Producer Explains Why Sandra Bullock Turned Down Keanu Reeves' Role Of Neo In 'The Matrix'

Sandra Bullock was tapped to play the lead role of Neo in “The Matrix,”  which ultimately went to her “Speed” costar Keanu Reeves .

But Bullock turned the mind-melting 1999 sci-fi movie down because it “just wasn’t something for her at the time,” film producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura has revealed in a new interview with The Wrap published Tuesday.

Di Bonaventura, who the entertainment website reports “fought to get” the movie made, said Bullock was approached after Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio and Will Smith all showed interest but then pulled out of the project.

“We went to Sandy Bullock and said ‘we’ll change Neo to a girl,’” he explained. “It was pretty simple. We sent her the script to see if she was interested in it. And if she was interested in it we would try to make the change.”

But it “didn’t really go anywhere” because it “just wasn’t something for her at the time,” he added.

Bullock admitted in 2009 that “The Matrix” was “a movie I wish I had done .”

“At the time, it wasn’t cast with Keanu, and I didn’t see myself with the person they wanted,” she said. “Later I saw the movie and loved it. It was sexy and great because of Carrie-Anne (Moss) and Keanu.”

Smith told Wired in 2004 that he “just didn’t see it ” when the concept of the movie was pitched to him. Pitt reportedly told producers that he was “way too exhausted” from filming “Seven Years In Tibet,” while DiCaprio said he didn’t want to follow “Titanic” with another visual effects movie.