It’s one of the most iconic scenes of the original Matrix film, released back in 1999. That moment when Morpheus, in his low and calming voice, holds out both of his hands, palms open. In one, a red pill. The other, a blue pill. Mr. Anderson, who we’ll come to know as Neo, is given a choice. Of course, the rest of the movie is predicated on the fact that the red pill is chosen, with Neo choosing to “stay in Wonderland” so that Morpheus can show him “how deep the rabbit hole goes.”
But what if he would have chosen the blue pill instead? What if he would have chosen to wake up back home in his bed, to go back to normal life — or, rather, to what he believes is “normal life?” As excitement continues to mount for the long-awaited fourth film in the Matrix franchise which is coming next year, one YouTuber decided to have a little fun playing with that question. Specifically, it’s a YouTuber who’s quite proficient at making enjoyable deepfake videos and who’s done the same thing here. This time, it’s the deepfake mashup of The Matrix and Office Space that you never knew you needed.
A quick summary of what you can watch in the fun video above: “Mr. Anderson” chooses the blue pill. He wakes up in his bed, and we soon realize that it’s basically Keanu Reeves deepfaked into the shoes of Peter Gibbons, the programmer and main character in Office Space — which, when you think about it, is perfect. When we first meet Mr. Anderson in what we think is the real world, he seems to be an office drone for a soulless corporation, just one occupant among many along a row of uniform cubicles. That’s melded seamlessly into the world of Office Space, with Mr. Anderson-as-Peter Gibbons been antagonized by his suspenders-wearing middle-manager boss. Except, this time, as he hovers over the cubicle and delivers orders in that monotone voice while holding his mug, he’s wearing the familiar dark shades of Agent Smith. Which certainly makes his babble about TPS reports all the more menacing this time around.
The full video above, courtesy of YouTuber Ctrl Shift Face, is one of a slew of entertaining deepfakes available to watch on that channel. The next film in the Matrix franchise, meanwhile, is Matrix 4 and will be out in May of 2021.
