Keanu Reeves has compared the disappointment many fans felt over the Matrix sequels to Star Wars.
The actor, 57, plays Neo in the science-fiction film series, which is returning this week after 18 years with The Matrix Resurrections.
It’s the third sequel following The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, which were released in 2002 and 2003, respectively.
Both films received negative reviews at the time – especially when compared with the response to the critically-acclaimed original Matrix film, which was released in 1999.
Reeves acknowledged the fact that fans felt disappointed by the sequels in a new interview withThe Guardian.
The interview notes that the actor is “sympathetic” to these fans as he experienced a similar feeling when he saw third Star Wars fillm Return of the Jedi as a 19-year-old in 1983.
“I went in, like, ‘Wow, I wonder, are they gonna do this, and will they do that…? And then I was, like, ‘Oh no. Oh no.’ Um, so I totally get it.”
He continued: “I know that experience as a filmgoer. But I just try to let films be, y’know? I try to think about what the creators were going for. It’s their work of art, man. I try to come to their art and meet it wherever it is.”
The first reactions to The Matrix Resurrections, which is directed by Lana Wachowski, have arrived following the film’s premiere.
It will be released in cinemas on 23 December.
