The Matrix Star Accuses Directors of Lying About His Character’s Fate
The Matrix star Joe Pantoliano says the Wachowskis misled him about Cypher’s fate, claiming he wasn’t told the film’s slippery turncoat would be killed off until it was too late—and he’s calling them out for it.
Joe Pantoliano has a bone to pick with The Matrix. Or, more specifically, with the Wachowskis. At a reunion panel in New York, he said they told him one thing about Cypher and then did the exact opposite. It was funny, a little salty, and honestly, kind of perfect for a guy who played the franchise’s most unapologetically slimy turncoat.
'They lied to me!... They f***king lied.'
What kicked this off
Pantoliano, 74, sat down with Laurence Fishburne at New York Comic Con for a Matrix reunion panel. When someone asked if Cypher actually dies at the end of the first movie, he didn’t tiptoe around it. He yelled the line above, then launched into how he tried to talk his way out of being killed off.
The Fugitive playbook (and how it backfired)
Back in 1993 on The Fugitive, Pantoliano says he convinced director Andrew Davis not to kill his character. So when The Matrix came along, he tried a similar pitch. As he tells it, he went to the directors with: 'Hey, you can’t kill me, right? You’re not gonna kill me?'
From there, he says Lilly turned to Lana and joked, 'Hey, Lana, he doesn’t want us to kill him.' Then, according to Pantoliano, he overheard Lana, fully aware he could hear, say: 'Well, just lie to him and we’ll kill him anyway.'
Not subtle.
So… is Cypher dead?
Moderator Josh Horowitz jumped in to note it’s not definitive that Cypher dies in the film. Pantoliano wasn’t buying the ambiguity, at least not without a little protest. 'Don’t get me started, all right? They brought f***king Agent Smith back,' he said. 'It’s The Matrix!'
Still, he’s not writing off a return. In classic this-franchise-plays-by-its-own-rules fashion, he pointed out there’s always a way: 'It’s not too late,' he said. 'It’s never too late.'
Bottom line: whether you remember Cypher as an iconic weasel or a necessary chaos agent, Pantoliano clearly thinks there’s unfinished business. And in a world where death is more of a suggestion than a rule, he might not be wrong.