Mortal Kombat 2 Movie Writer Says Fans Reacted to Test Screenings ‘The Way I Reacted to Avengers: Endgame’

Screenwriter and shaper Jeremy Slater has talked up Mortal Kombat 2, describing it arsenic “so overmuch funnier and bigger” than the archetypal movie.

In an interrogation with ComicBook.com, Slater discussed squeezing a formed of 20 acquainted fighters into Mortal Kombat 2, which is owed retired Oct 24, 2025 and stars Karl Urban arsenic Johnny Cage.

“It’s precise casual for these things to go three-to-four-hour, sprawling epics, truthful you ever person to beryllium judicious successful cutting things down and what’s the affectional communicative we are telling and what is the communicative the assemblage cares about,” Slater explained.

“Then, making definite erstwhile you get to those moments that substance — the fights, the fatalities, the surprises, the deaths — that they onshore and they are arsenic satisfying arsenic everyone wants them to be. I deliberation we nailed it. They had the champion stunt squad successful the concern moving connected this thing. The actors are phenomenal. It’s truthful overmuch funnier and bigger than the archetypal movie.”

Slater past talked astir attending trial screenings, which helium said were afloat of Mortal Kombat fans reacting to the movie “the mode I reacted to Avengers: Endgame.”

“I americium truthful excited for radical to spot the movie,” helium said. “It’s been done for a while. We’ve been waiting for the close merchandise day and waiting for the close window. I person been to those trial screenings, which are afloat of Mortal Kombat fans, and watching them respond to it the mode I reacted to Avengers: Endgame. They were cheering and jumping retired of their seats. Every gag is landing and they are loving it. It’s 1 of the top moments of my life. That’s wherefore you get into this business.”

In March, we yet got a archetypal look astatine a fig of caller characters acceptable to look successful Mortal Kombat 2, including Martyn Ford’s Shao Kahn and Adeline Rudolph’s Kitana, alongside the returning Hiroyuki Sanada arsenic Scorpion.

Mortal Kombat fans had wondered however Karl Urban, who plays Billy Butcher successful The Boys, would look arsenic Mortal Kombat’s fan-favorite egocentric Hollywood prima successful unrecorded enactment signifier aft his representation appeared successful an in-universe poster for a Cage movie.

In Mortal Kombat 2 we spot a fresh-faced Urban with Cage’s trademark hairsbreadth and sunglasses successful a emblematic martial arts pose. In the background, we spot Ludi Lin arsenic Liu Kang, Mehcad Brooks arsenic Jax, and Jessica McNamee arsenic Sonya Blade.

Mortal Kombat developer NetherRealm’s Ed Boon has said of Johnny Cage’s quality successful the sequel: "His integration into the Mortal Kombat communicative and beingness is simply a large portion of what this movie explores. He's a washed-up Hollywood feline thrown into this magical, ultra-violent thing. Karl, his depiction of Johnny Cage is antithetic than our games successful immoderate ways. He's adding his ain flare to it, but I deliberation it'll consciousness fresh. There's similar a novelty origin successful there."

Expect a "ridiculously hilarious” quality instauration for Johnny Cage, Boon teased. Director Simon McQuoid added: "We wanted a quality that wasn't conscionable wholly silly, comic book… It's a quality that could instantly spell determination and go excessively airy and throwaway if we were to thin excessively overmuch into the benignant of cheese. The casting of Karl Urban for that relation allowed that quality to person much depth."

Meanwhile, Damon Herriman (Better Man) plays Quan Chi successful Mortal Kombat 2, and Josh Lawson and Max Huang marque a astonishment instrumentality arsenic Kano and Kung Lao, 2 characters who spot the particulate successful the archetypal movie. How tin that be? Boon said existing lore from the Mortal Kombat video games, which famously play accelerated and escaped with the live oregon dormant presumption of its characters, makes thing possible: "So we woody with spirits and the NetherRealm and things similar that," helium said. "There are ways to bring dormant characters back."

And finally, Tati Gabrielle (The Last of Us Season 2) plays Jade, and Ana Thu Nguyen (NCIS: Sydney) plays Queen Sindel.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].