Summary
- Collider’s Perri Nemiroff talks with the cast and creatives of Mortal Kombat II at New York Comic Con 2025.
- Starring Karl Urban as Johnny Cage, Earthrealm’s heroes are pitted against each other in a battle against the cruel and powerful Shao Kahn.
- In this interview, the crew discusses how the sequel doubles down on the R-rated brutality, what the director learned making the first movie, and how the cast approached their characters.
It’s the era of video game adaptations, and even though the brutal and bloody Mortal Kombat franchise isn’t a stranger to this treatment, it has also joined the resurgence in the last couple of years. The video game itself was a staple in arcades, relished for its gory graphics and all the creative ways you could kill your fictional opponents using fatalities. It was finally adapted for the screen in the ’90s, where two consecutive movies, however novel they may have been at the time, didn’t quite surpass the test of mediocrity. But when director Simon McQuoid rebooted it in 2021, the film fared much better, satisfying fans by embodying the true spirit of the games, but still, the fans cried out for more violence.
Now, Mortal Kombat II is slated for a promising premiere in 2026, with fans excited to see the story from the first film evolve while still staying true to the essence of the game. In the sequel, the Earthrealm heroes must go toe-to-toe in bloody battles to defeat the dark rule of Shao Kahn, brought to life on screen by Martyn Ford. The movie introduces Karl Urban as a Johnny Cage unlike we’ve seen before, Adeline Rudolph as Kitana, Tati Gabrielle as Jade, and with Joe Taslim returning as Bi-Han, Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, Lewis Tan as Cole Young, and Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi.
During this year’s New York Comic Con, Collider’s Perri Nemiroff sat with the team behind the film to talk about how they honor the franchise, including director McQuoid, writer Jeremy Slater, game creator Ed Boon, and cast members Urban, Rudolph, Gabrielle, and Ford. Apart from looking back on how the franchise has evolved, the cast also speaks about how they approached their individual characters and some of the challenges in portraying them. Urban also shares an emotional message on the fifth and final season of The Boys, another popular gorefest of a show that focuses on superpowers.
You can hear all about the process and evolution of the franchise directly from the cast and crew in the video above, or follow along via the transcript below.
Creator Ed Boon Says ‘Mortal Kombat II’ Brought Him to Tears
“It punches you in the face.”
PERRI NEMIROFF: Ed, you’ve seen this game get adapted quite a few times at this point. What makes this experience different? What is something about the collaboration or maybe just watching the project evolve that is like nothing you’ve seen before?
ED BOON: Well, the previous Mortal Kombat movie was the first one that was rated R, so it is unabashed Mortal Kombat. Double that, and then you have this movie. It’s pretty crazy. It absolutely lives up to what fans are going to be expecting, demanding of Mortal Kombat. We have the tournament, which is a big request from fans, and it will absolutely satisfy.
I want to know one thing that surprised you, even as one of the people who started this all. Can you tease something in Mortal Kombat II that made even you go, “Oh my god, I never realized that was going to be that good or that powerful?”
BOON: The opening sequence in the movie, I don’t think I’ve seen it yet and not cried. It is intense. It punches you in the face. It’s the best way to start it, but the rest of the movie just lives up to it. It’s such a powerful opening scene.
‘Mortal Kombat II’ Writer on Tackling 20 Fighters and a 178-Page Draft
“Whose story is this?”
Jeremy, I love hearing how projects evolve every single step of the way, so can you tell me what is the biggest difference between draft one of this screenplay and the final shooting script that then went into production?
JEREMY SLATER: Oh my God, I think my first draft of this, before I showed it to anyone, was something like 178 pages, which is a good 70 pages too long. We have a cast of about 20 characters here, so there’s a lot of balls to juggle. It became a process of really drilling down to whose story is this? Which characters are we following? Who are we getting emotionally invested in? And then just making sure every fight really lives up to fan expectations, and every single fight is showing the audience something different and something new.
Because you mentioned how many characters this movie has, going into the writing process, what character were you most excited to write and flesh out their story, but then also, can you name a character that wound up being more creatively fulfilling to write than you ever could have imagined?
SLATER: You know what? I would say Johnny Cage was the one who I expected. Going in, I was like, “Cage is cage. He’ll be fine. He’ll be easy. Everyone kind of knows Johnny.” And I really fell in love with the character as I was writing it. I kept finding new depths and new interesting things, so then when we got Karl to play it, he kind of elevated that character so far beyond what I ever even dreamed it could be.
Simon, I want to come your way to continue with the evolution of these two movies. Can you tell us something you managed to accomplish in film two, only because you did a certain something in film one — you took a big swing there, and now you were able to up your game in this new movie?
SIMON MCQUOID: Thank you for that question. That’s a good question. The goal was always as soon as we finished, as soon as Mortal Kombat I came out, my goal was to make Mortal Kombat II feel like the opening of Mortal Kombat I. It was Mortal Kombat’s opening that I was so proud of. Everything kind of fell into place and landed, and it had the emotion, and it had the power, and the fun, as well, but it had the depth of character. So I thought, “Okay, that’s the goal. That is what I learned, and that is what I need to make an entire film out of for the next film.”
Karl Urban “Isn’t the Johnny Cage We’re Used To” in ‘Mortal Kombat II’
“His career is in the tank.”
Karl, I feel like this is true whenever you join a big franchise, but in particular with a fan favorite character like yours – you get cast, and maybe people have something to say about it. But, I’m a big believer that it doesn’t matter what anybody else thinks. What matters is that you believe to your core you are this character. So it was making me wonder, what is the very first thing you did either in prep or on set that made you stop and go, “I am Johnny Cage?”
KARL URBAN: Wow, that’s a great question. Well, for me, I feel very blessed to have been given such a wonderful script by Jeremy because what he wrote was really a truly three-dimensional character that you really feel for and you empathize for. The Johnny Cage that we discover in this movie is not the sort of bombastic, cocky Johnny Cage that we’re all used to and we all love in the games. This is a character who is downtrodden, dispirited. His career is in the tank. He’s neglected his martial arts skills. And it’s this very juncture that he gets called upon by Raiden and Sonya to defend Earth in Mortal Kombat. To me, I just thought that was such an incredible, fertile place to start. The character has a wonderful humanity and a wonderful vulnerability. He’s real, so in that aspect, it was very easy to become Johnny and to get on board with his journey.
When it comes to the stunt work, what is more difficult, playing a character who knows their stuff when it comes to fighting and has a very refined style, or someone who hasn’t trained for a long time and maybe needs some work?
URBAN: That’s a great question! [Laughs] You know, it’s a little frustrating, because you’re playing a character who used to be able to fight really well and then is currently not in the best shape, and the fight’s not necessarily going as well as you’d hoped. It’s a challenge to play because you just want to be better. But I think, for me, one of the most fun elements of playing Johnny was just tracking the evolution of that — not only Johnny’s journey internally as he sort of comes to terms with who he is and the failures of his life, but then really sort of galvanized towards a new objective. We were all very blessed. We had such a great stunt team on this and a martial arts team that helped us look good.
From ‘Sabrina’ Sisterhood to ‘Mortal Kombat’ Warriors
Adeline Rudolph and Tati Gabrielle discuss reuniting, training, and trusting each other in battle.
Adeline and Tati, I fear other people are asking you this, but I can’t help it. I was a big Sabrina fan, so the fact that you two are back together in this makes me so incredibly happy. How did that come to be? Was it one big coincidence, and how did you feel when you realized the other was in this movie?
ADELINE RUDOLPH: I’ve been refraining from telling this story because I was like, “When’s the right time?” Tati had been attached to the project.
TATI GABRIELLE: Yeah, I had been cast as Jade, and I did not yet know who my Kitana was going to be.
RUDOLPH: My casting process was a little bit longer. I had gone out for it, and it took a month or two or whatnot, and we had a couple of sessions. I think there was one point where I had a director session with Simon, which I’m very grateful for, which doesn’t always happen. He gave me a whole hour over Zoom to do these three scenes, and I think we were trying to find that character. I hadn’t heard back in a bit, and so I had my green card appointment lined up in Germany, and I was going to go submit my passport to the embassy, until I wake up in Germany and I get a text from Tati saying, “Hey, congrats on Mortal Kombat!”
I hadn’t heard, again, from my team in a month, so before replying, I texted my agent. I’m like, “Hey, Mortal Kombat, that didn’t go my way, right?” He’s like, “Damn it, who told you?” I was like, “What? Did I book it?!” I kid you not, Tati told me I booked Mortal Kombat before my team called me to let me know that it had come around. And then they were like, “You cannot give your passport to the embassy. You have to come.” I was like, “What about my green card?” But also, thank God. Thank you for hiring me! [Laughs] So, it’s a dream, to answer your question, to get to work together again. To find out in this way.
GABRIELLE: Yeah. It was really beautiful.
Obviously, you go into this project having worked together and knowing how talented the other is, but can you tell me something you saw the other do on this set that made even you stop and go, “Oh my god, I knew you were good, but I never realized you were going to be capable of that?”
GABRIELLE: Watching Adeline do stunt work, and just her level, like how committed she was to it. I come from a martial arts background, Addie did not. But seeing the way that she just took to it and she was so determined to get every move right to make it look good. She wanted to practice at home at the end of every day. I just beamed in seeing once it was all finished. I was like, “You smashed that. You absolutely smashed that.”
RUDOLPH: For Tati, this is the thing. You meet Tati, you see her even offset, and how can you not think she’s a star? I think nothing really surprised me. I’ve always known how talented she is, how incredible she is inside and out. What was so lovely about seeing her play Jade is that I feel like all of her strengths came together in this character, and it was so beautiful to get to see her shine and show all of her skill sets in this movie.
And then also, again, for us to be able to really tap into our sisterhood, not just our friendship outside of the movie, but as these characters was… I don’t know. Tati did this really cute thing where before we would do our scenes, she would lock in with me, and we’d just hold hands and she would just look into my eyes, and we would just be like, “Alright, are we ready to lock in and do this?”
GABRIELLE: Yeah, the level of safety to be able to go in with a person like that in scenes, I have no words for it, really. So, I feel very grateful and just very lucky to have had this experience with Addie.
How Martyn Ford Channels Shao Kahn’s Power
“I’ve always played big characters, but this was such a challenge.”
Martyn, we spoke at San Diego Comic-Con. I wanted to follow up on something we were talking about for Red Sonja, but now apply it to this movie. We were discussing that the bad guys you play have that Martyn-esque arrogance about them and grandeur, so I want to revisit that, but as it applies to Shao Kahn. Can you tell me something about that traditional quality that you bring to a role that helped you make this version of Shao Kahn uniquely your own?
MARTYN FORD: I absolutely feel like I brought so much of my own personality into the character. But also, I have a massive thank you to say to Simon, and I’ll tell you why. He taught me how to slow everything down in such an overpowering costume, and that clicked and stayed with me. You were just talking about having techniques, and you enjoy listening to people talk about that. I feel, for me, I’ve always played big characters, but this was such a challenge for me to play because the face was covered, and you kind of lose you’re trick sometimes. With your face being covered, you kind of feel like you have to do something but you’re not quite sure what. And obviously, Simon having such a clear eye and vision and knowledge, I remember one day he came over to me and just said, “If you move slow and controlled, and don’t move back, it’s so powerful.” And I do honestly believe that’s why the character comes across so well in the scenes on some of the scenes we shot because it was that stillness and the pacing of the slightest of movements that allowed the true power and the fears to come through.
‘The Boys’ Changed Not Only Karl Urban’s Career, But His Life
The Billy Butcher actor shares how the Prime Video series has made such an impact.
Before I have to let you all go, Karl, you know I have to ask one question about The Boys, and I know you’re not allowed to tell me any specifics, so I wanted to ask a question that leans into having this long run on a show and then having it come to an end, because Season 5 has wrapped. Looking back on the whole experience, what is something that now makes you think, “I am better off as an actor for having been a part of The Boys for so long?”
URBAN: I do feel that. I feel not only better off as an actor, but really, more importantly, better off in my life for having those people in my life. For having the Jack Quaids and the Tomer Capones and the Laz Alonsos, and Eric Kripke, and just everybody, and just having those wonderful people in my life and being able to collaborate with them on something so crazy, and to have it really find an audience and be so loved and appreciated. We had such a blast shooting the final season, and I can’t wait for it to get out there and for the journey to be complete.
- Release Date
-
May 15, 2026
- Runtime
-
116 Minutes
- Writers
-
Jeremy Slater
- Producers
-
E. Bennett Walsh, Toby Emmerich, Todd Garner, James Wan
