Was Will Smith going to play Neo in The Matrix? Explained
Will Smith is easily one of Hollywood's most recognizable stars. However, like every other actor, he also has his own set of "what ifs" which fans wonder about every now and then and the conversation around the star sometimes does revolve around those topics. One of those topics involves him turning down The Matrix.
Will Smith was originally offered to star in the role of Neo in The Matrix before Keanu Reeves was also considered to be in the role. However, Will Smith would pass on the role in what would be one of the biggest missed opportunities of his career. Rather, he chose to star in Barry Sonnenfeld's Wild Wild West. He starred alongside Kevin Kline and Salma Hayek in the film.
But Wild Wild West turned out to be one of the biggest box office and critical bombs of Will Smith's career. And many fans since then have wondered exactly how The Matrix would have turned out if the actor had actually accepted the role of Neo 26 years ago.
Well, fans don't have to wonder that anymore as the actor finally answered their question in a way they never would have expected.
Will Smith finally gets to play Neo in a new music video
27 years after turning down the role, Will Smith has finally given fans a sneak peek at what his version of Neo would have looked like. He stars as the character in the music video for his "Beautiful Scars" which also features Big Sean. The music video itself is a parody of The Matrix and was first teased on Smith's online socials where he posted a video which said this:
"In 1997, the Wachowskis offered Will Smith the role of Neo in The Matrix. Smith turned it down. He chose Wild Wild West, believing it would be a better fit for him at the time. But the question remains: What would The Matrix have been like with Will Smith as Neo? Wake up, Will..."
The song itself delves into delves into the struggles that come along with fame and learning from the mistakes of your past. It does thematically fit with Smith's career as well considering he has reflected in the past about what it was like passing on The Matrix and has had his fair share of scrutiny as well with fame.
The music video offers a glimpse into Smith doing the bullet time sequence from the movie and what it would have looked like if he had originally done it. The music video is available to check online right now.
Will Smith explains why he turned down The Matrix
The actor, five years back in February, 2019, took to his YouTube to explain why he actually turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix. He explained that the original pitch made by The Wachowskis wasn't something that he was interested in, and did show regret for not accepting the role of Neo.
I’m not proud of it, but it’s the truth, all right, I did turn down Neo in The Matrix,” Smith said. “After we made Men in Black, the Wachowskis came in and they’d only done one movie. They did a movie called Bound. And then they made a pitch for The Matrix. And as it turns out, they’re geniuses, but there’s a fine line in a pitch meeting between genius and what I experienced in the meeting. So this is the actual pitch that they made for The Matrix …”
However, fans can now get to see Smith as Neo in the music video for "Beautiful Scars." The song itself is a part of Smith's new album Based on a True Story. It is slated to come out sometime in March, 2025.
