Keanu Reeves reveals 'beautiful script' was the reason he returned for 'The Matrix 4'

We'll soon see Keanu Reeves back in his flowing trench coat as Neo in the anticipated Matrix sequel, The Matrix 4.

And now, Reeves has explained how he was tempted back to the high-concept sci-fi franchise by writer and director Lana Wachowski.

He told Empire magazine: “Lana Wachowski wrote a beautiful script and a wonderful story that resonated with me.

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“That’s the only reason to do it. To work with her again is just amazing. It’s been really special, and the story has, I think, some meaningful things to say, and that we can take some nourishment from.”

Wachowski, who made the original trilogy with sibling Lilly, has penned this fourth movie in the series with screenwriters Aleksandar Hemon and David Mitchell, writer of the novel Cloud Atlas (which the Wachowskis made into a movie in 2012), on board too.

It comes a full 18 years after 2003's The Matrix Revolutions, released the same year as the second movie, The Matrix Reloaded.

Also speaking about the fourth movie to Empire, Carrie-Anne Moss (aka Trinity), added: “I never thought that it would happen. It was never on my radar at all.

“When it was brought to me in the way that it was brought to me, with incredible depth and all of the integrity and artistry that you could imagine, I was like, ‘This is a gift.’ It was just very exciting.”

Moss will be back alongside Reeves and original star Jada Pinkett Smith as Niobe, though it's not yet known whether Laurence Fishburne will be returning as Morpheus.

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New cast-members, meanwhile, include Priyanka Chopra, Jessica Henwick, Neil Patrick Harris and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II.

Rumours currently abound that Watchmen star Abdul-Mateen will be playing a young version of Morpheus, but as yet, plot details are being kept firmly under wraps.

Shooting began on the movie in February this year in San Francisco, but was halted due to the coronavirus pandemic lockdown on March 16.

It's scheduled to recommence in July, with the release date still set for May, 2021.