A new Mortal Kombat movie is on the way, and this time the violence level will more accurately reflect the source material. Unlike the cheesy techno-fest of ’90s Mortal Kombat movies (and I say that with love), the new movie will have an R rating and feature some choice fatalities from the games. While not much more is known about the upcoming flick, viewers can go in knowing that it’ll splatter around the gore we’ve come to expect.
Mortal Kombat and Mortal Kombat: Annihilation maintained PG-13 ratings, keeping violence to a relative minimum compared to the video games. That won’t be the case for the upcoming film. Screenwriter Greg Russo confirmed the R rating on Twitter, but is keeping the movie’s fatalities a secret.
Since it's already been stated by other members of the team, I'm gonna put this one to bed. MK WILL be R-Rated and for the first time EVER, FATALITIES will FINALLY be on the big screen (and no I'm not gonna say which ones) You'll just have to wait for the movie & see!!! 😉 pic.twitter.com/aVTewH4t28
— Greg Russo (@WriterRusso) July 12, 2019
Insight into the new Mortal Kombat movie has been slowly trickling out since its announcement in May. We know Greg Russo is at the writing helm and Simon McQuaid is directing. The release date is set for March 5, 2021, and the film is currently under production in South Australia.
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Character-wise, there have been a few insightful reports regarding the fighter lineup. This week, The Hollywood Reporter revealed actor Joe Taslim would play infamous ice-ninja Sub-Zero. With Sub-Zero making an appearance, it’s safe to assume his rival and buddy Scorpion will show up as well. We also have a rough idea of the plot, which surrounds original character Cole Turner finding himself in the dangerous world of Mortal Kombat.
While many fan-favorites will allegedly make appearances, including Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, and Raiden, it seems in-game movie star Johnny Cage will not be appearing in the film. It’s a seemingly-odd choice since Cage is known as the star of the Mortal Kombat world and could play up the meta ridiculousness of being a self-aware movie star in a movie about a game. Whether the new movie ends up being good, hilariously bad, or somewhere in-between, it’s likely to be a worthy popcorn flick.
