The Matrix's Agent Smith is one of the most remarkable villains in pop culture, and a lot of it has to do with the character having his own agenda as opposed to what the machines really wanted. At first, Agent Smith seemed, just like all the other Agents in the Matrix simulation, set up to be a one-dimensional villain whose sole purpose was to antagonize Trinity, Neo, and Morpheus. However, Hugo Weaving quickly started giving Smith traits of a much more complex personality, which eventually paid off once Smith betrayed the other Agents and the machines themselves.
In a story about breaking out of a mental prison in which everything seemed “normal”, the Agents could have not been designed better. Whereas each crew member of the Nebuchadnezzar had their own style and looks, the Agents all wear the same clothes – a suit and tie. In theory, there should not be a sense of individuality amongst the Agents in the Matrix, which is symbolized by how they can instantly assume the bodies of anyone else inside the simulation. The Agents rarely spoke, which is very much the opposite of how Agent Smith behaved.
Towards the end of The Matrix, when Morpheus has been captured, Agent Smith removes his earpiece in order to have a sincere talk with the human leader. Smith and the Agents were trying to get Zion’s defense codes from Morpheus, but Smith’s reason for wanting the mission to succeed stemmed from more than just following orders. Agent Smith had grown to hate the Matrix, something that by itself was going against the program’s nature, and he wanted out no matter what. To Smith, humans were a virus, something disgusting, and the Matrix was a prison from which Smith had to escape. Smith assumed that, as soon as they destroyed Zion, there would be no reason for the Matrix to exist and thus all of the programs would return to the Source. Smith’s mission itself was no different from the other Agents, but he could not let the others know that he had formed his own opinion on the Matrix and the relationship between humans and machines.
Agent Smith's Plans In The Matrix Trilogy Explained
Smith was already a disruptive the Machine City as he had found a way to leave the Matrix simulation.
The conflict between Agent Smith and Neo, two sides of the prophecy of The One, was as interesting as the fight between humans and machines – if not more. Hugo Weaving played Smith as a charming and compelling villain who steal the show every time he was on screen. In hindsight, Smith played every possible role in the war – an Agent, a freed program, and, more recently, an ally to Neo and Trinity in The Matrix Resurrections.
