Mortal Kombat II opened in theaters on May 8, but after underperforming at the box office, the sequel hits Digital platforms tomorrow, June 9.
2021's Mortal Kombat was released during the pandemic, and exceeded expectations with $84.4 million worldwide at a time when people weren't going to the theater. It was also a hit on HBO Max, but the follow-up didn't take off in quite the same way and tapped out with a $128 million haul on a reported $80 million production budget.
Reviews were positive, with 64% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a stellar 87% on the audience-generated Popcornmeter. Strong Digital and Blu-ray sales could make a difference, but after losing money in theaters, a threequel may be wishful thinking.
If you've been on the fence about giving Mortal Kombat II a chance, the first 10 minutes of the movie have been released for you to watch today (via GameFragger.com). In that, we pick up with Emperor Shao Kahn in a flashback to the day he killed King Jerrod in Mortal Kombat, taking over Edenia in the name of Outworld, as well as Queen Sindel and Princess Kitana as his consort and daughter, respectively.
The action then jumps to the present, with Jade and Kitana facing off in a sparring session. However, it's seeing Shao Kahn in action that proves the main highlight, particularly as the villain takes out the King with a brutal fatality.
"We are not greenlit for a third movie yet," Mortal Kombat II writer Jeremy Slater previously said. "When the initial test screening numbers came back last year, and the studio saw how fans were responding to ['Mortal Kombat II'], I think they realized that there’s a potential here for this to be an ongoing franchise."
"They commissioned me to start working on a script for ['Mortal Kombat III'], and I’m finishing a second draft right now. I’m very, very happy with it," he continued. "In the same way that we took lessons from the first one and tried to make [‘Mortal Kombat II’] a much better movie, we’re now taking the lessons from ['Mortal Kombat II']."
In Mortal Kombat II, Karl Urban stars as Johnny Cage, alongside Adeline Rudolph, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Ludi Lin, Mehcad Brooks, Tati Gabrielle, Lewis Tan, Damon Herriman, with Chin Han, Tadanobu Asano as Lord Raiden, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han, and Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi and Scorpion.
Director Simon McQuoid returns to helm the follow-up to his explosive 2021 cinematic adventure, from a screenplay by Jeremy Slater, based on the video game created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. The film is produced by Todd Garner, James Wan, Toby Emmerich, E. Bennett Walsh and McQuoid, and executive produced by Michael Clear, Judson Scott, Slater, and Lawrence Kasanoff.
Joining McQuoid behind the camera are director of photography Stephen F. Windon, production designer Yohei Taneda, editor Stuart Levy and costume designer Cappi Ireland, with casting by Rich Delia and music by Benjamin Wallfisch.
Mortal Kombat II has wrapped up its run in theaters and hits Digital platforms tomorrow, June 9. A Blu-ray release is scheduled for July 28.