There’s a scene in 2003’s The Matrix Reloaded where our hero, Neo, in his trademark long coat and minimalist sunglasses, fights multiple versions of his arch nemesis Agent Smith, all wearing their signature neat-as-a-pin dark suits, and those rounded sunglasses. “Go ahead, shoot,” Agent Smith smirks. “The best thing about being me… there’s so many of me.”

Take away the aerial martial arts that the film’s franchise is known for and this scene could be mistaken for a recent fashion show. If Mr Keanu Reeves’ Neo has served as inspiration over the past few years – see those vampiric coats, the changing shape of sunglasses and the return of future-friendly minimal black – the latest Matrix fashion reference comes from the other side. Menswear’s current style icon, however is ultimate baddie, Agent Smith.

Take the recent SS23 shows. Prada’s collection began with simple black suits, interspersed with some Mr Robert Mapplethorpe-style leather, while CELINE HOMME’s show could have been an imagining of Agent Smith’s youth spent in indie clubs. These outings were preceded by Balenciaga’s resort show – in the decidedly Matrix-worthy location of the New York Stock Exchange – where male models wore black suits, combined with rubber S&M masks.

Other designers played with the territory for SS23, too: Brioni and Brunello Cucinelli went big on the agent-worthy tailoring, and Comme des Garçons SHIRT kept everything monochrome. Sharp black salaryman suits even turned up at typically colour-friendly brands, including Dries Van Noten and Paul Smith, suggesting Agent Smith had managed to hack into the design mood boards there, too.

Agent Smith’s influence hasn’t stopped at clothes, either. For the recent launch of avatars in Meta, Mr Mark Zuckerberg was appropriately dressed like the shapeshifting character – swapping his hoodie for a very smart Thom Browne suit. The successful businessman version of Waymond Wang (Mr Ke Huy Quan) in this year’s Everything Everywhere All At Once – a more recent take on the multiverse, of course – swaps his provincial bum bag and polo shirt for the slick suit of corporate power. Smith even plugged into the very un-Matrix world in a field in Somerset – the dancers for Mr Kendrick Lamar’s electric performance at Glastonbury all wore Smith-like freshly laundered white shirts and smart black trousers.

In a lot of ways, the idea of Agent Smith – and his outfit – appeals to our times. In our fully digital age, Agent Smith represents the algorithm over the analogue. As he famously says: “Never send a human to do a machine’s job.”

While most of you reading this are very likely to be team human rather than team robopocalypse, there’s a subversive appeal to taking on the costume of the other side. Agent Smith’s suit is the ultimate expression of the corporate machine – to wear it in the era of the Great Resignation has a IYKYK kind of irony to it.

There’s also a charm in having a kind of uniform. Individuality is all very well, but sometimes it’s nice to have an outfit that is set, certain and ready to go. Although Smith’s suit subtly changes across the four films – losing its green tint after he is no longer an actual agent of the matrix – and the actor portraying him changed for last year’s reboot (from Mr Hugo Weaving to Messrs Jonathan Groff and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), Smith always looks unflappably smart. And that’s something that, in the new WFH-in-sweatpants world, feels aspirational again.

Because it is so classic, Smith’s is the kind of outfit made to not be noticed. But unlike, say, head-to-toe beige, it also has a powerful anonymity. It’s similar to the one worn by another Agent – Cooper, in the Twin Peaks series – and those of Reservoir Dogs. It’s also been radical in the hands of artists and writers who wear the same thing day in, day out, almost like a costume that lets them hide in plain sight. Think of Gilbert & George in their suits, Mr James Baldwin in his white shirts or Mr William S Burroughs and his businessman outfit. This was, wrote Ms Terry Newman in her book Legendary Authors And The Clothes They Wore, “a total disguise to let his imagination do the wandering”.

Ms Kym Barrett, the costume designer of the original Matrix movies, has said she was inspired by “1960s Kennedy [Secret] Service guys” for Agent Smith’s outfit. The associations here mean the character works without having to do much. “In the back of your mind, subconsciously, you’ll hopefully get that… it’s a shape, as opposed to a detailed piece of fabric or a textural thing.”

He might be a baddie, but Agent Smith realness translates to serious power – and that is something even mere humans can appreciate.