A hidden meaning in the title of The Matrix has been found by fans, 26 years after the film first released.
The series, starring Keanu Reeves, was a smash hit at the box office on first release, and was followed by two sequels in 2003. A fourth installment released in 2021.
Despite the long-running Hollywood series still delighting fans across the globe, the double meaning of its title has only just been found out by fans of the film franchise.
A post to the r/Matrix Reddit page had fans discussing the possible alternative meaning and its relation to the events of the film.
Though there are multiple meanings to the word Matrix, but fans believe the word itself means something completely new for the Wachowskis, the directing duo behind the four films.
A fan asked: “So I was learning about mitochondria in school and apparently a section of the “Power house of the cell” is called ‘Matrix’ is this why the franchise is named ‘The Matrix’ because as you all know in the movies humankind is used for energy.
“And the mitochondria is our primary source of energy. I don’t know if this is something obvious and already known. I just liked the connection.”
Another user agreed the title could be related to the energy source found in people, but also may have links to mathematics and electronics too.
A reply reads: “The name ‘Matrix’ shows up in a lot of places, like you discovered in biology, there are also matrix’s (matrices?) in mathematics and computer programming as well.
“There are probably even more examples of types of matrix’s in other areas as well, and I think that may have been the point of naming the series ‘The Matrix’ as there are so many different definitions that can fit what the matrix actually is.”
The fan went on to explain the Wachowskis had their own term for Matrix which is related to the virtual world much of the movie is set in.
They added: “An important note though, the idea of the matrix as seen in the movies isn’t actually an invention of the Wachowskis, at least in terms of a virtual world.
“It’s an idea featured heavily in the book Neuromancer, a cyberpunk genre novel published a good decade before the movies came out. The William Gibson (the author of Neuromancer) wiki gives a very good description of the matrix that I think can also be attributed to the matrix in the movies.”
A separate user has since suggested there could be a link between The Matrix and mathematics. They wrote: “I could be wrong but I always assumed mathematical matrices, cause code you know.”