Editing The Matrix (section)

=== Development ===
In 1994, the Wachowskis presented the script for the film ''[[Assassins (1995 film)|Assassins]]'' to [[Warner Bros. Pictures]]. After [[Lorenzo di Bonaventura]], the president of production of the company at the time, read the script, he decided to buy rights to it and included two more pictures, ''[[Bound (1996 film)|Bound]]'' and ''The Matrix'', in the contract. The first movie the Wachowskis directed, ''Bound'', then became a critical success. Using this momentum, they later asked to direct ''The Matrix''.<ref name="Influence Screened"/> Reeves said that the Matrix avatar would have been a "different sex than the Zion reality" in the early draft of the script, but the studio was not ready for that version.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ew.com/movies/the-matrix-theories-lana-wachowski-keanu-reeves-carrie-anne-moss |title=What even is 'The Matrix'? Lana Wachowski and her stars address decades of theories |last=Romano |first=Nick |website=EW.com}}</ref>

In 1996, the Wachowskis pitched the role of Neo to [[Will Smith]]. Smith explained on his [[YouTube]] channel that the idea was for him to be Neo, while Morpheus was to be played by [[Val Kilmer]]. He later explained that he did not quite understand the concept and he turned down the role to instead film ''[[Wild Wild West]]''.<ref>{{Citation|title=Why I Turned Down The Matrix {{!}} STORYTIME| date=February 13, 2019 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm2szuXKgL8 |access-date=September 29, 2021|archive-date=September 29, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210929083519/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hm2szuXKgL8|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Madonna]] also turned down an undisclosed role, a decision she would later regret.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ew.com/movies/madonna-regrets-turning-down-matrix-role-jimmy-fallon-video/|title=Madonna regrets turning down a role in 'The Matrix'|website=EW.com}}</ref>

Producer [[Joel Silver]] soon joined the project. Although the project had key supporters, including Silver and Di Bonaventura, to influence the company, ''The Matrix'' was still a huge investment for Warner Bros., which had to invest $60 million to create a movie with prominent actors and difficult special effects.<ref name="Influence Screened"/> The Wachowskis therefore hired underground comic book artists [[Geof Darrow]] and [[Steve Skroce]] to draw a 600-page, shot-by-shot storyboard for the entire film.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Miller |first=Mark |date=November 2003 |title=Matrix Revelations; The Wachowski Brothers FAQ |url=https://www.wired.com/2003/11/matrix/ |url-status=live |magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121120101020/http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.11/matrix.html |archive-date=November 20, 2012 |access-date=December 4, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/the-wachowskis-jupiter-ascending-the-matrix-cloud-atlas |title=The Wachowskis Refuse To Take No For An Answer |work=BuzzFeed |last=Vary |first=Adam B. |date=February 5, 2015 |access-date=December 6, 2022 |archive-date=September 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160910054233/https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/the-wachowskis-jupiter-ascending-the-matrix-cloud-atlas |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Weinraub |first=Bernard |date=1999-04-05 |title=Brothers Unleash the Comic Book of Ideas |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/04/05/movies/brothers-unleash-the-comic-book-of-ideas.html |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-09-15 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The storyboard eventually earned the studio's approval, and it was decided to film in Australia to make the most of the budget.<ref name="Influence Screened"/> Soon, ''The Matrix'' became a co-production of Warner Bros. and [[Village Roadshow Pictures]].<ref name="Museum">{{cite web |last=Powerhouse Museum |title='The Matrix' film poster |url=http://from.ph/422513 |access-date=December 24, 2012 |publisher=Powerhouse Museum, Australia |archive-date=February 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130205081603/http://from.ph/422513 |url-status=dead }}</ref> According to editor [[Zach Staenberg]] on the DVD audio commentary track, the production team sent an edit of the film's first minutes (featuring Trinity's encounter with police and Agents) to Warner executives, and secured Warner's "total support of the movie" from then on.<ref>''The Matrix'' DVD Audio Commentary featuring actress Carrie Ann Moss, film editor Zach Staenberg, and visual effects supervisor John Gaeta. At time 3:30–5:11</ref>