The Merovingian, also known as the Frenchman, and called Merv by Trinity, is a character in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, portrayed by Lambert Wilson in both films. He also played a prominent role in The Matrix Online.
The Merovingian provides a safe-haven for exiled or obsolete programs in the Matrix, as an alternative to deletion. Being an exile himself, the Merovingian’s services are not condoned by either the “Redpills” or the Machines, but they are overlooked unless in direct conflict with either of their goals. There is not much known about the Merovingian’s origin, but from what both he and the Oracle have revealed, he was a program made to regulate behavior amongst the “Bluepills” and report back with results. After the collapse of the first Matrix, he became obsolete as the newer versions presented an illusion of choice to the hard-wired humans, causing the behavioral manipulation to be more indirect than the Merovingian’s more straightforward methods. Instead of accepting deletion, he retreated into the programming of the Matrix, disguised as a human, and resolved to aid other programs who have become obsolete. He is seen as a hero to exiled programs, and as an impulsive and selfish opportunist to others. He is disillusioned by the idea of choice amongst humans, and, in a speech to Neo, Trinity and Morpheus, he relates that everything occurs due to cause-and-effect, and that there is no such thing as choice.