic Brits.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

pdb — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 15:46:11 GMT

So here's my problem with the Matrix - I didn't like it. So, I was trying to come up with a theme without being too horribly negative, and then like a bolt out of the blue, it hit me. The first thing I always think of when I think of Keanu Reeves, fairly or unfairly, is Bill and Ted.

So, without further ado, I give you...

THE SAN DIMAS MATRIX (aka "Be Excellent To Each Other"):

Alex Winter - Neo

George Carlin - Morpheus

Jane Wiedlin - Trinity

Hal Landon Jr. - Agent Smith

Bernie Casey - Agent Brown

J. Patrick McNamara - Agent Jones

Clarence Clemons - The Oracle

Tony Steedman - Cypher

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

lbenschwartz — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 17:35:21 GMT

If you're going to go through the trouble of remaking The Matrix, why wouldn't you make it a musical? Better yet, a Baz Luhrmann musical spectacular that makes Moulin Rouge look like a quaint summer stock production of Sunday in the Park with George? Bigger, badder, and with a beat anyone can dance to... The Matrix Is Gonna Get You

Robert Downy Jr. ... Neo

Russell Crowe ... Morpheus

Catherine Zeta Jones... Trinity

Eddie Izzard ... Agent Smith

Madonna ... Oracle

John Leguizamo... Cypher

Common ... Tank

Jack White ... Apoc

Chris Brown... Mouse

Milla Jovovich ... Switch

Iggy Pop ... Dozer

Jonathan Rhys-Myer ... Agent Brown

Jamie Campbell Bower ... Agent Jones

The Lametrix: the worst movie ever?

memento-mori — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 17:23:01 GMT

THE MATRIX

Directed by: Brett Ratner

Produced by: Joel Schumacher

CAST...

Matthew Mcconaughey ... as "Nuevo" the Texas version of Neo

Cuba Gooding Jr. ... Morpheus

Jessica Alba ... Trinity (blonde version)

Christopher Walken ... Agent Smith (just so people can say, "It's terrible, but Walken is the best thing about it..."

Robin Williams (uncredited) ... Oracle

Owen Wilson ... Cypher

Duane The Rock" Johnson ... Tank

Temuera Morrison ... Apoc

Matthew Lillard ... Mouse

Jenna Elfman ... Switch

Ernie Hudson ... Dozer

Adam Kempenaar ... Agent Brown

Matty Ballgame ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

mmy — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:24:09 GMT

What if "The Matrix" was a RAIMI brothers production?

Neo : Tobey Maguire, "Spider-Man" ... Perfect age, good actor, physical enough to do the kung-fu, 'nuff said.

Morpheus : Russell Crowe, "The Quick and the Dead" ... You need a quiet tough guy in the part, and Crowe has that one down to a science.

Trinity : Lucy Lawless, "Xena: Warrior Princess" ... this is a perfect pick and you know it.

Agent Smith: Willem Dafoe, "Spider-Man" ... He's the only actor I can think of who could do that "virus" speech even close to Weaving.

Oracle: Rosemary Harris, "Spider-Man" ... or, if we can give the role to a non-grandmother-type, I want Cate Blanchett from "The Gift."

Cypher: Bruce Campbell ... I think here we're going for the smarmy Campbell from the "Xena" series and the "Spider-Man" movies.

Tank: Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Quick and the Dead" ... the perfect amounts of cockiness and professionalism that the role is written for.

Apoc: James Franco, "Spider-Man" ... but not the over-doing-it Franco from the next two Spidey movies.

Mouse: Ted Raimi ... he often has bit parts in the brothers' movies, and this seems perfect for him, he's even a little mousey-looking.

Switch : Sharon Stone, "The Quick and the Dead" ... I'm gonna guess she's available.

Dozer: Keith David, "The Quick and the Dead" ... because Keith David is awesome.

Agent Brown: Larry Drake, "Darkman" and Agent Jones: Gary Cole, "A Simple Plan" ... two character actors fill out the Agent roster.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

sportnjordan — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 00:58:30 GMT

The obvious mixed some not so obvious picks

Christian Bale... Neo

Chiwetel Ejiofor... Morpheus

Vera Farmiga... Trinity

Michael C. Hall (From Dexter)... Agent Smith

Denzel Washington... Oracle

Jeremy Piven... Cypher

Mos def ... Tank

Dominic West... Apoc

Emile Hirsch... Mouse

Anna Friel... Switch

The Rock ... Dozer

Cillian Murphy... Agent Brown

Paul Dano... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

vieirarj — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 00:30:17 GMT

Man, what a bunch of cool suggestion so far. Tried to come up with some different names, mixing movies and TV actors.

Gael Garcia Bernal ... Neo. He has the vunerable look the Reeves had on the beginning of the movie. And is a far better actor as well. A mexican Neo would be cool.

Dennis Haybert ... Morpheus. President Palmer looks bright, calm and wise. And Haysbert is a big guy to stand the fight scenes. On top of that, hencan always turno to Neo and ask: "Are you in good hands?"

Winona Rider ... Trinity. She is slim, beautiful and has proven to be a pretty decent actress. She is also working for cheap now, allowing a nice budget cut.

Hugh Laurie ... Agent Smith. Have you ever seen House M.D.? Laurie is cynical, somewhat crazy and menacing at times. Give him a shave, the suit and he`s ready to go.

Vanessa Redgrave ... Oracle. Why not give the Oracale a touch of class.

Mathieu Almaric ... Cypher. Since Munich I get the creeps from that guy. He was great in Diving Bell and the Butterfly and has the traitor look that the part demands.

Erik King ... Tank. Sarget Doakes from the series Dexter. Strong, angry and almost about to burst.

Kal Penn ... Apoc. Indian looks will match with Apoc. He was pretty good in The Namesake to justify the choice.

Paul Dano ... Mouse. No need even to change the clothing from Little Miss Sunshine.

Mira Sorvino ... Switch. Why? Just because she is hot and I miss seing her more oftenly.

Ving Rames ... Dozer. Do I need to explain. He is the ultimate tough guy with some brains as well. I would go for the creepy Marsellus Wallace look.

Jason Bateman ... Agent Brown

Sam Rockwell ... Agent Jones. Him and Bateman could be given some quirky lines to exchange and make the two roles more significant to the movie.

And as director, QUENTIN TARANTINO!

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

timeliebe — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 19:58:27 GMT

But ... But... Given the premise of the movie, shouldn't it be Open-Source heroes versus M$ villains? Where's Linus Torvald (who headed up the development of the Linux kernel)? Mark Shuttleworth (owner of Canonical, the makers of Ubuntu)? Randall Schwartz and Leo Laporte (co-hosts of FLOSS WEEKLY)?

seven-ate-9:

I couldn't think of anything more fitting than casting the giants of our computer world to take on those of the Matrix.

Let the Microsoft vs. Apple debates begin!

Keanu Reeves     ...     Neo   ...    Steve Jobs (Cofounder of Apple)

Laurence Fishburne     ...     Morpheus   ...   Tim Berners-Lee  (Creator of the WWW)

Carrie-Anne Moss     ...     Trinity  ...   Grace Murray Hopper (First woman to earn a doctorate in Math at Yale; also co-creator of programming language COBOL)

Hugo Weaving     ...     Agent Smith  ...   Bill Gates (Founder of Microsoft)

Gloria Foster     ...     Oracle  ...   Steve Wozniak (Father of the Apple II)

Joe Pantoliano    ...     Cypher   ...   Dan Bricklin (Inventor of the spreadsheet) - You bastard!

Marcus Chong    ...     Tank   ...   Robert Noyce (Co-Inventor of the interconnect)

Julian Arahanga    ...     Apoc  ... Marc Andreessen (Netscape creator) - at 22!

Matt Doran    ...     Mouse  ... Doug Englebart (Microcomputing genius) -and creator of the first mouse!

Belinda McClory    ...     Switch  ...   Erna Schneider Hoover (Creator of the computerized telephone switching system)

Anthony Ray Parker    ...     Dozer  ...   Robert Metcalfe (Father of Ethernet)

Paul Goddard    ...     Agent Brown  ...   Dennis Ritchie (UNIX creator)

Robert Taylor    ...     Agent Jones  ...   Bjarne Stroustrup (C++ inventor)

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

dylan9 — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 19:21:22 GMT

Recast the Matrix

Coen Brothers Edition

Neo - Nicolas Cage

Morpheus - Jeff Bridges

Trinity - Catherine Zeta-Jones

Agent Smith - John Turturro

Oracle - John Goodman

Cypher - Steve Buschemi

Tank - Gabriel Byrne

Apoc - Javier Bardem

Mouse - William H. Macy

Switch - Francis McDormand

Dozer - Cedric The Entertainer

Agent Brown - Josh Brolin

Agent Jones - Peter Stormare

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

perfectpeopleeater — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 19:15:36 GMT

“The Wachowski Brothers remake their classic The Matrix with an Amazonian theme!”

The Wachowskis recently announced a shot for shot remake with one major difference – The Matrix is a masculine computer program and the oppressed humans from the original are all lesbian women! That’s right! It’s Bound meets The Matrix!

To get a feel for the new movie, read a sample line from Agent Smith – “You chicks move to an area and you multiply and multiply until every natural man is consumed with sexual desire to the point where they can no longer think straight and the only way you can survive is to spread to another area like a Dungeons and Dragons chat board where the men are in large supply. You trick them into thinking you want their smooth chests, but no. All you desire are countless luscious mountains of breasts. There is another organism on this planet that follows the same pattern. Do you know what it is? A virus. Women are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You're a plague and we, the XY computer chipped conquistadors of Amazonian pride are the cure.”

Neo – Mira Sorvino – Think Keanu Reeves, only macho.

Morpheus – Whoopi Goldberg channels Guinan, her character from the Star Trek: The Next Generation movies.

Trinity – Gina Gershon – Because she didn’t wear enough leather in Bound.

Agent Smith – Delroy Lindo – No one seethes menace quite like Lindo. See Clockers for proof.

Oracle – Marianne Jean Baptiste breaks it down for Sorvino – Your name is an anagram!

Cypher – Rosie O’Donnell – She betrays the lesbians when Smtih offers her a sex change operation.

Tank - Angela Bassett

Apoc Salma Hayek

Mouse James Ransone

Switch – Debra Kara Unger

Dozer Vanessa Williams

Agent Brown Patrick Wilson

Agent Jones Paul Walker

Presenting - THE MATRIX, the Marvel Comics Movie!

timeliebe — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 18:45:48 GMT

Hey - movies based on Marvel Comics are hot right now, right?

And it's pretty common knowledge the Wachowski Brothers originally wrote THE MAXRIX as a graphic novel, right?

So... I present to you...THE MATRIX: The Marvel Comics Movie! Starring:

Tobey Maguire ... Neo

Hugh Jackman ... Morpheus

Jessica Alba ... Trinity

Jeff Bridges ... Agent Smith

Halle Berry ... Oracle

Robert Downey, Jr. ... Cypher

Michael Chiklis ... Tank

and

Chris Evans ... Apoc

Ellen Page ... Mouse
(yes, I know Mouse is a guy originally - go w/me on this, okay?)

Rebecca Romijn ... Switch

Terrance Howard ... Dozer

Edward Norton ... Agent Brown

Eric Bana ... Agent Jones

...and, b/c you can't do a Marvel Movie without him appearing someplace, in a Special Guest Stinger for THE MATRIX: RELOADED after the end credits....

Stan "The Man" Lee as The Architect!

Excelsior!

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

altonhall — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 20:42:51 GMT

This is my first time participating in the recasting fun. Love the podcast.

This is a tough one, but I decided to go with a mostly British ensemble of awesome guys, to give it that certain flavour.

Neo - Jason Statham*
Not much to say here, but I'm sure he can handle the role pretty well.

Morpheus - Clive Owen
No one's better at that flat, cool delivery. And I can't think of much better than Clive Owen doing the Kung Fu scene. "Show me."

Trinity - Sienna Guillory
Yes, I'm thinking of Jill from Resident Evil: Apocalypse

Agent Smith - Willem Dafoe
The Green Goblin's menacing glower is just perfect here. Too bad there isn't much opportunity to let loose that amazing cackle.

Oracle - Werner Herzog
Who wouldn't pay money to see Herzog serve cookies to The Transporter?

Cypher - Jeremy Irons
I keep picturing his sly grin to Neo going into the betrayal sequence. Adds a creepy touch to the Trinity crush, too.

Tank - Jason Flemyng

Apoc - Bill Nighy

Mouse - Nick Frost
I mean, why not?

Switch - Tilda Swinton

Dozer - Vinnie Jones
That "single-celled protien" line about the food? Yeah, that's all Vinnie.

Agent Brown - Charlie Sheen

Agent Jones - Tom Berenger
OK, so the agents are all from Platoon, apparently. Picking the two Willem Dafoe sidekicks is definitely the hardest part here, but I think these guys work. Anybody ever see Berenger in a suit and sunglasses?

*I gotta throw out one alternate here for the above list. Jason Statham as Neo for the slick, stylized, serious recast; Simon Pegg for the more comedic take. The Mouse/Neo digital pimp dialogue would be amazing between Pegg and Frost. Also, watching Simon Pegg deliver his, "Whoa" and then doing a Wyle E. Coyote into the pavement would be priceless.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

aurora132001 — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 18:51:21 GMT

For fun; the gender-reversed Matrix.

Neo -------------------- Summer Glau
Morpheus ------------ Gina Torres
Trinity ----------------- Ben Barnes
Agent Smith --------- Tilda Swinton
The Oracle ---------- Morgan Freeman
Cypher --------------- Eva Green
Tank ------------------ Michelle Rodriguez
Apoc ------------------ Zuleikha Robinson
Mouse ---------------- Ellen Page
Switch ---------------- Alan Tudyk
Dozer ----------------- Vivica A. Fox
Agent Brown -------- Sophia Myles
Agent Jones -------- Jamie King

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

tsutter — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 18:27:32 GMT

Jeez, this is hard, eh? Some of them may be a little old, but bear with me. Pretend time isn't a factor, for the sake of making me not look insane. :)

Neo -- Christian Bale. Sorry if it's a bit obvious and/or topical, but he definitely looks the part. Plus, he's got the cool factor on lockdown -- he's already played friggin Batman.

Morpheus -- Sidney Poitier. Oh yeah, out of left field there, baby! Might not look the part as much as Fishburne, but damn if he couldn't convince me to take that pill.

Trinity -- Sigourney Weaver. I had to mull over this one. I mean, she's the empirical sci-fi chick, but could she pull off running around the walls and kung-fu kicking a cop in ultra-slow-mo? No idea, but it would be fun to watch.

Agent Smith -- Clive Owen. Okay, I admit, this is a guilty pleasure choice. I have a manlove for Clive Owen that can't be satiated. While he most certainly doesn't look like the clean-cut, suspicious looking Weaving, he could deliver those cold, droning lines beastily.

The Oracle -- Helen Mirren. The hardest one for me yet. I wanted to keep the whole "Grandma-That-Will-Bake-You-Cookies" idea, but I couldn't really think of anyone who fits better. :(

Much too lazy to sit and think about the best, but I think that Danny Trejo would make a pretty awesome Dozer. :D

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

herringdeux — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 22:48:35 GMT

The Matrix (original 1982 theatrical version)

Kurt Russell as Neo

Louis Gossett Jr. as Morpheus

Karen Allen as Trinity

Terence Stamp as Agent Smith

Madeline Kahn as Oracle

Bill Murray as Cypher

Carl Weathers as Tank

Jeff Goldblum as Apoc

Matthew Broderick as Mouse

Nastassja Kinski as Switch

"Mean Joe Greene" as Dozer

Bruce Campbell as Agent Brown

Kevin Bacon as Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

drdkdover — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:53:12 GMT

Matrix, The Next Generation...

Wesley Crusher ... Neo

Jean Luc Picard ... Morpheus

Lt. Yar ... Trinity

Data ... Agent Smith

Deanna Troi ... Oracle

Riker ... Cypher

Geordi ... Tank

Versions of Worf ... Apoc

Versions of Worf ... Mouse

Versions of Worf ... Switch

Versions of Worf ... Dozer

Versions of Dr. Beverly Crusher ... Agent Brown

Versions of Dr. Beverly Crusher ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

seven-ate-9 — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:41:40 GMT

I couldn't think of anything more fitting than casting the giants of our computer world to take on those of the Matrix.

Let the Microsoft vs. Apple debates begin!

Keanu Reeves ... Neo ... Steve Jobs (Cofounder of Apple)

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus ... Tim Berners-Lee (Creator of the WWW)

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity ... Grace Murray Hopper (First woman to earn a doctorate in Math at Yale; also co-creator of programming language COBOL)

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith ... Bill Gates (Founder of Microsoft)

Gloria Foster ... Oracle ... Steve Wozniak (Father of the Apple II)

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher ... Dan Bricklin (Inventor of the spreadsheet) - You bastard!

Marcus Chong ... Tank ... Robert Noyce (Co-Inventor of the interconnect)

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc ... Marc Andreessen (Netscape creator) - at 22!

Matt Doran ... Mouse ... Doug Englebart (Microcomputing genius) -and creator of the first mouse!

Belinda McClory ... Switch ... Erna Schneider Hoover (Creator of the computerized telephone switching system)

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer ... Robert Metcalfe (Father of Ethernet)

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown ... Dennis Ritchie (UNIX creator)

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones ... Bjarne Stroustrup (C++ inventor)

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

popstalinist — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 06:06:03 GMT

So here's my shot at it. Decided to go with David Lynch, since the first person to come to my head as a Hugo Weaving replacement was Willem Dafoe. Go figure. Besides, this is the sort of material that Lynch could really sink his teeth into, so to speak. He wouldn't be hung up on stuff making sense.

The Matrix, as directed by David Lynch

Keanu Reeves ... Neo ---- > Kyle Maclachlan (The obvious choice, really)

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus ---> David Lynch (He's had cameos before, and he'd be so much more of an odd and intriguing guide "down the rabbit hole". I'd also see him beat the ever-living shit out of Maclachlan in a computer simulation)

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity ---> Laura Dern (Sort of an odd choice, but keeping with the now-unhinged nature of the Matrix universe)

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith ---> Willem Dafoe (Less attitude, but cranking up the stoic, just-ready-to-boil-over insanity to 11. It was a tough choice between Dafoe and Kabuki-ed Robert Blake)

Gloria Foster ... Oracle ---> Grace Zabriskie (aka Laura Palmer's mom. This list just keeps getting more and more insane.)

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher ---> Richard Beymer (aka Ben Horne. He's got the same smartassery as Joey Pants, but he's considerably older, and less rodent-like as slimey)

Marcus Chong ... Tank ---> Harry Goaz (aka Deputy Andy. Really this is more just me thinking it's funny to imagine Tank's lines as said by the dopey Andy. This list is probably getting pretty Twin Peaks-heavy.)

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc ---> David Bowie (Goddamn David Bowie!)

Matt Doran ... Mouse ---> Billy Ray Cyrus (Who wouldn't want to see the author of "Achey Breaky Heart" get shot to death on the silver screen?)

Belinda McClory ... Switch ---> Naomi Watts (A bit part for a big star, from here they're all bit parts)

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer ---> David Bowie (It's David Bowie! If he can't be in a major role then he has to be in 2 minor roles. Those are the rules.)

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown ---> Bill Pullman (He's got that wonderful American blandness that just fits so well with the Matrix agents.)

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones ---> Nicholas Cage (Same blandness, more baldness. Yet another big name thrown to a bit role.)

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

JoshDill — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 01:32:30 GMT

Christian Bale ... Neo - (Bale would crush this role!)

Ving Rhames ... Morpheus - (Great voice!)

Famke Janssen ... Trinity

Aaron Eckhart ... Agent Smith

Aloma Wright ... Oracle - (Not old enough to pull off the "grandma" look, but she has a great screen presence)

Timothy Olyphant ... Cypher - (The guy makes a great villain.)

Cuba Gooding Jr. ... Tank

Nestor Carbonell ... Apoc

Justin Long ... Mouse

Milla Jovovich ... Switch

Adewale Akinnouye-Agbaje ... Dozer

As for the other agents -- who have no lines -- I couldn't care less who's cast. They are, I'm sad to say, throw-away roles in this movie.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

ben_wiers — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 22:09:33 GMT

Joseph Gordon-Levitt ... Neo

Val Kilmer ... Morpheus - I am sorry, I think he is every bit as cool as Fishburne, and I wanted to avoid going the "whose another black guy who looks cool in sunglasses" route.

Rosario Dawson ... Trinity - She can kick some ass, in a very hot way

Liev Schreiber ... Agent Smith

Cate Blanchett ... Oracle

Hayden Christiansen ... Cypher - that dude has always struck me as very shifty

Tyrese ... Tank - I gotta run, these are just off the top of my head

John Leguizamo ... Apoc - He seems to fit well in a post-apocalyptic world

Corbin Bleu ... Mouse

Lucy Liu ... Switch

Michael Clarke Duncan ... Dozer

Patrick Van Horn ... Agent Brown

Ron Livingston ... Agent Johnson

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

ayaa1977 — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:03:57 GMT

Keanu Reeves ... Neo - Justin Timberlake - has the charm, the physical grace, and he can act too

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus - Terrence Howard - Haven't seen him do such a role before, would be fun to get it out of him

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity - Natalie Portman - She can fill the shoes very well

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith - Kiefer Sutherland - He played a hero now we wanna see him an as an Anti Hero

Gloria Foster ... Oracle - Oprah Winfery - carzy I know but think about it the voice of wisdom who's better than Oprah

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher - James Marsters aka Spike from Buffy and Angel

Marcus Chong ... Tank - Columbus Short - The lead from Stomp the Yard

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc - Jensen Ackles - From TV's Supernatural but the part most be extended cause he is so cool

Matt Doran ... Mouse - Shia LaBeouf - May be a small role but he would be perfect

Belinda McClory ... Switch - Ali Larter- She can play a badass in Heroes, she can play it here

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer - Leonard Roberts - also from Heroes Ali Larter's husband

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown - Neil Patrick Harris - He just looks cool in a suit and a tie

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones - Sendhil Ramamurthy - Aka Muhinder from TV's Heroes, bring diversity to the agent's world

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

theunemployedshortstop — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 08:49:40 GMT

Stanley Kubrick's The Matrix

Anthony Perkins ... Neo

Kirk Douglas – James Mason ... Morpheus

Jane Fonda ... Trinity

Sterling Hayden ... Agent Smith

Peter Sellers ... Oracle

Peter Sellers ... Cypher

Slim Pickens ... Tank

Kola Kwariani ... Apoc

Elisha Cook jr ... Mouse

Sue Lyon ... Switch

James Earl Jones ... Dozer

Timothy Carey ... Agent Brown

Keenan Wynn ... Agent Jones

Somewhere between 1965 and 1966 a screenplay was penned by a young rebellious Robert Towne for Stanley Kubrick. Aching to pull all of his new found technology and drug induced narrative experiments into the film Kubrick asked for a science fiction story. What Towne delivered was an angsty, paranoid, cold war commentary in the vein of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" on Kafka pills (Imagine Pi with long tracking shots as opposed to the hip hop pill pop montages). He called it The Matrix. Though Kubrick was pleased with the over all story he intended to rewrite much of the dialog on the set. For this to work he needed a great cast. Due to the large budget the first thing Kubrick needed was a star that would make investors feel safe as they emptied their pockets

Kirk Douglas was cast as the mentor, warrior, revolutionary Morpheus. His chin alone brought intelligence and raw masculine power to the role, and brought investors to the donation line

In the lead role Kubrick needed a versatile actor that could play the curious yet aloof, near anti-social youth Neo. A quintessential paranoid protagonist was found when the director's staff screened clips of Anthony Perkins in Orson Wells' recent "The Trial." The two great talents met for drinks and soon a contract was signed

Power and sex appeal were required to portray the role of Trinity. What frail actress could make the audience of the late nineteen sixties believe she could make an elbow bend the opposite direction? Jane Fonda, that's who! Why did we even beg the question

Kubrick didn't hesitate to cast Sterling Hayden as the antagonist Agent Smith.

However these were four heavy hitters. Where was the light hearted comic relief? Perhaps casting Peter Sellers as both the soothsayer character Oracle and the villainous Cypher might balance the scales. Kubrick liked the dichotomy and irony in this casting. Plus Sellers as the lovable snake in the grass, much like Quilty in Lolita, would be marvelous set against Perkins earnest portrayal of Neo

The wacky hi-jinks of operator/ bodyguard brothers Tank and Dozer would be portrayed by Slim Pickens and James Earl Jones.

Morpheus' revolutionary minions Apoc, Mouse, and Switch would be played by Kola Kwariani, Elisha Cook, and Sue Lyon

Filling out the antagonist side of things would be Timothy Carey as Agent Brown and Keenan Wynn as Agent Jones.

Unfortunately this project was scraped due to Kirk Douglass bowing out siting fundamental differences with Kubirck's interpretation of the script. The director scrambled to recast the role of Morpheus. But investors did not see James Mason pulling the part off the way Kubrick did. It's truly a shame.

Perkins as Neo: I (creepy stutter) I know kung-fu

Mason as Morpheus: (In a stodgy, dismissive British aristocratic tone) Show me.

In the late seventies Kubrick tried again with Ryan O'Neal as Neo. Pam Grier as Trinity. And Malcolm McDowell as Morpheus. (Special guest appearance by Robert Towne's old pal, and soon to Kubrick's new leading man: Jack Nicholson as Agent Smith). However this project also met with resistance and was to be abandoned.

Towne's abandoned script was lost only to be seen again in an armoire purchased at an estate sale by two young film makers, the Wachowski Brothers. (These things can happen, look at the lost now found Metropolis footage!!!). To make the script their own (though law suits are still pending as long as Towne is getting that Mission Impossible money) the Wachowski's removed the cold war rhetoric and replaced it with references to Masamune Shirow's Ghost in the Shell and Grant Morison's The Invisibles. Hence the Matrix we know and… remember the first movie fondly.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

laylor — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 06:23:39 GMT

The Matrix: A Spike Lee Joint

Mos Def ... Neo

Denzel Washington ... Morpheus

Halle Berry ... Trinity

John Turturro ... Agent Smith

Alfre Woodard ... Oracle

Isaiah Washington ... Cypher

John Leguizamo ... Tank

Mekhi Pheiffer ... Apoc

Edward Norton ... Mouse

Veronica Webb ... Switch

Delroy Lindo ... Dozer

Adrian Brody ... Agent Brown

Michael Rappaport ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

mike_moody — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 03:00:36 GMT

The Matrix - Great supporting players -- and a few rockers -- get their due version

Joseph Gordon-Levitt ... Neo

Chiwetel Ejiofor ... Morpheus

Franka Potente ... Trinity

David Bowie ... Agent Smith

Alfre Woodard ... Oracle

David Krumholtz ... Cypher

Marc Blucas ... Tank

Jack White ... Apoc

Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Superbad) ... Mouse

Meg White ... Switch

Brian Dennehy ... Dozer

Lyle Lovett ... Agent Brown

Ric Ocasek ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

88keys — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 02:40:08 GMT

Here's my idea for The Matrix if it were made in the 70s.

The Matrix

70s version

John Travolta ... Neo

Charlton Heston ... Morpheus

Faye Dunaway ... Trinity

Bruce Dern ... Agent Smith

Orson Welles ... Oracle

Martin Sheen ... Cypher

Sonny Chiba ... Tank

Mel Gibson ... Apoc

Ronny Howard ... Mouse

Melinda Dillon ... Switch

Richard Roundtree ... Dozer

Donald Sutherland ... Agent Brown

Peter Fonda ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

jdamer83 — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 19:13:26 GMT

Can I make a revision to my recasting? I want to switch out Clint Eastwood as Neo with Robert DeNiro as Neo. That would be better.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

Andysays — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 18:13:59 GMT

In an alternate reality, the Matrix is conceived not by the writing and directing family duo, the Wachowskis, but the Coen brothers. Hot off the success of "Burn After Reading," the brothers embark on their most daring film to date. The film, which features a mix of old Coen favorites, is critically acclaimed for it's gritty tone and bloody action setpieces as well it's dark humor.

Without futher ado, here is the cast of "The Matrix: A Coen Brothers Film"

Garret Dillahunt ... Neo

George Clooney ... Morpheus

Tilda Swinton ... Trinity

Josh Brolin ... Agent Smith

Irma P. Hall ... Oracle

John Turturro ... Cypher

Marlon Wayans ... Tank

Javier Bardem ... Apoc

Kelly Macdonald ... Mouse

Francis McDormand ... Switch

Cedric the Entertainer ... Dozer

Steve Buscemi ... Agent Brown

J.K. Simmons ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

unclefestering — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:43:33 GMT

I went with people who I think could carry the roles well and have played lots of varied characters so that their performance would be different from the Matrix we know.

Neo -- Orlando Bloom *

His acting range is just as limited as Keanu Reeves, well he might be slightly stiffer.

Morpheus -- Gabriel Byrne

Nobody can project rightous anger and and a sense of forboding menace like Byrne.

Trinity -- Franka Potente

She does rugged and yet feminine. she can handle both the emotional needs and would be believable in the action sequences.

Agent Smith -- Denzel Washington

King Kong ain't got nuthin' on him.

Oracle -- Eva Marie Saint

Is there anybody else who can handle and deliver bad news like she can?

Cypher -- Maggie Gyllenhaal

Smart and sexy, Maggie can play seductive and greedy like few can.

Tank - Tadanobu Asano

He was great in the Zatoichi and can be tough when the situation calls for it.

Apoc -- Jena Malone

Let's give this role some depth. Jena can add that something special with just a look.

Mouse -- Kal Penn

Can anybody do a smary digital pimp like this guy?

Switch -- Lisa Bonet

Yes, she can act (at least enough for this role).

Dozer -- Beat Takeshi

This guy could take on any machine that could attack the ship single handedly.

Agent Brown -- Loren Dean

Agent Jones -- Jonathan Rhys Meyers

Both these guys can be menacing, just standing still

*Originally I posted this with Christian Bale, but then I thought that he has too much talent when compared to Reeves. Hope it OK that I changed it.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

FatJesus — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:54:51 GMT

I've listened to Filmspotting for a while and finally decided to have some fun with everyone else and throw out a recast list. Here it goes:

Neo - Will Smith, what director would pick anyone else to star in an action movie

Morpheus - Chow Yun Fat, he's the only one I could picture teaching Will Smith how to fight with one hand behind his back. Older, wiser and still kicks a--

Trinity - Halle Berry, beautiful and could hold her own next to Will Smith in the action scenes

Agent Smith - Heath Ledger, every time I see the trailers for the Dark Knight it's a reminder of what's been lost. He'd nail the 'Mr. Anderson' lines

Oracle - Barbara Walters, she's the only person I could picture baking cookies with a line of people coming to her for advice

Cypher - Ed Norton, who plays self-centered and a little neurotic better

Tank - Shia Labeuf, he's just good enough for this role

Apoc - Naveen Andrews, what can I say...I like him on Lost

Mouse - Justin Long, this would be similar to his role in the last Die Hard so he's had practice

Switch - Christina Ricci, I think she'd have the right amount of panic in her eyes when things go wrong

Dozer- Duane Johnson, perfect for holding down the fort while the others are in the matrix

And finally as Agent Brown and Jones - Natalie Portman and Keanu Reeves, both experts at flat, unemotional performances

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

leeroy711 — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 17:23:37 GMT

Welcome to the Machine

The Matrix (the musical)

By Julie Taymor

After success and acclaim achieved by Across The Universe, Taymor has tackled a new project. She is making the musical version of The Matrix with an all-star cast comprised of a combination of professional actors and recording artists. She has revamped the music of Pink Floyd to tell her story

Christian Bale ... Neo – Just think of Equilibrium meets Swing Kids

Bono ... Morpheus – Mr. Sunglasses is attempting to recruit Neo to save the world from global warming caused by the machine’s exhaust.

Evan Rachel Wood ... Trinity – This makes a strikingly different character than that of the original. Taymor wanted to focus more on the love story sub-plot between her and Neo with some great duets.

Peter Frampton ... Agent Smith – The only way to make the original “Mr. An-der-son” quote cooler would be with a talking guitar. “Do you feeeeel like I do?”

Amy Winehouse ... Oracle – Fresh outta rehab, she looks the part and has a good set of pipes.

Ewan McGregor ... Cypher – He’s shown that he can sing in Moulin Rouge. In this version he sings Pink Floyd’s “Money” as he battles his conscience, conflicted with selling out his crew to the agents.

Dweezil Zappa ... Tank

Ahmet Zappa ... Dozer – In a strange and original sub-plot, Dozer falls in love with one of the machines (which is actually an ice cream maker). In a the movie’s most disturbing scene, Ahmet sings “Comfortably Numb” with a mouth full of mint chocolate chip……………………. And then falls into a coma.

Ryan Gosling ... Apoc

Michael Cera ... Mouse

Michele Rodriguez ... Switch

Alan Cummins ... Agent Brown

James Frain ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

chuggalug88 — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:13:10 GMT

THE MATRIX - the Easy Riders, Raging Bulls version...

Made by Paramount in 1976

Producer - Robert Evans

Directors - Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola

Written by Robert Towne (uncredited rewrite by Paul Schrader)

The cast...

Al Pacino ... Neo

Peter Boyle ... Morpheus (Black leads are pretty thin on the ground in the easy riders, raging bulls movies... Boyle is at bald and scary, which qualifies)

Ellen Burstyn ... Trinity

Jack Nicholson ... Agent Smith

Martin Scorsese's Mother ... Oracle

Dennis Hopper ... Cypher

Harvey Keitel ... Tank

Robert Deniro ... Apoc

Timothy Bottoms ... Mouse

Carrie Fischer ... Switch

Albert Hall ("Cheif" from Apocoplypse now) ... Dozer

Peter Fonda ... Agent Brown

Harrison Ford ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

0thru9AthruZ — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 07:06:28 GMT

Neo - Joseph Gordon Levitt
Morpheus - Javier Bardem
Trinity - Ziyi Zhang
Agent Smith - Viggo Mortensen
Oracle - Albert Brooks
Cypher - Timothy Olyphant
Tank - Jason Mewes
Apoc - Gackt
Mouse - Bjork
Switch - Naomie Harris
Dozer - Kevin Durand
Agent Brown - Michael Shannon
Agent Jones - Harrison Ford

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

daveandsteph — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:07:34 GMT

Neo ... Colin Farrell

Morpheus ... Chiwetel Ejiofor

Trinity ... Melissa George

Agent Smith ... Michael C. Hall

Oracle ... Morgan Freeman

Cypher ... Jonny Lee Miller

Tank ... Jesse Metcalfe (from Desperate Housewives)

Apoc ... Michael Pena

Mouse ... Frankie Muniz

Switch ... Alison Lohman

Dozer ... Dwayne Johnson

Agent Brown ... James Spader

Agent Jones ... Christian Clemenson (from Boston Legal)

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

Cammmalot — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 05:06:59 GMT

The Matrix is too good to remake! Even the Wachowski Brothers who created it couldn't remake it....and they tried twice! So if your going to do it you had best give it a fresh spin ....and so I present:

The Matrix A.I.

For it is not us who find themselves living in a dream world...it's the machines. Same story...different beings:

" As you can see I've also made plans for any demanded sequels.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

DragonManagement — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 04:16:14 GMT

NEO - If we are talking vacuous severity in both tone and expression, then I think the only suitable replacement is DAVID DUCHOVNY. He pumbed the depths of sci-fi for 9 years on The X-Files and barely broke a grimace throughout.

MORPHEUS - Some quick thinking respondents have already stolen my answer here, but for another role...CLIVE OWEN. Think of him in Inside Man, the fierce determination and calculation. That's Morpheus. And then think of Owen in Children of Men, the hope mixed with despondency...that's Morpheus. Also, Owen can pull off the "gritty" of the real world like no one's business (again, see Children of Men).

TRINITY - Again, stoled. NATALIE PORTMAN. I actually think Carrie Ann Moss is an older rip-off of Portman's dramatic acting. Portman does tender, angry, and spiteful much better than Moss.

CYPHER - Alright, try and go with me on this one...ZACH GALIFIANAKIS. Have you ever seen his acting in music videos (Fiona Apple, Kanye West, etc.). Even though his given to the absurd type of comedy, he could certainly hold his own given the proper direction...and this would be the jewel discovery of the remake. Promise. [As an addendum, a friend of mine today said something to the effect of, "Zach Galifianakis has just enough of that look of disconnect between what's going on upstairs and what's actually happening to pull off the Cypher betrayal." Couldn't have said it better.]

AGENT SMITH - It doesn't get more intense than GABRIEL BYRNE. As Wolverine says, "'Nuff said." Byrne saying, "Mr. An-der-son..." seems to work.

ORACLE - Imagine the restraint of JACK NICHOLSON in About Schmidt mixed with his turn in Reds. It would be a great cameo and worth the million dollars it would take to get him there. He doesn't bake cookies, but he could sure offer him a cigarette.

MOUSE - The comic relief of the movie needs to be RAINN WILSON. Think Dwight from The Office whispering, "If you'd like, I could set up a more personal meeting..."

TANK - Lost's NAVEEN ANDREWS would do well on this big screen adventure. Pair him as the brother of...

DOZER - Lost's ADEWALE AKINNUOYE-AGBAJE. Lost is arguably the best show on TV, and it is largely due to the actors holding up the storyline even when the writers appear to falter. Mr. Eko was, for a short time, the heart and soul of the island's characters.

APOC - I know he's the flavor of the month, but I really believe that KEN LEUNG has the staying power to make something out of nothing as Apoc. Think of what Benicio Del Toro did for Usual Suspects as Fenster...making a throw-away character totally memorable.

SWITCH - I want a return of ELISABETH SHUE! She was so hot in Karate Kid and Adventures in Babysitting! Give me an 80s vixen to fill this role!

AGENT BROWN and AGENT JONES - It would be such a small role, but if you could get VIGGO MORTENSEN (think Eastern Promises) and JASON STATHAM (think any movies of his!) to play these two, it'd be a real coup for the casting director.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

bavmotors1 — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:59:09 GMT

Bill and Ted's Point Break Memorial List – The (Matrix) Replacements

There are some obvious choices out there for this movie so I limited my casting call to those who have worked with Keanu before (except for the woman in the red dress) just to make it a little interesting.

Neo- Alex Winter

Morpheus- Gene Hackman

Trinity- Julie Michaels - "The babe who nuked Keanu"

Agent Smith- John C. McGinley

Oracle- Gary Busey

Cypher- Jon Favreau

Tank- Faizon Love

Apoc- Julian Reyes

Mouse- Rhys Ifans

Switch- Lori Petty

Dozer- Orlando Jones

Agent Brown- Anthony Kiedis

Agent Jones- David Denman

And I can't believe this part was left off the list – she deserves something for looking that dang good and getting groped.

Woman in the red dress- Scarlett Johannson

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

karrin — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:54:20 GMT

Recast THE MATRIX: Gender Bender Edition

What if The Matrix had been a chic flick? Yes—we like action films too, and we know you guys love to watch us in all our 360 degree glory. Here’s a recasted Matrix, set to be produced by Flower Films:

Uma Thurman ... Neo

Susan Sarandon ... Morpheus

Angelina Jolie... Trinity

Lucy Liu... Agent Smith

Meryl Streep... Oracle

Tilda Swinson... Cypher

Jennifer Garner... Tank

Halle Berry... Apoc

Dakota Fanning... Mouse

Natalie Portman... Switch

Jennifer Lopez... Dozer

Parker Posey... Agent Brown

Lara Flynn Boyle... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

jdamer83 — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 07:10:25 GMT

Enter the Matrix- a late 60s/early 70s extravaganza

In a parallel universe, the Wachowski Brothers are born twenty-five years earlier, which makes their period of success overlap the 60s and 70s. After the success of THE BOUND (1968), a Godard-inspired heist movie that they wrote (which has as an interesting if not peculiar lesbian subtext), the Wachowskis shop around their latest script ENTER THE MATRIX, a sci-fi action adventure film that's way ahead of its time.

Most studios pass on it, except for the struggling Paramount Studios, which, like in our universe, is run by an inexperienced Robert Evans. Hungry for a hit to appeal to the counter-cultural youth market, Evans sees potential in ENTER THE MATRIX and its decidedly anti-establishment message. He buys it. Initially, the Wachowskis lobby to direct their script as a duo, but Evans balks at the idea, claiming that brothers only make screenwriting duos but not directing duos. Instead, Evans pulls Francis Ford Coppola off of pre-production for THE GODFATHER, a mafia-musical starring Fred Astaire, and assigns him to ENTER THE MATRIX. Coppola begrudgingly complies.

Knowing that ENTER THE MATRIX has characters who "know kung-fu"and that the movie will need foreign capital in order to be properly budgeted, Evans makes an investment deal with the Shaw Organization in Hong Kong. A part of the deal includes a stipulation that states that the production of ENTER THE MATRIX have access to the talent at the Shaw Brothers Studio, which Evans and Coppola takes full advantage of for purposes of the movie's many fight scenes. Also, in need of a special effects artist, Evans hires Douglas Trumball, who has just come off of Stanley Kubrick's production of CHILDHOOD'S END.

Evans and Coppola get to work casting the movie. When the cast is put in place, they find it's a good mixture of big-names with big talent. First off:

Clint Eastwood as Neo.

James Earl Jones as Morpheus

Julie Christie as Trinity

Cool, beautiful and ethereal, Christie fits the role of Trinity like a glove.

George C. Scott as Agent Smith

Because the man can play villains so well and he looks like the possible devil incarnate, Scott is offered the role. He accepts, but doesn't want his name in the credits.

And the rest of the cast:

Ruby Dee as The Oracle

Telly Savalas as Cypher

Ernest Borgnine as Tank

John Cazale as Apoc

Tom Courtenay as Mouse

Sandy Dennis as Switch

Jim Brown as Dozer

Dennis Hopper (pre-EASY RIDER) as Agent Brown

Dean Stockwell as Agent Jones

Despite being a troubled production that included Richard Lester being hired for the actions scenes, ENTER THE MATRIX is released in December of 1971. The movie becomes a huge success, beating out THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE at the box office on the same weekend. Evans saves Paramount Studio with the profits from the film, but he unfortunately spends his entire income for the year on his cocaine habit.

The End

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

tripbreaker — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 00:48:19 GMT

There's a forum about the TV show Heroes that I belong to. A little while ago I recast The Matrix using the Heroes cast and it came out surprisingly well.

So here goes:

Neo / Thomas Anderson - Milo Ventimiglia (Peter Patrelli)
Morpheus - Leonard Roberts (D.L. Hawkins)
Trinity - Ali Larter (Nikki / Jessica Sanders)
Cypher - Greg Grunberg (Matt Parkman)
Apok - Sendhil Ramamurthy (Mohinder Suresh)
Switch - Hayden Pantierre (Claire Bennett)
Agent Smith - Adrian Pasdar (Nathan Patrelli)
Agent Brown - Zachary Quinto (Sylar)
Agent Jones - Jack Coleman (HRG Noah Bennett)
Tank - Masi Oka (Hiro Nakamoura)
Dozer - James Kyson Lee (Ando)
Mouse - Nick D'agosto (West)
Oracle - Nichelle Nichols (Nanna)
"There is no spoon" kid - Noah Gray-Caby (Micah)
Girl in the Red Dress - Kristen Bell (Elle)
T. Anderson's boss - George Takei (Mr. Nakamoura)
"You're my savior man." - David Anders (Adam Monroe)
"Definitely" - Norah Zetner (Eden)
Bum who changes in to Agent Smith - Stephen Toblowsky (Bob)

This kind of thing gets addictive.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

frozenhamster — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 20:57:36 GMT

First, let me say that what I am about to do should be illegal. This whole idea is completely blasphemous and it totally sickens me. But alas, I like swag, and so I will give it a shot.

I present you all with a history of the celebrated remake of The Matrix.

In 1999 The Matrix was released by Warner Bros. to great success and acclaim. It later spawned two sequels, which while financially successful, have been much maligned as a supreme waste of time. To shed the stink of the sequels Warner Bros., in 2010, released a remake of The Matrix, cleverly titled, Matrix Rebooted, a coy play on the similar styled title, Batman Begins. And in a further attempt to relate the new film to the successful reinvisioning of the Batman franchise Warner Bros. hired director Christopher Nolan.

Originally set only as the producer of Matrix Rebooted, Nolan quickly hired screenwriter John August to pen the screenplay and possibly direct as well. Having seen August's 2007 film, The Nines, Nolan felt that John August was the best person to create a film that would completely redefine the world of The Matrix. August's screenplay was celebrated upon its completion. It was able to blend the sci-fi action with a level of dark comedy that lent the picture a more realistic and relatable quality.

But Nolan was not 100% satisfied. He did a number of rewrites on the script himself. One of the alterations was the removal of most of the scenes that did not take place in the virtual world. He replaced most of these scenes with new ones that took place in a new intermediary world parallel to the Matrix. Called the Grid, this new virtual world was created by the humans living exile in order to experience a life as fruitful as that in the Matrix. This new element added new philosophical questions about the nature of freedom and self-imprisonment.

Nolan, however, still wanted August to direct the film, but August had to refuse due to a previous contract to write Tim Burton's The Fall of the House of Usher, also released in 2010. Nolan had to act fast in order to meet deadlines. He hired Alfonso Cauron to direct the picture. He also convinced Warner, based on the success of The Dark Knight's IMAX theatrical run, to allow the film to be shot entirely with IMAX format cameras.

Cauron's first order of business was to hire the actors.

The first rumblings about casting appeared in a Variety article where it was confirmed by the studio those actors who would be playing the members of the Nebudchadnezzer crew.

Apoc, Mouse, and Switch would be played by Nora Zehetner, Gael Garcia Bernal, and Piper Perabo respectively. The roles of Tank and Dozer had been altered drastically in order to add a subplot in which Dozer, now Tank's sister instead of brother, was lured by Cypher into a trap. The role of Tank went to Hugh Jackman, while Dozer was now played by Maggie Gyllenhaal.

A month later, at Comic-Con San Diego, the actors playing Cypher, The Oracle, Trinity, Morpheus, and the minor roles of Agents Brown and Jones were revealed to a cheering crowd. Taking on the role of Cypher would be Children of Men star Clive Owen. The Oracle would be played by Chiwetel Ejiofor. 300 star Lena Heady got the role of Trinity and Morpheus would be played by veteran British actor Michael Caine. In a surprise for Comic-Con is was announced that playing both Agent Brown and Agent Jones would be Batman Begins star Christian Bale.

The identities of the actors playing Neo and Agent Smith were successfully kept a secret until the very first teaser trailer. The teaser introduced the world to Guy Pierce as Neo and Gary Oldman as Smith.

The film opened in May 2010 to thunderous praise. Rather than use the slow-motion and bullet time effects from the original film, Matrix Rebooted went for a more realistic style of fighting and camerawork that looked practically as though there weren't even any special effects at all. Critics lauded the new, gritty style and made special mention of the new film's dark sense of humour and solid social satire.

Audiences seemed to love the film even more. In its theatrical run it went on to surpass Titanic in every area. Taking in 1.4 billion dollars domestically, and over double that in overseas ticket sales, Matrix Rebooted quickly became known as an American classic. Nobody thought The Matrix could ever be remade, but under the leadership of Chris Nolan and the direction of Alfonso Cauron Matrix Rebooted proved all the naysayers wrong.

Matrix Rebooted

An Alfonso Cauron Film

Written by John August and Christopher Nolan

Starring:

Neo - Guy Pierce

Agent Smith - Gary Oldman

Morpheus - Michael Caine

Trinity - Lena Heady

Cypher - Clive Owen

Tank - Hugh Jackman

Dozer - Maggie Gyllenhaal

Mouse - Gael Garcia Bernal

Apoc - Nora Zehetner

Switch - Piper Perabo

With:

Chiwetel Ejiofor as The Oracle

And

Chritian Bale as Agents Brown and Jones

RESTARTING IS ONLY THE BEGINNING

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

forticus — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 17:32:06 GMT

George Lucas version of the Matrix in a computer far far away.Narration by James Earl Jones

Neo-Hayden Christensen(Star Wars)

Morpheus-Samuel Jackson(Star Wars)

Trinity-Natalie Portman(Star Wars)

Agent Smith-Mark Hamill(Star Wars)

Oracle-Carrie Fisher(Star Wars)

Cypher-Robert Duvall(THX1138)

Tank-Ahmed Best(Star Wars)

Apoc-Peter Mayhew(Star Wars)

Mouse-Ron Howard (American Graffiti)

Dozer-Billy D. Williams(Star Wars)

Switch-Cindy Williams (American Graffiti)

Agent Brown-Ewan Mcgregor(Star wars)

Agent Jones-Liam Neeson(Star Wars)

To be continued............................

The Keymaker-Richard Dreyfuss(American Graffiti)

Train Man-Bruce Spence(Star Wars)

Link-Harrison Ford(Star Wars)

The Architect-Christopher Lee( Star Wars)

Seraph-Ray Park( Star Wars)

Commander Lock-Alex Guinness(Star Wars)

Commander Locks lieutenant-Jimmy Smits(Star Wars)

Twin 1-Peter Cushing(Star Wars)

Twin 2-Ian Mcdiarmid(Star Wars)

Merovingian-Anthony Daniels(Star Wars)

Raver 1-Kenny Baker(Star Wars)

Raver 2-Warwick Davis(Star Wars)

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

jdamer83 — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 17:05:12 GMT

This one's a doozy. I can think of some names that would work, but this is hard.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

Labuza — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 01:59:03 GMT

The Matrix—The Michael Bay Version

Less Philosophy, More Tits and Explosions!

Shia Labouf ... Neo

Will Smith ... Morpheus

Scarlett Johnannsen ... Trinity

John Turturo ... Agent Smith

Alec Baldwin (it isn't a gender specific role) ... Oracle

Steve Buscemi ... Cypher

Michael Clarke Duncan ... Tank

William Fichtner ... Apoc

Josh Hartnett ... Mouse

Michael Biehn ... Switch

Martin Lawrence ... Dozer

Peter Stromare ... Agent Brown

Ed Harris ... Agent Jones

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

Caustic712 — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 01:42:58 GMT

WHAT IS THE MATRIX?

An M. Night Shyamalan Film

Keanu Reeves ... Neo ... MARK WAHLBERG

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus ... SAMUEL L. JACKSON

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity... BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith ... ADRIEN BRODY

Gloria Foster ... Oracle ... M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher ... PAUL GIAMATTI

Marcus Chong ... Tank ... FREDDY RODRIGUEZ

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc... DONNIE WAHLBERG

Matt Doran ... Mouse ... HALEY JOEL OSMENT

Belinda McClory ... Switch ... JUDY GREER

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer... JOHN LEGUIZAMO

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown... JESSE EISENBERG

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones... MICHAEL PITT

And for the sequels...

The Keymaker... BOB BALABAN

Seraph... JEFFREY WRIGHT

Niobe... TONI COLLETTE

The Merovingian... MEL GIBSON

Persephone... SIGOURNEY WEAVER

Zee... ZOOEY DESCHANEL

Link... JOAQUIN PHOENIX

Commander Lock... BRUCE WILLIS

The Architect ... WILLIAM HURT

Trainman... BETTY BUCKLEY

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

indieabby88 — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 21:44:04 GMT

Don't you think it's a little soon to recast this? I mean, I still feel like the people in their original roles (for the most part) are still the best picks. Still, it never hurts to get the 'ol creative juices flowing. Here goes:

James McAvoy ... Neo--Fresh from "Wanted," where he played a similarly disaffected cubicle-junkie. Did anyone else think the office scenes at the film's beginning seemed a little familiar?

Samuel L. Jackson ... Morpheus--I think he might put an interesting spin on Fishburne's zen-calm resistance fighter master.

Radha Mitchell (Pitch Black) ... Trinity-- Mitchell seems pretty suited to this stuff, considering much of her resume is made up of B-grade action, sci-fi and horror movies. This would provide a nice break.

Mads Mikkelsen ... Agent Smith--This took some serious thought. But I'm of the opinion that Mikkelsen can play cold pretty well. Plus, if they can make him cry blood at some point during the course of the movie, even better.

Phylicia Rashad ... Oracle--She seems to have the right presence to be both comforting and alarming at the same time.

Colin Farrell ... Cypher-- He has the ability to at least appear charming, but also the ability to be a total sleaze.

Casey Affleck ... Tank--This is a pretty random choice, really. Still, it's worth a thought.

Konstantin Khabensky (Night Watch/Day Watch) ... Apoc--I liked him very much in "Night Watch," and I'd like to see what he could bring to the table in an American Sci-Fi action movie.

Ben Wishaw ... Mouse--He just looks the part, I think.

Franka Potente ... Switch--I just think it'd be cool.

Ron Perlman ... Dozer--Think about it. What does the Matrix need to be even more badass than it already is? Answer: Ron Perlman! Of course!

Julian Rhind-Tutt (Stardust, Tomb Raider) ... Agent Brown--He's got the right demeanor, and I think it'd be kind of neat to put a comic actor in that role.

Adam Buxton ... Agent Jones--Again, comic actor in a creepy role. I always thought the Agents could use a bit of black humor.

Re:Take the red pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

HarryO — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 19:37:19 GMT

sk8er version

Keanu Reeves     ...     Neo ...rodney mullen
Laurence Fishburne     ...     Morpheus ...dawon song
Carrie-Anne Moss     ...     Trinity ...sean white

Gloria Foster     ...     Oracle... Tony Hawk
Joe Pantoliano    ...     Cypher... mike valley
Marcus Chong    ...     Tank ...danny way
Julian Arahanga    ...     Apoc ....Elissa Steamer
Matt Doran    ...     Mouse ...rob dyrdrek
Belinda McClory    ...     Switch ...ryan sheckler

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer ...chad muska

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith.... Bam Margera

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown ...steve o
Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones ...wee man

Recasting THE MATRIX (1999) -- Winners announced

SkyPilot — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 13:49:50 GMT

The winners of the Matrix recasting contest have been announced at the end of this discussion and on the Filmspotting podcast.

Take the Red Pill: Recast THE MATRIX (1999)

Here's a bit of trivia: did you know the Wachowski brothers originally conceived of The Matrix as a graphic novel? The movie pitch they presented to Warner Brothers was 600 pages of storyboard, pretty much a graphic novel in itself.

For those who gripe about Keanu Reeves, it's time to put your money where your mouth is and pick a better Neo. But can anyone fill Hugo Weaving's shoes? I've been imagining other actors saying "Mister An-der-son," and they all just seem...wrong.

Keanu Reeves ... Neo

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith

Gloria Foster ... Oracle

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher

Marcus Chong ... Tank

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc

Matt Doran ... Mouse

Belinda McClory ... Switch

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones

Here are the names again so you can copy/paste them more easily:

Keanu Reeves ... Neo

Laurence Fishburne ... Morpheus

Carrie-Anne Moss ... Trinity

Hugo Weaving ... Agent Smith

Gloria Foster ... Oracle

Joe Pantoliano ... Cypher

Marcus Chong ... Tank

Julian Arahanga ... Apoc

Matt Doran ... Mouse

Belinda McClory ... Switch

Anthony Ray Parker ... Dozer

Paul Goddard ... Agent Brown

Robert Taylor ... Agent Jones