Mainstream audiences were originally drawn to The Matrix because of its stunning gun-fu action and groundbreaking cinematography, but the film remains a classic because of how it addresses complex philosophical topics. Written and directed by the Wachowski sisters, the movie examines subjects ranging from religion to the nature of consciousness.
One aspect that went mostly unexplored until recently is the way The Matrix tackles trans identity. Lana and Lilly Wachowski are both trans women who have spoken about how the film addresses trans issues. In fact, one of the members of Morpheus' crew, Switch, was originally written to be a trans woman in the film's first draft.
Switch was one of only two women serving aboard the Nebuchadnezzar and took Neo to meet with Morpheus, the leader of a group fighting against the machines subjugating humanity. Morpheus offered Neo a choice between two pills, blue and red. Neo famously accepted the red pill that allowed him to escape the artificial reality of the Matrix, waking for the first time in his real body in the Real World. As Neo learned, characters could hook up their brains to machines, re-entering the Matrix. Switch and Apoc worked closely together on missions, and both were killed when another crew member, Cypher, betrayed the group.
A core part of The Matrix is the distinction between the Real World and the artificial reality of the Matrix. In an interview with BBC News, Lilly Wachowski stated, "We had the character of Switch - who was a character who would be a man in the real world and then a woman in the Matrix." This clearly shows that trans themes were part of the story from the beginning, as Switch was originally intended to be trans. In an interview with Them, Lilly said, "Yes, [The Matrix] is a trans allegory -- it was made by two closeted trans women. How can it not be?!"
According to IMDb, when Warner Bros. cast actor Belinda McClory to play Switch, they changed the script so that McClory would play the character in both the Matrix and the Real World. Switch's name is a reference to her character's original gender portrayal, and she was given a deliberately androgynous look to reflect this.
The representation of one's body in the Matrix is a manifestation of their consciousness. As Morpheus explains to Neo, "Your appearance is what we call 'residual self-image.' It is the mental projection of your digital self." This explains why Switch would have lived as a woman inside the Matrix but would have appeared more masculine in the real world.
Since The Matrix tackles many topics, it has been interpreted in various ways, and reading the film's text through any single lens risks ignoring other aspects it touches upon. However, not all readings are equally valid. It needs to be stated that men's rights activists have frequently cited The Matrix as a metaphor for how femininity is corrupting cis men, using the term "taking the red pill" to refer to what they see as a philosophical awakening as they came to embrace their new beliefs. Any in-depth examination and critique of their arguments as they relate to this scene would take too long to include here, but since many of their beliefs are highly transphobic, it is worth noting that they are undermined by the fact that the Wachowskis are themselves trans women and by Switch's original conception as a trans woman.
In the years since its release, The Matrix has become a major focus in discussions about trans themes in film. Writers like Andra Long Chu and Cáel M. Keegan, author of Lana and Lilly Wachowski: Sensing Transgender, have helped shape this discourse. That is why Switch's original identity is so important. At a time when trans representation was almost nonexistent in film, the Wachowskis tried to include a trans character as a hero in a major action blockbuster -- a film that has since become a core part of the cultural zeitgeist. Had Switch's identity not been altered by Warner Bros, The Matrix could have been even more revolutionary.