most important scenes in the Matrix movies revolve around a huge twist or moment concerning the sprawling simulation in question. The larger narrative can be difficult to follow due to the complex worldbuilding, so it can take more than a single viewing for the saga to make complete sense.

decided to focus more on the Real World, 2021's The Matrix Resurrections restored the series' focus on the franchise's titular setting. The saga is a strong allegory for the Christian faith, with Keanu Reeves' Thomas "Neo" Anderson as the Jesus-like character, but The Matrix also adopts several sci-fi tropes to make it an undeniably creative endeavor. One of the downsides of the Wachowskis' dense scripts is that some of the finer points can be easy to miss.

How & Why The Matrix Was Created

The Matrix was created by the Machines to keep the minds of batch-grown humans occupied

The Matrix is a manmade construction by extension only. Its initial origin goes back to humanity's development of bona fide artificial intelligence late in the 21st century. The Machines that were initially created with this advanced digital sentience were put into humanity's service. How the new form of life was treated by humans soon resulted in intense conflict, and eventually, war with the Machines. Although the Machines won the war, the planet was left devastated, and the victors were left without a reliable source of energy. So, they started to grow humans in pods, siphoning off the electricity they created.

To keep the human minds occupied during their imprisonment, their bodies in the Real World were augmented not only with tubes to provide nutrients but also with a direct cerebral link to a shared computer simulation called the Matrix. The individuals jacked into the Matrix often live their entire lives without discovering they're experiencing a highly sophisticated digital environment. Very occasionally, someone in the Matrix works out what is happening and finds a way to free themselves, and eventually others. As such, there is a small human population that exists outside the Matrix, but out of sight of the Machines.

The Matrix's Previous Versions Explained

Earlier iterations of the Machines' simulation looked very different

The versions of the Matrix shown in the movies are not the simulation's first iteration. The Machines found it more difficult than they expected to provide the human mind with a reality believable enough to fall for. As revealed by Hugo Weaving's Agent Smith in 1999's The Matrix, initial attempts at creating such an environment resulted in the Machines creating an idyllic, paradisiacal setting in which humanity was intended to reside.

The year in the Matrix doesn't reflect the year in the Real World. Instead, the simulation takes on eras from before the Machines' war with humanity. For instance, the Matrix in the first movie is an artificial reconstruction of society in 1999, despite Morpheus' declaration that the current year is "closer to 2199."

Smith describes the endeavor as a "disaster," telling Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) that "entire crops were lost" due to them not accepting the program as believable - presumably causing them to die. The loss of vat-grown humans meant less energy for the Machines to harvest, so they continually tweaked the Matrix until the trapped minds ceased rebelling against the logic of their surroundings. Several versions have been trialed and tested by the time of the first movie.

The Matrix's Programs & Hierarchy Explained

The digital world is also home to sentient computer programs

Humans aren't the only conscious entities in the Matrix, as the simulation is also home to many artificial lifeforms, known simply as Programs. They all have specific roles, but they are also not necessarily on the same team. At the very top of the hierarchy is the Architect, played by Helmut Bakaitus in The Matrix Revolutions. The Architect was created by the Machines, and he in turn created the Matrix. The Architect's counterpart within the Matrix is the Oracle - a role shared by Gloria Foster and Mary Alice.

Said Programs tend only to interact with the humans who have been freed from the Matrix, and have hacked back in from a remote location in an attempt to explore the simulation and bring it down from the inside.

While it's the Architect's job to keep the Matrix steady, it's the Oracle's job to keep certain equations out of balance. The Matrix is also littered with other Programs that run into Neo and the other human characters. However, said Programs tend only to interact with the humans who have been freed from the Matrix, and have hacked back in from a remote location in an attempt to explore the simulation and bring it down from the inside. Otherwise, the Programs tend to wander around in positions of authority and other people in power.

Two other key Programs are the Trainman (Bruce Spence) and the Merovingian (Lambert Wilson), who are both Exiles. An Exile is an outdated Program that has since been replaced, and they tend to operate as a criminal organization might do.

Agents are created by the Matrix to aid in concealing the deception. The most prominent Agent in the Matrix is Agent Smith. He not only goes rogue, but Smith also finds a way to briefly enter the Real World in Revolutions. In Resurrections, the Architect has been purged from the system by Neo's success in bringing down the Matrix, and the Machines replace Bakaitus' character with a new Program called the Analyst, played by Neil Patrick Harris.

The Analyst dispenses with Agents and replaces them with Bots, which are far more numerous, but blend in with the general population much more seamlessly. The Bots don't seem to know they aren't human until they're called into action by the Analyst. They also have a terrifying "Swarm Mode," which causes them to rapidly converge on a target of the Analyst's choosing.

How Neo Brings The Matrix Down In Revolutions

The One uses his powers to clear the Matrix of all the Agent Smith copies

Although Neo doesn't end the entire infrastructure at the end of the original Matrix trilogy, he does manage to bring to its knees the version that's shown throughout the first three movies. Interestingly, he wouldn't have been able to do so without Agent Smith's unquestionable domination of the digital world. While Agents had often demonstrated the power to hop into the body of any subjugated mind that's currently in the Matrix, Smith gains the ability to transform others into his image in The Matrix Revolutions, and this new skill doesn't just limit him to human characters, but Programs too.

Although Smith successfully transforms Neo after their fight, Reeves' character uses the connection between him and all the other Smiths to create a kind of loop, destroying the code, and wiping out the population of the Matrix.

Smith gains the thoughts and knowledge of every being added to his army of doppelgängers, including the Oracle. It makes him a truly formidable being, but Neo's power is far too much for his nemesis to fight back against, especially after his deal with the Source. Although Smith successfully transforms Neo after their fight, Reeves' character uses the connection between him and all the other Smiths to create a kind of loop, destroying the code, and wiping out the population of the Matrix. Although the Machines are quietly grateful for wiping Smith from existence, they're forced to begin again.

How The Matrix Works Differently In Resurrections

The simulation has different parameters in The Matrix's 2021 follow-up

2021's legacy sequel, The Matrix Resurrections, folds in a substantial time jump of 60 years, and it's not initially easy to detect. After the movie's meta attempts at convincing the audience the original trilogy has been retconned into an in-universe series of video games, it's revealed that the Matrix is back, and the updated version has some key differences when compared with its predecessors. For instance, while it's not revealed if it's still possible to exit the Matrix via answering a wired-in telephone, the primary way of doing so in Resurrections is by slipping through a mirror.

Similarly, the Operator can assist by turning doors into portals that can transport the characters pretty much anywhere in the digital world. Paired with the fact that the aforementioned Analyst is now at the top of the pyramid, the audience and characters are faced with a very different iteration of the franchise's titular simulation. Not only that, but the Machines have realized Neo's importance (and that of Carrie-Anne Moss' Trinity) and found a way to separate their Digital Self Images and how other The Matrix characters perceive them - allowing the Machines to keep their prized humans safe from detection.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes