The Analyst and the Architect in The Matrix Resurrections, explained

[Ed. note: This story contains spoilers for The Matrix Resurrections.]

Even after four Matrix movies and a number of spinoff stories, viewers still don’t know too much about the Machines, the artificially intelligent antagonists of the series. Our glimpses at the A.I. are the majority of what we know. The programs that inhabit the Matrix and have some control over it are the most important sources of information for society. As far as what fans of the original trilogy know, two of the oldest programs that exist are the Oracle, an “intuitive” program who helped to create the version of the Matrix seen throughout the films, and the Architect, the program originally created and tasked by the Machines to create the Matrix itself.

The antagonist, the Analyst Resurrections of the MatrixNeal Patrick Harris plays the role of Neal Patrick Harris. He introduces another wrinkle to the power dynamics that led to the Matrix’ creation and ongoing hold on human and machine-kind.

The Architect was originally a program created by Machines to make a working version of Matrix. Unable to do so, the Architect was assisted by the Oracle, a program who who helped develop a version of the Matrix that would keep humanity sedated at the cost of a recurring human anomaly known as “the One” and a fraction of the human population who would learn of the system’s true nature, escape, and subsequently rebel against it. The end of The Matrix RevolutionsNeo offers to broker a peace treaty between the Machines, humans, in return for Agent Smith’s defeat. Agent Smith was a mutual existential threat, which threatened the integrity, security, and survival of humanity as well as the Matrix. After defeating Smith, Neo’s body is carried away into the Machine City. Resurrections of the MatrixThis event takes place 60 Jahre after the events that took place in The Matrix RevolutionsNeo is now a Thomas Anderson videogame programmer, while he experiences strange visions from his Matrix days.

Turns out that the program known as The Analyst was present when Neo sacrificed his own life to defeat Smith, and was instrumental in both Neo and Trinity’s resurrection. After the events of the third film, the Machines consented to the terms of Neo’s truce, allowing any human who wished to leave the Matrix to do so. This decision led to a decrease of the energy siphoned by the Machine’s power plants, creating an energy shortage which subsequently threatened the survival of the Machines. This desperation for power resulted in the eruption of a “civil war” among the Machines, as various factions of the Machine world that disagreed on whether to continue upholding the truce battled for supremacy and survival. In the aftermath, several of the oldest programs of the Matrix — including the Oracle, The Architect, and the exile programs — were purged from the system, while The Analyst seized upon the opportunity to propose a new version of the Matrix which would not only compel human beings to remain within the system, but would be built around siphoning energy from Neo and Trinity specifically.

When Neo’s corpse was taken away, The Analyst set about attempting to rebuild both his and Trinity’s body in order to access the source code of The One. The Analyst discovered that Trinity, Neo and his body were incredibly energetic when placed in close proximity. This discovery made The Analyst happy and he built a separate power plant to house Neo and Trinity. He placed them in pods adjacent to each other to siphon their energy safely without causing an overload.

To top it all, The Analyst invented a new Matrix that exploited the emotions of humans to trap them in a cycle of dependency. Though not explicitly stated, it’s strongly implied that social media platforms exist in this incarnation of the Matrix and serve a vital role in keeping the human population sedated and reluctant to leave the Matrix. With the success of these new developments, The Analyst effectively became the new Architect of the Matrix, keeping a close eye on Neo so as to keep him producing energy while attempting to unravel why the anomaly of “the One” continues to occur, presumably to find a way to generate yet even more power.

The end of Resurrections of the MatrixEven though he had lost Trinity and Neo, the Analyst insisted that he won. This is because he believes he’s created an alternate version of Matrix where humanity can never leave. In defiance, Neo and Trinity tell the Analyst that they’re going to change his world together and remind humanity what it means to be free again. We may ever see the Analyst reporting back to his bosses in a sequel.