Lilly Wachowski Says ‘The Matrix 5’ Director Wants Her ‘Blessing’ Before Making Revival

“The Matrix” series co-creator Lilly Wachowski confirmed that she isn’t involved with Warner Bros.’ plans for a franchise revival, but suggested that her and her sister, Lana, have been asked to give their “blessing” to the Drew Goddard-directed project. “There’s maybe a thing that’s happening with Drew Goddard. He doesn’t want to go forward unless he gets our blessing,” Wachowski said in an interview on “The Business” at KCRW. “It becomes this complicated situation … Maybe we’re going to stick our noses in a tiny bit and see how we feel and if we want to pass on our blessing to Drew or not. Could be something that’s coming down the road, but still unknown.” The Wachowski sisters wrote and directed the original 1999 “The Matrix,” along with its two direct sequels “The Matrix Reloaded” and “The Matrix Revolutions.” For the 2021 series revival “The Matrix Resurrections,” Lana Wachowski took on writing and directing duties for the project alone. In her interview with KCRW, Lilly acknowledged that she’s “kind of done” with the property that she co-created. “Warner Bros., they want to make another thing. They’re always going to want to make another thing. Personally, I don’t want to play in that sandbox anymore,” Lilly said. “I’m kind of done.” In 2024, Warner Bros. announced a fifth mainline installment in the franchise, tapping “The Martian” screenwriter and “Cabin in the Woods” director Goddard to write and helm the revival. The studio’s initial confirmation of the project also stated that Lana Wachowski would serve as an executive producer. Lilly was not noted to be involved. Development has been quiet on “The Matrix 5” in the two years since, though Goddard provided an update in March while promoting “Project Hail Mary,” which he wrote the screenplay for. “I love what Lana and Lilly Wachowski did with those movies. They mean so much to me and I feel like they’ve had a profound impact on my creative voice,” Goddard told Variety. “I take this responsibility very seriously. I feel the weight of wanting to do right by the fans, wanting to do right by the creators and wanting to do right for myself as a fan. Lilly Wachowski recently shared that she is seeking funding for her next film “The Hunted,” a political thriller with a production budget she says calls for a budget of roughly $10 million. The filmmaker told KCRW that she is having trouble securing financing, saying the industry doesn’t “want to make it because it’s (got a) wall-to-wall trans cast … I have to get creative and figure out different ways that I can get this in front of people.”