GET OVER HERE! Don’t let the box office numbers deceive you. The Mortal Kombat franchise secured its future (and avoided fatality) when it became the most-streamed of HBO’s simultaneous releases, prompting New Line Cinema to immediately go into production on Mortal Kombat II. The movie, which reportedly finished shooting early last year but is set to be released this October, now has a brutal new trailer.
The good news is that New Line has doubled down, bringing in some familiar faces to lead the action (and apparently the comedy) alongside returning cast members from the first instalment. Simon McQuoid also returns as director, but this time with a story by Moon Knight head scribe Jeremy Slater to work from. Check out the full list below and use our guide to find out where to watch them.
Karl Urban as Johnny Cage
“Oi! Euwy!.” Yes, Karl “man of many accents” Urban has been cast to play Johnny Cage in Mortal Kombat II. This choice makes all kinds of sense: Cage, an action movie star turned martial artist who is all cockiness on the surface and reluctant hero underneath—qualities that the New Zealander has become synonymous with over his 20+ year career.
Cage can now be added to Urban’s incredible roster of fan-favourite characters. These include Billy Butcher in Prime Video’s ongoing superhero satire The Boys, Éomer in The Lord of the Rings, Judge Dredd in Dredd and Leonard “Bones” McCoy in the most recent trilogy of Star Trek movies. Along with those heroes, Urban has always shown an appreciation for playing the villain, appearing in The Bourne Supremacy (as a rival assassin), in Thor: Ragnarok (as Skurge the Executioner), and even playing a stormtrooper in The Rise of Skywalker—if only as a cameo.
Joe Taslim as Sub-Zero
Following his performance in the first film, Joe Taslim will return to play Sub-Zero in Mortal Kombat II. Taslim started out working as a model and professional judo fighter before retiring from the sport in 2009. He then almost immediately got his break in the industry with a leading role in The Raid, Gareth Edwards’s ruthlessly entertaining and hugely influential shoot-em-up. You can currently watch that for free (with ads) on ITVX.
If Indonesian action movies aren’t quite your thing (or at least not yet!), you probably know Taslim for the antagonists he’s played in movies like Fast & Furious 6 (as Jah) and Star Trek Beyond (as Manas). The latter, of course, featured Urban’s Dr. McCoy, but sadly, the two never appeared together on screen.
Hiroyuki Sanada as Scorpion
Following the success of Mortal Kombat’s combined streaming and theatrical release, Hiroyuki Sanada was quickly signed up to reprise his role as the iconic fire-chain-snake slinger, Scorpion, in Mortal Kombat II.
Little did New Line know that the veteran Japanese actor was about to go on one of the most successful streaks of his career, appearing in Bullet Train and John Wick 4 before picking up a well-deserved Emmy for best actor for his incredible work in Shōgun last year, which you can binge the first season of on Disney+ right now. Sanada’s stock has never been higher, and Mortal Kombat II is lucky to have him.
Sanada has been a mainstay of cinema and television for decades. Most viewers will recognise him for his work opposite Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai, for playing Dogen in Season 6 of cult 'mystery box' show Lost, which is available on multiple streaming services, including for free via ITVX, and (much as I’d rather forget) the lead in the original Ring movies.
Tadonobu Asano as Lord Raiden
Similar to Sanada, Tadonobu Asano has seen his star rise in the last year following his incredible performance as the slightly sadistic schemer, Kashigi Yabushige, in Shōgun.
Japanese audiences have been aware of the actor’s abilities for years, but even some Western audiences will be familiar with Asano’s iconic portrayal of the psychotic Yakuza in Takeshi Miike’s Ichi The Killer and his more recent appearance in Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s wonderful Drive My Car, which is widely available for streaming right now, including with a free trial of Channel 4+.
If you’re not yet familiar with either of those, you probably recognise him for his work in the MCU, where he appeared as Hogun in the first three Thor movies.
Lewis Tan as Cole Young
Lewis Tan’s beginnings in the industry make for an interesting read. He was born in Salford but moved to L.A. when he was just one year old after his father got a job as a stunt coordinator on Tim Burton’s Batman.
As well as training his son in martial arts, Tan’s father also taught him the stunt trade. This led to Tan’s first jobs in the movie business: as a stunt actor on The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Driftand Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.
Along with his breakout role as Cole Young in Mortal Kombat, Tan is best known for appearing as Rusty Shatterstar in the ubiquitously streamable superhero meta-comedies, Deadpool 2 and Deadpool & Wolverine, and for his recurring role in Season 6 of Cobra Kai, which is a Netflix exclusive.
Mehcad Brooks as Jackson “Jax” Briggs
Before donning the cybernetic arms to play Jax, Mehcad Brooks was probably best known for his roles on the small screen. Fans of campy drama Desperate Housewives, the full box set of which is on Apple TV+, will be familiar with Brooks for his breakout role as Betty Applewhite’s son Matthew, a pivotal character in the second season.
He was also Benedict Talley in the early seasons of the more widely streamable HBO Southern vampire soap opera True Blood, but is probably best known for playing Jimmy Olsen over six seasons of Supergirl, another freebie on ITVX.
Adeline Rudolph as Kitana
Another fan favourite Mortal Kombat character who features notably in the sequel’s trailer is Kitana. The character originally appeared as the daughter of Big Bad Shao Kahn, only to later be revealed as the daughter of the benevolent King Jerrod. This lethal, steel-fan-wielding fighter will be played by Adeline Rudolph, who is best known for playing Agatha in Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
The actress has also appeared as Minerva Marble in the genre-bending Riverdale, another Netflix one for UK audiences, and Billie Wesker in the (so far) single season of the Resident Evil TV show.
Tati Gabrielle as Jade
Another new recruit to the Mortal Kombat franchise is Tati Gabrielle, Rudolph’s co-star in Sabrina. This is certainly fitting, as the Californian actress is set to play Jade, princess Kitana’s staff-wielding childhood friend.
Gabrielle will also be familiar to fans of cult YA dystopia The 100, readily available in full on Apple TV+ and Prime Video. She appeared in the later seasons as Gaia. More recently, she acted opposite Tom Holland (playing Jo Braddock) in the Uncharted movie, which you can easily watch for free with a week’s free trial of 4+, and played Nora, the unlucky medic who feels Ellie’s wrath, in The Last of Us Season 2.
Damon Herriman as Quan Chi
The Australian actor Damon Herriman has taken an interesting career path en route to his upcoming role as the necromancer Quan Chi in Mortal Kombat II. He’s probably still best known for playing Charles Manson twice: once in David Fincher’s Netflix series Mindhunter and then, remarkably, again for Quentin Tarantino in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood…
Herriman might also be familiar for playing the antagonist, Ruse, in Jennifer Kent’s The Nightingale and for his performance as Take That manager/sleazeball Nigel Martin Smith in the wildly underappreciated Better Man, which is worth a free trial of Amazon Prime to watch, if you’re not already a subscriber.
Martyn Ford as Shao Kahn & CJ Bloomfield as Baraka
Two actors set to make their Mortal Kombat debuts – under presumably heavy amounts of effects and prosthetics – are Martyn Ford and CJ Bloomfield. Ford is set to appear as Shao Kahn, emperor of the Outworld and the game’s chief antagonist, while Bloomfield is set to play Baraka, the slimy, toothy villain who features heavily in the trailer.
When not working as a bodybuilder, the towering 6’6” Ford has been picking up roles in film and TV. His credits include Goliath in the Biblical epic House of David and Lieutenant Sue in F9. Bloomfield’s biggest role to date has been Big Jilly, a motorbike rider in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, one of the films you’ll get as part of a handy Sky/Netflix bundle.
Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade
Before playing Sonya in the first movie, Jessica McNamee started, like many of her fellow countrymen and women, by appearing on the long-running Aussie soap opera Home and Away.
Viewers from other parts of the world will probably know her more from her early role in the 2012 Channing Tatum rom-com The Vow, and for playing the ex-wife of Jason Statham’s shark hunter in undersea silliness The Meg. You can quickly dive into that film with a free Prime trial.
