Matrix tourism

The Matrix is a science fiction film franchise created by the Wachowskis. The original trilogy was released between 1999 and 2003, and was followed by video games, an animated anthology film (The Animatrix) and a fourth feature film, The Matrix Resurrections, released in December 2021. The films were shot in several locations around the world, and many of these locations can still be visited.

Neo is a hacker who learns that mankind's world is just a virtual reality called The Matrix. It was created by intelligent machines, which keep humanity asleep in pods and harvest the energy of human bodies. A rebel group led by Morpheus and Trinity frees Neo and takes him into the real world. From there they re-enter the Matrix to fight the machines and liberate mankind.

The original film was shot almost entirely in Sydney, where the filmmakers used the city's older downtown architecture to stand in for an unnamed American city. The sequels moved part of the production to the San Francisco Bay Area, and the fourth film was shot in San Francisco and Berlin.

Many of the filming locations are plain public places, such as streets, stations and a pub, and have no signs or markers. Several iconic scenes (the lobby shootout, the "Burly Brawl", the freeway chase) used sets, studio space or temporary structures that no longer exist.

The first film was shot in Sydney in 1998, with studio work at Fox Studios Australia in Moore Park. Sydney's streets and buildings were chosen for their look of a generic, slightly run-down American city.

• -33.867686151.2098221 Martin Place. A pedestrian plaza in the heart of the central business district, lined with grand early-20th-century buildings.  
• -33.867222151.20752 Sydney central business district. Many of the film's city scenes were shot on the streets and in the buildings of the CBD.  
• -33.8677151.2083 General Post Office, Sydney. A grand Victorian-era building on Martin Place, now home to shops, restaurants and a hotel.  
• -33.8762151.20974 Museum railway station. An underground station on the City Circle, with a distinctive curved platform and a vintage character.  
• -33.89334151.204615 Redfern, New South Wales. An inner-city suburb with a large railway station. Today it is a lively neighbourhood with cafes and murals.  
• -33.9004151.206646 Waterloo, New South Wales. An inner-city suburb south of the CBD, whose streets and industrial buildings were used for some of the film's exterior scenes.  
• -33.8649151.1677 Rozelle. An inner-west suburb on Darling Street. The Garry Owen Hotel, a pub, was used as a location for the film.  

Production of the two sequels was largely done back-to-back in Sydney (at Fox Studios Australia) and in the San Francisco Bay Area. The famous freeway chase was shot on a purpose-built section of road at a former naval air station, and nearby tunnels were used for the road scenes.

• 37.7861-122.3198 Naval Air Station Alameda. A former US Navy air base on the western tip of Alameda island. The freeway chase was filmed on a specially built stretch of highway here. The airfield and buildings are partly open to the public. Check which areas are accessible before you go.  
• 37.8-122.259 Oakland, California. The city skyline appears in the film.  
• 37.7875-122.27710 Posey and Webster Street tubes. Twin road tunnels beneath the Oakland Estuary, connecting Oakland and Alameda. They were used for the tunnel scenes in the sequel. Traffic is heavy, so it is best seen by car as part of the normal commute route, or from the waterfront.  

Most of Revolutions was shot at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney on soundstages, including scenes in the underground city of Zion and the machine city. There are few outdoor locations to visit.

• -33.8918151.224711 Fox Studios Australia. Film studio complex in Moore Park. The soundstages are not open for ordinary visits, but the surrounding area has cinemas, restaurants and a weekend market.  

The fourth film was shot mainly in San Francisco, which serves as the city of the new Matrix, as well as in Berlin and Potsdam.

• 37.7749-122.419412 San Francisco. The city's streets, bridges and skyline were used for many exterior scenes. A walk through the downtown and the waterfront will take you past several of the shooting locations.  

• Fiction tourism
• Film tourism