Christina Ricci joins Lana Wachowski's 'The Matrix 4'

Christina Ricci. Pic/AFP

American actor Christina Ricci, who is known for playing unconventional characters, has become the latest star to join the ensemble cast of the upcoming fourth installment of the 'Matrix' franchise. The Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow film is being helmed by the series co-creator Lana Wachowski. Christina will join Keanu Reeves, Priyanka Chopra, Carrie-Anne Moss, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Neil Patrick Harris who have already been roped in for the popular science-fiction action film.

The prospective character details haven't been unveiled, reported Variety. The 'Casper' star has previously worked with 'The Matrix 4' director Lana Wachowski in 2008 on 'Speed Racer'. The plot details are being kept under wraps. While it was rumoured a young Morpheus could appear in the movie, sources close to the film did not reveal 'The Addams Family' actor's specific role.

Warner Bros. announced in August that a fourth installment is officially in the works, with Reeves and Moss reprising their roles as Neo and Trinity and Lana Wachowski on board to write and direct. Pinkett Smith is also returning as Niobe, but the roles of most of the other actors in the cast have not been disclosed.

Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures will produce the flick. Aleksandar Hemon and David Mitchell co-wrote the script with Wachowski, who will also bankroll with Grant Hill. Warner Bros. has been trying for a few years to find a way back into 'The Matrix' universe, but a delay over producing rights slowed the project down.

The three previous films 'The Matrix', 'The Matrix Reloaded' and 'The Matrix Revolutions' had collectively earned more than USD 1.6 billion at the global box office. All three were written and directed by Lana and her sister, Lilly, and starred Reeves and Moss.

The first 'Matrix' movie hit the big screens in 1999 and instantly became a phenomenon. A sequel titled 'The Matrix Reloaded' and the third installment 'The Matrix Revolutions', later followed in 2003. The franchise follows Reeves' character Neo and a series of heroes as they fight against machine overlords who have imprisoned human beings in an ultra-realistic virtual reality.

The fourth 'Matrix' installment is set to premiere on December 22 in theatres and on HBO Max, this year.

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