2. The Wachowskis Spent The Entire Budget Shooting The First Ten Minutes - Then Went Back To Warner Bros Asking For More
Prior to The Matrix, the Wachowskis had literally no experience on a production of that size and scale. Their previous film, Bound, had been put together on the incredibly modest budget of $6 million, and had featured none of the extravagant set pieces or special effects that was required for The Matrix. It's perhaps understandable that when they first went to Warner Bros requesting $80 million the studio politely declined and offered them $10 million instead. Their response to the problem of being handed such a small budget to make a film they knew required a lot more was priceless - they spent the entire $10 million on the opening 10 minutes of the film, took it straight to Warner Bros and demanded the rest. Fortunately their bold gambit worked a charm - Warners were so impressed with what they saw they gave them the rest and flew them off to Sydney to make the rest of the film. They even allowed the shoot to run over by over a week, which makes for a pleasant change from the usual stories of studio interference.
