Salma Hayek almost stared as Trinity in The Matrix, but the actress claims she lost the role due to laziness. The Matrix was one of the defining action movies of the 1990s and the influence on the film had ripple effects on the film industry that are still felt today. The film spawned a franchise that included two back-to-back sequels in 2003, The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolution, an anime anthology film titled The Animatrix, and a fourth untitled film will return to theaters and on HBO Max in December 2021.
2021 will not only see the return of The Matrix to theaters but is a hot streak year for Salma Hayek. The actress kicked off the year the Amazon original Bliss, and her latest film The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard opened to number 1 at the box office. She will next be seen joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Ajax in Eternals this November, and shortly will be followed up with Ridley Scott's House of Gucci alongside Adam Driver and Lady Gaga. There was almost a chance Hayek could have been reprising the role of Trinity in the upcoming Matrix 4 had she gotten the part back in 1999.
Hayek herself almost had a role in The Matrix back in 1999. According to Entertainment Weekly, Hayek told Jada Pinkett Smith on her Red Table Talk show about how both actresses were finalists for the role of Trinity in The Matrix. Hayek jokingly recalls that she didn't get the part because of her lack of physical agility. The part eventually went to Carrie-Anne Moss, and Jada Pinkett Smith would go on to star in The Matrix sequels and Hayek cites Pinkett Smith as an inspiration for how she approaches getting prepared for action roles now. Hayek said:
"We were one of the four finalists for The Matrix. We'd jumped through many hurdles, screen testing, and many auditions. They brought these stunt coordinators from Asia. It was the physical test. I'm flexible and agile, but I'm lazy. I never really went to the gym, they said, 'You have to run!' I go, 'To where?' I couldn't even go around the room once. Here comes Jada, a mean, lean, sexy machine! Oh my God! She was so good! It was so embarrassing! She was so fit, she was so focused, she was so disciplined. She was so capable. She was so gracious. And I just looked at this woman and I thought to myself, 'That's who I want to be when I grow up…Every time I'm going to do action, I say, no, I better start getting some stamina and practice the routines, you've got to be like Jada!"
Hayek wasn't entirely a stranger to action films at the time, for she had already starred in Desperado in 1995. Interestingly enough, Hayek would go on to star in another action film, Wild Wild West the same year that The Matrix came out. Her co-star, Will Smith, famously turned down the role of Neo to star in Wild Wild West. While The Matrix went on to great critical and commercial success, Wild Wild West bombed at the box office and with critics. Wild Wild West now has the distinction of featuring two actors who almost starred in The Matrix.
Hayek may have lost the role of Trinity in The Matrix in 1999, but she has had an interesting career that has allowed her to work with a variety of different directors like Julie Taymour, Kevin Smith, and Robert Rodriguez. She has also been given the chance to headline major action films like The Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard and Eternals in her 50's, something her male peers are often given but sadly many actresses are not afforded, like how Carrie-Anne Moss was offered grandmother roles once she turned 40. Hayek may not have needed The Matrix, but it will always be interesting what could have been for fans of the actress and the film.
