MORTAL KOMBAT Trailer

It’s time to rip out some spines with Mortal Kombat, the feature debut of director Simon McQuoid.

Yep, they’re taking another shot at adapting the infamous video game series to the big screen, and hey, at least it can’t be as bad as Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, right?

If you’re like me and don’t know much about the series, you may be surprised to learn there’s an actual plot behind all the battles. The realm Outworld has decided to attack Earth, which means its greatest fighters must assemble in order to defend the planet. Cole Young, a washed-up MMA fighter, wasn’t aware he had such a lofty purpose, but a mysterious tattoo means he’s been chosen along with several other fighters with special abilities, and they don’t have long to prepare for the final battle.

The games were mainly known for their violence, which was shocking in the early video game world. This movie will apparently try to capture all the gore, which should give rookie director McQuoid some big moments to lean on. He still needs to construct a decent story around all the mayhem, though, which past movies have struggled to get right.

No huge stars were brought on for the adaptation, but most are vaguely recognizable faces. Joe Taslim and Lewis Tan are at least trained fighters, so they should handle the stunts admirably. The rest of the actors, which includes Joshua Lawson, Jessica McNamee, and Hiroyuki Sanada, would’ve had to train hard for the series key selling point.

With a guarantee that this will come out thanks to the simultaneous HBO Max release in the US, at least we won’t have to wait long to find out if the film series has been successfully revived.

Mortal Kombat is directed by Simon McQuoid and stars Lewis Tan, Joshua Lawson, and Jessica McNamee. It will be released in the US in theaters and on HBO Max on April 16th, 2020. For international release dates, click here.

Will you check this one out? Let us know in the comments!