The Matrix Reloaded

Keanu Reeves (Actor) .. Thomas A Anderson/Neo

Born: September 02, 1964 in Beirut, Lebanon

Best Known For: The Matrix.

Early-life: Keanu Charles Reeves, whose first name means "cool breeze over the mountains" in Hawaiian, was born in Beirut, Lebanon, on September 2, 1964. His mother, Patricia, was a showgirl; his father, Samuel Nowlin Reeves, was a geologist. After his parents' marriage dissolved, Keanu moved with his mother and younger sister Kim to New York City, then Toronto. He eventually dropped out of school to pursue an acting career.

Career: After a few stage gigs and a handful of made-for-TV movies, he scored a supporting role in the Rob Lowe hockey flick Youngblood (1986), which was filmed in Canada. His first popular success came in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure three years later. He then showed his range with more dramatic roles in My Own Private Idaho and Much Ado About Nothing. He truly hit the big time with action flick Speed and struck box-office gold again a few years later with the Wachowski siblings' cyber-adventure The Matrix and its sequels. Reeves' first film as director, Man of Tai Chi, was released in 2013.

Quote: "What would happen if you melted? You know, you never really hear this talked about much, but spontaneous combustion? It exists!"

Trivia: In 2005, Reeves received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Carrie-Anne Moss (Actor) .. Trinity

Born: August 21, 1967 in British Columbia, Canada

Best Known For: Playing Trinity in The Matrix.

Early-life: Carrie-Anne Moss was born on August 21, 1967, in British Columbia, Canada, the younger of two children. She was named after the Hollies' 1967 song Carrie-Anne, which was in the charts when she was born. Carrie-Anne used to stage plays for family and friends before acting in school plays and singing in the choir. At 22 she visited a Toronto model agency to see why there was no reply to her letter asking for work. They signed her on the spot. She later moved to Europe to pursue a career in modelling.

Career: While working in Barcelona in 1991, Moss was signed up for TV series Dark Justice. Appearances in other TV shows Baywatch and F/X led to sci-fi blockbuster The Matrix in 1999. The role of freedom fighter Trinity made her an overnight star and style icon thanks to the movie's revolutionary special effects and slick look. She also appeared in cult thriller Memento, acclaimed drama Chocolat and sci-fi flop Red Planet before reprising the role of Trinity for sequels The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. Since then, she has appeared in a number of films, including Disturbia, Fireflies in the Garden and Love Hurts.

Quote: "I'm soft, squishy and emotional, but I'd kill for someone I love."

Trivia: Moss voiced the videogame character Aria in Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3.

Laurence Fishburne (Actor) .. Morpheus

Born: July 30, 1961 in Augusta, Georgia

Best Known For: His role in The Matrix

Early-life: Laurence John Fishburne III was born in Augusta, Georgia, in 1961. His mother, Hattie, was a teacher, and his father was a correctional officer. They divorced when he was a youngster and Laurence was raised in Brooklyn by his mother. He began acting at the tender age of 12, landing a role in the soap opera One Life to Live.

Career: Laurence lied about his age to ensure he got a part in the epic Apocalypse Now, and enjoyed a minor role in Steven Spielberg's acclaimed The Color Purple. Since then, Fishburne has established himself as a character actor of some note - with roles in School Daze, Boys N the Hood, What's Love Got to Do With It? (for which he received an Oscar nomination) and The Matrix films. In 2008, he returned to TV work, accepting a lead role in CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, but is also due to appear in the upcoming movies Predators and 4Chosen.

Quote: "It's not that I take myself seriously, I take what I do seriously.

Trivia: Away from acting, Fishburne is a Unicef ambassador.

Hugo Weaving (Actor) .. Agent Smith

Born: April 04, 1960 in Ibadan, Nigeria

Best Known For: Playing Agent Smith in the Matrix trilogy

Early-life: Hugo Wallace Weaving was born on April 4, 1960, in Nigeria, to his English parents Wallace, a seismologist, and Anne, a teacher. He has an elder brother, Simon, and a younger sister, Anna. His niece, Samara Weaving, appears in Aussie soap Home and Away. The Weaving family left Nigeria when he was still a baby and, due to his dad's job, moved between the UK and South Africa before eventually settling in Australia in the late 1970s. He attended grammar school in Sydney, and graduated from the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in 1981.

Career: Weaving's first major roles came in TV series Bodyline and The Dirtwater Dynasty. He also starred opposite Nicole Kidman and Denholm Elliott in 1989's mini-drama The Bangkok Hilton. More film parts followed, but the actor's big break came in 1994 with Australian movie Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. Five years later he was cast as the cunning Agent Smith in The Matrix. Two sequels followed, as did another three-part epic, The Lord of the Rings, in which Weaving appeared as Elvish elder, Lord Elrond (he reprised the role in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey and The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies). Weaving's other films include V for Vendetta, Oranges and Sunshine, and Captain America.

Quote: "I'm 'of the world'. There was a time when I thought, 'Oh, I must go back to England. I feel English.' Then I went and the longer I was away, the more Australian I felt. Now, I've come back here and I don't feel entirely Australian."

Trivia: In 2004, Weaver became an ambassador for Australian animal rights organisation Voiceless.

Jada Pinkett Smith (Actor) .. Niobe

Born: September 18, 1971 in Baltimore, Maryland

Best Known For: Being married to Will Smith.

Early-life: Born Jada Koren Pinkett in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 18, 1971, she was raised by her mother and grandmother. Jada attended Baltimore School for the Arts, and North Carolina School of the Arts. She moved to Los Angeles after deciding to pursue a career in acting.

Career: Family friend and producer LaVern Whitt helped Jada find an acting agent. In 1990, Jada starred in an episode of True Colors and went on to have guest roles in Doogie Howser, MD, 21 Jump Street and A Different World. Jada started to get noticed after appearing alongside Eddie Murphy in The Nutty Professor (1996). Since then, she has starred in Scream 2 (1997), The Matrix Reloaded (2003), The Matrix Revolutions (2003) and Collateral (2004), and voiced the character of Gloria in Madagascar (2005), Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008) and Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (2012). For three seasons from 2009, she played the lead role in medical drama Hawthorne.

Quote: "A mother and daughter's relationship is usually the most honest, and we are so close."

Trivia: Wed actor Will Smith in 1997. They have two children, Jaden and Willow. Jada performs lead vocals in metal band Wicked Wisdom.

Gloria Foster (Actor) .. Oracle

Monica Bellucci (Actor) .. Persephone

Born: September 30, 1964 in The Italian village of Città di Castello, Umbria

Best Known For: Being one of Europe's most successful movie stars.

Early-life: Monica Anna Maria Bellucci was born on September 30, 1964, in the Italian village of Città di Castello, Umbria. Bellucci originally pursued a career in the legal profession. While attending the University of Perugia, she modelled on the side to earn money for school, and this led to her modelling career. In 1988, she moved to one of Europe's fashion centres, Milan, and joined Elite Model Management. Although enjoying great success as a model, she made her acting debut on TV in 1990, and her American film debut in Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992).

Career: Bellucci's role in the 1996 French thriller, L'appartement (1996), shot her to stardom as she won the French equivalent of an Oscar nomination. She came to the attention of casting directors the world over and roles in major blockbusters soon followed, though she proved her commitment to taking roles that intrigued her with the controversial and thoroughly brutal Irreversible in 2002. Other credits include Malèna (2000), Under Suspicion (2000) and Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001), as well as Tears of the Sun, The Passion of the Christ and two of The Matrix films. Her recent work includes Don't Look Back, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, The Whistleblower, and The Sorcerer's Apprentice.

Quote: "I am at a stage in my life where if I don't go out, I don't feel I'm missing something. I get bored surrounded by people smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol."

Trivia: Married to French megastar and frequent collaborator Vincent Cassel. They have two daughters, Deva and Léonie.

Collin Chou (Actor) .. Seraph

Nona Gaye (Actor) .. Zee

Lilly Wachowski (Director)

Lana Wachowski (Director)

07:40 am - 10:00 am, Today on Sky Science Fiction HD (517)

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