Actresses Almost Cast In The Matrix

Unless you've been living under a rock, or, perhaps more appropriately, stuck inside a computer-generated simulation of reality, you've probably heard that Keanu Reeves was not the Wachowski sisters' first choice to headline their 1999 genre-redefining action blockbuster, "The Matrix." Although it's now difficult to imagine anyone but the "Point Break" stud donning Neo's iconic black trench coat and dark sunglasses, the Wachowski's initial vision of the character was actually centered around another action movie star altogether: Will Smith.

In 2019, Smith took to his YouTube "Storytime" series to explain exactly why he turned down the opportunity to dodge bullets in the Wachowski's masterpiece, noting that their pitch was a tad unorthodox. "As it turns out, they're [the Wachowskis] geniuses. But there's a fine line in a pitch meeting between genius and what I experienced in the meeting." Ultimately, Smith passed, Keanu said yes, and the rest, as they say, is history.

As it turns out, Neo wasn't the only role that the Wachowskis had a bit of difficulty casting. The part of Trinity was ultimately landed by the then-relatively unknown actress Carrie-Anne Moss, and although she wound up being a perfect fit for the femme fatale, it seems she was far from the directors' first choice. Hop aboard as we time-travel back to the late nineties and find out which actresses were nearly cast in "The Matrix."

You'd be hard-pressed to find a more well-rounded actress than Mexican mega-star Salma Hayek. Since her breakout role as Carolina in 1995's "Desperado," the Oscar-nominated starlet has seemingly dabbled in every genre one could think of, including comedies like Adam Sandler's "Grown Ups" movies, gritty thrillers like Oliver Stone's "Savages," and even poignant biopics like the Academy Award-winning "Frida." 

While she's proven that she can do it all, perhaps one of the most recurring genres on Hayek's resume is actually action. Recently, the Ventanarosa CEO has been spotted on the big screen fighting off Deviants as Ajak in Marvel's "Eternals," but before that, she starred in an onslaught of explosive action flicks, such as "Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard," 2003's "Once Upon a Time in Mexico," and 1999's "Wild Wild West." Believe it or not, Hayek apparently very nearly added another big-name blockbuster to her filmography back in the late nineties: "The Matrix."

In June of 2021, Hayek appeared on Jada Pinkett Smith's Red Table Talk series on Facebook Watch to discuss a slew of topics, including marriage, motherhood, and, yep, "The Matrix." The "Dogma" actress revealed that although she was one of the four finalists for the film, the role's physical demands were a tad more than she had bargained for. "I'm flexible, I'm agile, but I'm lazy ... I didn't get the part." Hey, at least the experience gifted her a lifelong friendship with fellow-finalist Jada, who she met during the audition process.

While celebrating the film's twentieth anniversary in 2019, "Matrix" producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who also has producing credits on several other notable action flicks like "Four Brothers," "Transformers," and "The Meg," dropped a few behind-the-scenes truth bombs about the making of the film. When speaking to The Wrap, the well-respected producer recalled that casting certain roles in "The Matrix," even the lead ones, was a more difficult process than one might've expected. "We went out to so many people I don't remember. We were getting desperate."

Continuing, di Bonaventura revealed that at one point, they had even reached out to Sandra Bullock, but not for the role of Trinity. "We went to Sandy Bullock and said 'We'll change Neo to a girl.' ... We sent her the script to see if she was interested in it. And if she was interested in it we would try to make the change." Ultimately, she decided it wasn't for her.

However, the Wachowski's weren't just interested in Bullock as Neo. In 2009, the Oscar-winning actress told Today that she had been approached to play another role in "The Matrix," possibly Trinity, but had turned it down because it was before they had locked in Keanu as Neo, and she couldn't picture herself with the person they had wanted for Neo at the time. Although she wishes she would've starred in the movie, Bullock had nothing but kind words for Carrie-Anne Moss' performance. "Later I saw the movie and loved it. It was sexy and great because of Carrie-Anne and Keanu."

Although she may have been the inspiration for Gabrielle Union's "The Matrix" audition, Janet Jackson didn't just happen to stumble into the Wachowskis' office during the film's casting calls. Apparently, the multi-platinum selling artist was actually one of the top contenders for one of the film's female roles. In a 2008 interview with The Daily Voice, Jackson disclosed that when she was preparing for one of her tours, the Wachowskis approached her, hoping she would star in their movie. "I was so torn ... We were already set for it [the tour]. So, I couldn't turn back and say no I have to make [the tour] wait and do this film."

Jackson, who in 1993 had shone as Justice alongside Tupac Shakur and Regina King in "Poetic Justice," would've been an undeniably big jolt of fame into the film's cast, and it was apparently an opportunity she would've loved to have been given. Speaking to Wonderland (via Digital Spy), the "Miss You Much" songstress expressed uncontained excitement about what she could've done in the film had there not been scheduling conflicts. "I want to kick somebody's a**. Anybody's ... Kick a new hole in their butt ... I'd love to do that." With "The Matrix Resurrections" bringing the franchise back after nearly two decades, who knows — maybe Jackson will get that chance someday after all!