The Matrix (film)

The Matrix was a film which Bill Bishop watched in a Department M rehabilitation facility in 1999. (PROSE: The Danger Men) It involved some characters taking a blue pill, which was used as a metaphor by conspiracy theorists in the 21st century for "swallowing lies".

Cleo Proctor said she had never seen The Matrix, since it was a "boy film". (AUDIO: SOS)

Behind the scenes
Though Cleo characterises The Matrix as a "boy film", it was actually written and produced by two closeted trans women,, who later confirmed The Matrix was originally an allegory for the trans experience.

In The Matrix, the "blue pill" could be taken in order to forget about the reality of the Matrix, which proved that the conventional real world was a simulation, whereas the "red pill" allowed one access to that higher reality. Though this was also intended as a trans allegory, with red pills indicating estrogen, the "blue pill, red pill" metaphor has been co-opted by alt-right groups in more recent years, especially among right-wing conspiracy theory groups. It is in this context that Shawna Thompson uses the term.