- 16th December 2002 -
The official site has updated its stills gallery with six new shots from the first of the sequels headed our way next year (the latest Premiere has hard copies of each shot). Amongst the highlights are the first shot of Persephone (Monica Bellucci), Niboe without glasses, and a shot from the already infamous car chase scene. Thanks to 'SooozleQ' & 'Biko'.

- 6th December 2002 -
Keanu Reeves talked with MTV about the sequels and revealed some quite juicy stuff about a scene being shot at the time of the interview: "It's a fight between Neo and Smith. It takes place in the second film, "Reloaded," and it's basically Neo multi-fighting a bunch of different Smiths. It took about 27 shooting days for a camera, first unit and there was a bunch of other days we call motion capture, which will be integrated with some of the virtual camera stuff that they are doing". There's also what seems to be a dance sequence: "We shot that out in Oakland, California with, I think it was like 900 or 1,200 kids, people out dancing... There was a wonderful feeling coming from the people who were participating in it, just an excitement. There was drum circles and people doing impromptu concerts and singing". Thanks to 'FanHalen'.

- 2nd December 2002 -
The very Cate Blancett-looking Genevieve O'Reilly appears to have a big role in the third flick according to The Australian.

- 4th November 2002 -
A look at the character poster for Persephone (Monica Belucci) is up at the official site

- 29th October 2002 -
A second trailer will be released in February according to Countingdown

- 28th October 2002 -
Bigger and more revealing versions of the one-sheets are up at the official site

- 21st October 2002 -
Details of what to expect on the soundtrack is up at MTV

- 11th October 2002 -
Details on the soundtracks for the sequels are now up at Maverick

- 1st October 2002 -
A UK film magazine recently interviewed the two silver-coated dreadlocked baddies we've seen in the teasers, characters played by identical twins Neil and Adrian Rayment and 'Onks' has a summary: "They state that they are not called the "Virus Twins" but are simply known as Twin 1 and Twin 2. They state further that they are deleted programs from the Matrix, that have been given the choice to be put back into the source or become a roaming element in the program. They say that essentialy they are bad and have free reign, and their characters take full use of their special access to the Matrix - shaping the world in the image they want and sporting cool pearl-handled cutthroat razors and cut-glass British acents. Their characters are the guys who live the rock star lifestyle in that they have the best clothes, best car and live in the best places. Also Neil Rayment had a fight with Lawrence Fishburne, Adrian Rayment has a "particuarly good scrap" with Carrie-Anne Moss and then they both fight Keanu. There will be a sword fight, with two people against one (which i'm guessing will be Neo). But each person has two swords - "multi-sabres", armed with rotating blades at their hilt, clashing and sparking faster than anything yet seen, with impossible wire assisted moves as the camera moves around them in a bullet time waltz. The car chase will have multiple agents in a highway pursuit of Trinity and Morpheus, leaping out of cars as they're blown apart, driven into other speeding vehicles. The chase will employ a now mobile bullet time technique allowing the camera to circle the chase, swinging low and spirallling through exploding car and window doors".

- 19th September 2002 -
Rolling Stone has just run a large article on the film and revealed a few major plot points based on the script they've got (which is NOT the fake one circling the Net). The story will take place over a 72-hour time period which is about the time the Rebellion has to stop a quarter of a million "high-tech probes [trying] to dig their way down to Zion and waste the human populace". The scene of Neo and Trinity kissing in a rock cave in the teaser then leads onto a full on sex scene, whilst the car chase will run for at least 15 minutes of screen time. Agent Smith and co. have "gained the ability to aggressively clone or "copy" themselves onto their rebel adversaries, leading to dicey situations in which an apparent good guy is anything but", whilst the silver twins we see have odd materialization capabilities that allows them to be solid one moment, and almost ethereal the next. New characters include 'The Architect' (who designed The Matrix) and the Japanese craftsman 'The Key Maker'. Thanks to 'Mark'.

- 5th September 2002 -
An upcoming issue of CineLive has revealed all sorts of new details on both upcoming sequels according to AICN. Second Unit Director David R. Ellis touched upon the car chase seen in the trailer: "Even if you have already seen impressive car chases, you have never seen one where guys jump from car to car and fight in the air in a Matrix style". Joel 'God Incarnate' Silver indicates "The Matrix Reloaded explains why and how some of the characters can literally fly in the air, the origin of their superhuman strength. In fact, the Wachowskis imagined this story so as to make a superhero movie". Monica Bellucci plays the evil temptress Persephone, and French actor Lambert Wilson plays her husband who is "the king of the virtual world" and can "program himself in the language he wants" (if he's named Zeus or Hades I'm out of here). Thanks to 'Binary'

- 28th August 2002 -
A handful of new stills from the cyber sequel are up at the official site

- 26th August 2002 -
The sequels have both wrapped up production in Sydney.

- 22nd July 2002 -
Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith report that Jada Pinkett-Smith is set to make a brief return to Oz next month for a last bit of shooting.

- 11th July 2002 -
Box Office Page reports that Warners has set a precise US release date of Thursday May 15th 2003 for the first sequel. Meanwhile some storyboards from the sequel seem to have appeared at FamousFrames

- 9th July 2002 -
Pics and details from the recent Matrix shoot in Sydney are up at The Daily Telegraph

- 3rd July 2002 -
Coming Soon indicates the disc sets for the sequel will be released only 3 months after the film's theatrical release.

- 2nd July 2002 -
Full details on what shooting will be taking place and when in Sydney in July has been revealed over at TheMatrixOnline. A helicopter will hover around the Pitt/Hunter/O'Connell intersection before flying though Bridge and George Streets between 4:30pm and 6pm on Sunday July 14th. Part of Castleraigh St. will be closed this Sunday between 3.30 pm and 6 pm, and next Monday and Tuesday from 9pm-3am. Expect more details and hopefully some photos soon. Thanks to 'DP'.

Images (C) WB

- 1st July 2002 - The first teaser poster for the "Matrix" sequels is out - rather simple design but the actual display in cinemas is one of those visual holo-trick versions with different looking code from different angles. Also some shooting is apparently set to happen from 10pm Tuesday night in Sydney between Pitt and O'Connell streets. Thanks 'Kappa', 'Tom', 'Liam' & 'Zed'

- 27th June 2002 -
Steve Bastoni revealed on TV cooking show Fresh that he plays Capt. Soren who helps Morpheus.

- 25th June 2002 -
Filming looks set to take place along Castleraigh St. in Sydney late afternoon July 7th, and late evening/early morning on the 8th & 9th.

- 24th June 2002 -
Pic scans of the upcoming Entertainment Weekly issue are now up at The Matrix Online

- 21st June 2002 -
A B&W 24-page film noir comic book story is up on the official site

- 20th June 2002 -
A link has been found in regards to two photos, check out Matrix FanPage

- 18th June 2002 -
The Official PlayStation Magazine published these character models of Square Pictures' CG Animatrix scene for the upcoming website films, click here to see it.

- 11th June 2002 -
The Sydney Morning Herald reports that extras were sought out last week for underwater sequences.

- 10th June 2002 -
The Daily Telegraph has posted up details on the dramatic final 14-minute sequence which is being described as "the most complicated sequence ever made" and has taken many months to plan. Key streets throught the north end of Sydney's central business district area will be shut down for two weekends in July to accomodate shooting which involves plans to fly a helicopter below roof-tops (at times less than 600ft/180m from the ground) through the city streets starting west along Bridge Street (at the cnr of Macquarie St), turning south into George St (the CBD's key main road) for several blocks and then turning east into Martin Place - the wide thoroughfare overseas audiences glimpsed in the first film's 'training program' (ie. the woman in the red dress scene). The copter will include a camera mounted to the pilot's seat giving the moviegoer a birds-eye-view of the action, however the 'set' will be off limits to the public (you can bet your ass though I'm going to try to snap pics of what I can). Thanks to 'Mrs Bigalow'.

- 31st May 2002 -
Sci-Fi.Com reports that ten anime films set in the universe of The Matrix will debut on the official site in the fall wth the last acting as a prelude to this film.

- 27th May 2002 -
'Snakes' reports on a little bit of shooting that took place late last week:

- 26th May 2002 -
A press conference took place in Sydney last week - its widely known the over a year long shooting schedule is coming to a close in a month or two, and one juicy sliver of info came from Joel Silver who confirmed that all that's basically left to shoot is the 14-minute ending sequence of 'Revolutions' which will be like nothing ever seen on screen before as they're planning to raise the FX bar so high that no-one will even attempt to come close to what they do with these movies. I wasn't the only one there that day, so was Sci-Fi Wire who mentioned this quote from Keanu: "The story kind of goes outside of the Matrix and starts to concern itself with the machines in Zion...So it's almost [that] what he can do in the Matrix is not enough. And he's still on the path of discovery and choice. He's told by the Oracle that...he has some choices that he'll have to make that will affect the survival of the human race. And there are some hardships. And all of us are trying to save the world. And the development between Neo and Trinity [Carrie-Anne Moss] is explored, and with Morpheus [Laurence Fishburne] and [Agent] Smith [Hugo Weaving]. And so I think that's just about it. It's the development of the hero journey for my character, which is new challenges and choices. And it's not so much about being born. He wanted to find out where he was. Now he knows. Or he thinks he knows". There's also an article up at The Sydney Morning Herald, whilst 'Smilin Jack Ruby' and I did a tour of the original first movie's locations and photos/details from which are up at CHUD. Expect lots of details from the production over the course of the next year. Thanks to 'Kenton'.

- 24th May 2002 -
Some photos from a recent shoot at a busy Sydney intersection are up at OverClockers

Images (C) Warner Bros.

- 22nd May 2002 - The Sun has just done an interesting article, mostly detailling all the accidents and injuries befalling the crew on the sequels but also snagged two new photos (is it just me or does a casting audition joke come to mind when looking at that left pic). Thanks 'Jediyuth' & Z Review

- 14th May 2002 -
The official teaser trailer will premiere online at 9pm US-PST on Thursday at TheMatrix.Com

- 10th May 2002 -
The world premiere of teasers for both films will happen on Entertainment Tonight next Wednesday.

- 6th May 2002 -
TIME Magazine has just done a large article from the set of the upcoming sequels complete with lots of great pics, details from a visit and more - click the thumbnails to check it out. Thanks to 'Barry', 'Bill', 'Blizard', 'Brad', 'Jediyuth', 'Ant', 'Orlando', 'Jarrod', 'Johnny', 'KcM', 'Iko', 'Ahmar' & 'Omega Red'

- 18th April 2002 -
Shooting will take place Sunday afternoon at the Pitt / Hunter / O'Connell intersections in Sydney

- 12th April 2002 -
Musician Paul Oakenfold (who contributed to "Swordfish" and "Planet of the Apes") revealed in Hamburg he has done three tracks for the soundtrack.

- 11th April 2002 -
Moviehole reports that actress Nona Gaye has stepped into the role of Zee originally to be played be Aaliyah. Gaye arrived in Oz on Monday and starts filming next week.

Image (C) FOX

- 9th April 2002 - Often, FOX will send out forms to their exhibitors indicating which trailers will come either 'attached' or 'loose in the can' to their upcoming film prints when they're shipped out. In the latest document, the entry for "Star Wars: Episode II" was updated to include word that a third "Minority Report" preview (no surprise there) will be attached, and quite out of the blue - a teaser for "The Matrix Reloaded" will come with the print. By 'loose' though it means not all cinemas will screen it so pick carefully. The same form also revealed a copy of "Sin Eater" & "Road to Perdition" previews will come 'loose' with prints of "Minority Report". Thanks to 'Hargon'.

- 3rd April 2002 -
Matrix Trilogy Fan Page reports that Warners has pushed back the release from May 1st to Memorial Day weekend - May 23rd.

- 29th March 2002 -
Various Chinese extras have been hired for a single day shoot mid-April, all will be dressed in old style traditional robes.

- 27th March 2002 -
Cinescape talked with Carrie Ann-Moss who confirms the project is still on schedule for a June/July finish - quashing rumours of a four month delay.

- 27th February 2002 -
Details on a technology being employed in the action sequels are up at AnAndTech.Com

- 22nd February 2002 -
The official site has opened up with photos, interviews, Quicktime VR tours, etc. and one hint - try the password 'reload'.

- 12th February 2002 -
'Chris' spotted a bit of quiet shooting the other night in the same location used for 'The Girl in the Red Dress' scene from the original: "Stumbled across some extras shooting near the fountain in Martin Place, Sydney last Saturday, 9th of February. A group of twenty or so milled around (sailors, business people, guy on a bicycle riding in circles take after take) as the (second unit director?) shot the crowd with a crane mounted camera which quickly panned up a building and into the sky".

- 6th February 2002 -
The ET behind-the-scenes clip is now up at MovieHeadlines

- 8th January 2002 -
The logo design of the second film is now available at the official site

- 7th January 2002 -
A rep confirms that explosions will take place at White Bay Power Station on Feb 14th "but certainly no fireball!". Carrie Ann-Moss is the only cast member involved.

- 3rd January 2002 -
A huge explosion of a makeshift set at the former White Bay power station in Sydney is rumoured to be taking place on Valentine's Day night. I made a short enquiry tonight and for now it seems this report is not substantiated as yet. Shooting was on hiatus over Christmas and resumes Jan 14th.

- 17th December 2001 -
A crew member dropped this recent bit about the car chase shooting that happened in San Fran a few months back: "In certain parts, the cars are completely digital. What this means is that the camera is able to move through them without slowing down".

- 13th December 2001 -
The Irish Press are hinting that the 19-year-old Dublin singer Samantha Mumba is tipped to takeover Aaliyah's role of Zee.

- 10th December 2001 -
Variety reports Warners is considering putting out both Matrix films in May & November of 2003, pushing the third "Harry Potter" movie back to 2004

- 3rd December 2001 -
Jada Pinkett-Smith talked the sequels at the "Ali" press junket and according to Cinema Confidential said: "Well, we're shooting two and three and we're also shooting a video game that has movie footage in it, a video movie. So, we're doing three projects at the same time and it's hectic. Niobe is just basically the female version of Morpheus, very tough, very "no bull crap." She just puts it on the table. The type of training - I've just had to do a lot of.I had to go to Oakland for four months and do four months of Kung Fu training, wire training and I have to go back in February for 5 months of filming in Australia".

- 20th November 2001 -
Middleweight boxer Roy Jones Jr and Harry J. Lennox ("Mo' Money") have minor roles in the sequels

- 19th November 2001 -
Tele7Jours reports that French actor Lambert Wilson and goddess Monica Belucci will play roles, Wilson a baddie (but one who just speaks - no action/fights for him).

- 15th November 2001 -
The Gold Coast Bulletin recently did an article about the upcoming "Matrix" sequels and mentioned a new kid character that would appear in both films, the anime prequel and further films if they make them (there's rumoured to be up to six in all). In more solid news, Irish Dance Act "Hedrock Valley Beats" are contributing two tracks to the second movie's soundtrack. Thanks to 'rocky80' & 'Douglas'

- 12th November 2001 -
There's a preview of the behind-the-scenes footgae taken for the upcoming 'Revisited' DVD at the official site

- 8th November 2001 -
Empire reports that Australian singer Christine Anu has scored a role, possibly as Aaliyah's replacement.

- 7th November 2001 -
'Will visited Martin Place in Sydney last night where shooting on "The Matrix" sequel was underway, and along with the photos above, here's his report: "We went along last night and checked it all out. As expected, turned out to be second unit filming with no principal cast on set. The rain was delaying shooting - the crew said they were waiting for the rain to stop so they could dry the cars for the shot, but it ended up pouring all night so I don't know if they even got any shooting done at all. All the props were out on display though. The two actors playing the cops were American, not sure how involved their characters are in the film as they were extremely tight-lipped". There's another report up at The Matrix Online

- 6th November 2001 -
I spoke with upcoming Aussie actor Lachy Hume the other week in regards to the recent comedy release "Let's Get Skase" (full interview going up tomorrow), but before that I asked him the big question - what's his involvement in "The Matrix" sequel: "I play a guy called Sparks, who is Niobe's (Jada Pinkett Smith) right hand man. She's the captain of the 'Logose' (pronounced Low-Ghose), I'm the operator of the Logose", Do you get to get into the Matrix at all? "No I'm born in Zion...that's about all I can tell you". Thanks to 'The Gorgeous Gillian'.

- 24th October 2001 -
Some major shooting looks scheduled to be happen in one of Sydney's busiest public squares. A memo has apparently gone out indicating shooting will take place on Tuesday November 6th at 39 Martin Place to "film car driving sequences designed to recreate an American street scene. This will involve several American cars operating on the streets and travelling in the wrong direction". Martin Place featured in several sequences in the first film, most visibly the waterfall in its center serving as the backdrop for the "Woman In The Red Dress" scene. To do the sequences - Elizabeth Street between Hunter St and Market St, and the cross road of King St between Castlereagh St and Phillip St (south) at the corner of Queens Square will be closed through till 6am the next morning.  Thanks to 'Sideshow Betty'.

- 23rd October 2001 -
'Smilin Jack Ruby' talked with uber-producer Joel Silver for 13th Street about the various projects he has in development and things quickly turned to "Matrix" talk. Even though it hit the Net in late June that the third film's title would be "The Matrix Revolutions", Silver confirmed it for the first time in this interview. Thanks also to 'Guy'.

- 8th October 2001 -
TV Week reports that actor Clayton Watson (TV's "Always Greener") will star as 'The Kid' and was involved in shooting in both San Francisco and currently in Sydney (he doesn't begin his work here till January).

- 27th September 2001 -
Looking out for "Matrix" filming in Sydney? 'Cam' has a lead it seems:

- 10th September 2001 -
Several reports have come in from the auditions that took place on Saturday in Sydney, and here's one from 'Jimbob' below whose brother was amongst the nearly 2,000 that showed up. There's another up at Matrix Online whilst a pic taken during them is now up at Aussie Made Movies:

- 5th September 2001 -
Sydney-siders who wanted to participate in the upcoming auditions in Newtown can find details on where, when and contact numbers at The Matrix Online and Matrixfans.Net

- 31st August 2001 -
In a haunting note, singer Aaliyah confirmed a few weeks ago in a live AOL chat she did shoot scenes in the 'Matrix' sequel after all though not the much touted 80% as first thought - "I did a couple weeks of shooting in the end of June on 'The Matrix,' and I go back to Sydney, Australia to finish shooting in January for one month".  Sentiments confirmed by San Fran crewmember 'Hooper and Brody' who also has more on her involvement below.  Meantime studio personnel at FOX in Sydney have been spotted using badges saying they're working on a film entitled 'The Burly Man', the same fake name used in the shooting in Oakland.  A quick thanks also to 'Nerje' & SyFyPortal:

- 30th August 2001 -
There's conflicting reports all over the place about the late Aaliyah's involvement in the upcoming Matrix sequel. On the one hand some official reps have indicated she hasn't done any scenes yet. On the other hand Aaliyah2001.Com and Coming Attractions are indicating she has shot up to 80% of her footage already whilst several other media outlets like TRL are indicating she has done at least some scenes. Final word from Warners will hopefully be forthcoming. In any case already a rumoured replacement has emerged - actress Eva Mendes ("Exit Wounds") who apparently was also one of the 'finalists' for the role of 'Zee' in the first place. Another rumour came swirling out of the production today that one of the major single villains in the third film is someone called 'Quintessence' to be played by a kung fu expert.  Thanks to 'Movie Man', 'Ahmad', 'Isaac' & 'Raven'

- 28th August 2001 -
It appears that shooting has gotten underway in Australia on 'Reloaded'. A large sequence apparently took place today in Sydney's famous Entertainment Centre performing venue. Specific details are unknown though it has been found out some large scale stunts were involved, whilst some of the extras were dressed up in gear described as 'part robot'. Thanks to 'Jaz'.

- 27th August 2001 -
With Aaliyah's departure, now comes the question of how will it affect the various productions she has been involved in. I contacted a rep from Village Roadshow Australia who indicated there will likely be no delays as such with "The Matrix Reloaded" production that begins shooting in Sydney next month - therefore expect recasting news shortly. Aaliyah was also in Australia last year shooting "The Queen of the Damned" which wrapped a while ago and is now heavily into post production - no reshoots were planned either it seems. This isn't the first sombre note to hit the "Matrix" sequel production, Keanu Reeves' girlfriend was killed in a car accident earlier this year.

- 14th August 2001 -
Warners isn't officially confirming it but it seems the second "Matrix" flick will hit screens May 2003 according to Variety and MovieHeadlines.Net

- 9th August 2001 -
Joel Silver confirmed to Sci-Fi Wire that the project has been delayed till next year - "It's going to be summer now, summer 2003. It's just it's an enormous project.  It's a staggering project. There's so much dealing with it, it's unbelievable, and they just need time to finish both movies, because we're shooting them as one big movie. It's not back to back. It's one movie, so they'll finish shooting it, and then they'll take the time to finish the movies". No word on what the new release date of "The Matrix Revolutions" will be either. Thanks to '8!7ch 455' & 'Jon'.

- 7th August 2001 -
Aaliyah talks the Matrix sequel to Teen People magazine, the transcript is up at The Matrix Online

- 2nd August 2001 -
In the last two years Australia has become a haven for US filmmakers due to the cheap dollar and above all - tax breaks. Now those tax breaks are being cut off by the Government, full details at Yahoo UK

- 30th July 2001 -
A breakdancer named 'Reinen' from the "Rhythm Bugs" crew has apparently scored a job on the upcoming sequels, and according to Coming Soon - so has ex-90210 star Luke Perry. Meantime Steve Bastoni talked with Sydney newspaper The Sun Herald about what he's up to at the moment - "I'm in heavy training for general fitness before the Sydney shoot begins. We've just finished some of the larger action sequences in San Francisco, and they just looked incredible". Filming kicks off next month in Sydney. Thanks to 'Idgaf', 'Daegal', 'Kate' & 'Eamon'.