The R&B singer Aaliyah, who had been signed to play Zee in The Matrix Reloaded, died in a plane crash in August 2001. Two months later Gloria Foster, who played Oracle in the original film, died of a heart attack. Carrie-Anne Moss, who plays Trinity, was then badly hurt shooting an action scene in Sydney.

And a series of misfortunes have befallen the star of the series, Keanu Reeves. First his sister was diagnosed with leukaemia and then on Christmas Eve 2000 his child with girlfriend Jennifer Syme was stillborn. The loss strained their relationship and they broke up. The following April Syme died in a car accident after a party in Los Angeles.

Reeves later broke his ribs and ruptured his spleen in a motorcycle accident and then broke his ankle on set.

The going was no smoother financially. A number of the special effects production companies working on shots for Reloaded went bust as costs rocketed.