Publication date December 30, 2021
Want To Start Watching The Matrix Movies? Watch Them In This Order
The first Matrix movie came out in the early 2000s and changed nerd culture forever. It had a brilliant casting and pretty much took Keanu Reeves’ stardom to a whole new level. As with any successful movie franchise, The Matrix inspired a whole bunch of short features, spin-offs, fanfictions, and more.
The premise of the movie is the cyberpunk story of the technological fall of humanity. In the movie, humans create artificial intelligence, and over time, the machines become extraordinarily intelligent and finally become self-aware. They then trape humankind in virtual reality - The Matrix - and use the humans as a power source.
It makes for an exciting watch and can actually inspire deeper conversations about whether humans are leading technology or the other way around. For all you non-nerds, it might be confusing to start off with the first movie that was released and then keep watching them in the order of release. That is what we are here to simplify.
Here is the chronological order in which to watch the Matrix series including all of the shorts and other feature films.
The Animatrix: The Second Renaissance, Part 1
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By the mid-twentieth century, humanity had created full artificial intelligence robots and put them to menial, servile labor so that humans may live a life of leisure. B1-66ER, a servant bot, overheard its owners discussing scrapping it.
It slaughtered its owners and dogs because it felt like it didn't have a choice. When B1-66ER was arrested and tried, it was found guilty of murder and sentenced to death, along with the rest of its species. The trial prompted worldwide debate over Machine rights, and the mandate for termination sparked riots and bloodshed.
The Machines finally broke away from humanity and established their own city: 01. They took over most of the world's industrial economy due to their technological brilliance - 01's power grew dramatically, while humanity began to decline. The Machines applied to join the UN, offering ideas for a stable, civil relationship with humanity's states. Their admittance was denied, and 01 was bombarded with nuclear missiles for a long time.
The Animatrix: The Second Renaissance, Part 2
The Machines were unaffected by nuclear bombardment and 01's population survived the attack, and the Machine War had officially begun. The Machines proved to be extremely effective, capturing territory while inventing new battle machines and researching the human body for flaws.
The Machines eventually triumphed in the conflict, wiping out the majority of human civilization. However, they needed a new, more long-term power source, so they turned to humanity. They harnessed the bioelectric, thermal, and kinetic energy of captured soldiers to turn people into an ever-multiplying and renewable energy source, and devised a control system that became the Matrix.
The Matrix
This was the first feature movie that was released in 1999. However, the movie actually happens in 2199. The movie follows the search for Neo who is The One - the one human who actually has the abilities to manipulate the Matrix. Morpheus and Trinity create a group of ‘free humans’ to create an uprising against the machines who have enslaved humans in a simulation of 1999. It follows betrayal, sacrifice, and everything in between to track the journey of Neo and his team to exit the matrix.
The Animatrix: Kid’s story
In the famous choice between the red pill and the blue pill (you’ll get it if you watch The Matrix), every choice has a consequence. This Animatrix movie happens shortly after Neo learns the truth about the Matrix from Morpheus. The story follows the journey of a blue-pilled kid who has dreams about Neo and tries to figure out if what he says about the Matrix is true.
The Animatrix: Final Fight Of The Osiris
The story defines the war to protect the last human city of Zion - Osiris is a powerful hovercraft that is operated by Thadeus and Jue. It is caught in the war against the Sentinels who swarm it in thousands. This is the prelude for the movie Enter The Matrix, which is the first video game from the franchise.
The Matrix Reloaded
Neo, Trinity, and Morpheus, with their array of remarkable talents and weaponry, continue to lead the revolution against the Machine Army. In their mission to preserve the human race from annihilation, they get a better understanding of The Matrix's structure and Neo's essential position in mankind's fate.
The Matrix Revolutions
While the core team along with Neo still try to win against the Machines, Neo is unfortunately caught in a limbo state. As he struggles to get back into the fight, the series introduces Agent Smith who is an all-powerful computer program capable of thwarting all of Neo and his team’s attempt to free humanity.
The Animatrix: Beyond
The movie takes place in Japan and follows Yoko, a teenage girl, and her friends, as they identify and have fun with the glitches in the matrix. A few Agents round up the kids and attempt to throw them out and fix all of the anomalies.
The Matrix: Resurrections
This is the latest from the franchise and was released in December 2021. The events of the movie happen 18 years after the events of the first Matrix movie. Mr. Anderson, alias Neo, will have to choose whether to pursue the white rabbit once more to discover if his reality is a physical or mental creation. If there's one thing he knows, it's that choice is an illusion, but it's still the only path in and out of the Matrix. While he makes a few hard decisions, he is unaware that the Matrix is now more powerful, secure, and dangerous than ever before.
The Animatrix: World Record, Matriculated, Program
These three shorts are difficult to order chronologically as it is difficult to link them to the main series. These movies follow short stories about side stories that happen in The Matrix universe. They are fun and engaging and make for good filler watches.
We certainly hope more Matrix titles drop in the future. Who wouldn't want more of Keanu Reeves on the big screen? But if you had all the control, how would you dictate the faith of The Matrix.
Did we just create the perfect binge list for your weekend, or what? Have you already watched The Matrix? Let us know if your mind is as blown as ours in the comments below.
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