As all of us know by this point in time, there is a live-action reboot of MORTAL KOMBAT (supposedly) coming our way in the future. The movie was at one point set to be produced by the one and only James Wan, but recently we passed along the disappointing news that Wan had left the project. But all is not lost as today we have word (a rumor) that Warner Brothers is currently working on an animated MORTAL KOMBAT flick.
Again, none of this can be confirmed at the moment, but yes, it does look like there is an animated MORTAL KOMBAT movie headed our way and the potential cast includes Joel McHale (COMMUNITY, DELIVER US FROM EVIL) and Jennifer Carpenter (DEXTER, THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE). Other names on the cast list include Darin DePaul, Fred Tatasciore, Grey Griffin, Ike Amadi, Kevin Michael Richardson, Patrick Seitz, Robin Atkin Downes, Steve Blum, and Jordan Rodrigues.
We can only speculate at this point, but I'm willing to bet that (if this project is real) then Joel McHale might be playing Johnny Cage and Jennifer Carpenter may be playing Sonya Blade. But this is merely SPECULATION on top of RUMOR. So take all of that as you will. This news does, however, come on the heels of the news that BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN is getting an animated film, so maybe all of this is true. I guess we'll see…
After all, word around the campfire is that Warner Bros is launching their own WarnerMedia streaming service and it should be up and running by the end of the year. And as you might imagine, they're going to need exclusive content to appeal to potential subscribers, and animated films are (relatively) inexpensive. Makes sense to me.
We'll keep you updated as this project moves ahead one way or the other.
Mortal Kombat is one of the most successful fighting franchises in the history of video games and one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. Originally developed by Midway Games in 1992, the original game has spawned many sequels and several action films, and television series, comic book series, a card game, and even a live-action tour. Personally, I know the series best by director Paul W.S. Anderson's 1995 adaptation starring Linden Ashby, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Robin Shou, Bridgette Wilson, Talisa Soto, and Christopher Lambert.
Here's that film's synopsis:
Lord Rayden (Christopher Lambert) handpicks three martial artists — federal agent Sonya Blade (Bridgette Wilson), Shaolin monk Lui Kang (Robin Shou) and action movie sensation Johnny Cage (Linden Ashby) — and mentors them. After intense training, Rayden transports the trio to Outworld, the site of an inter-dimensional fighting tournament. There, the three humans must defeat the demonic warriors of the evil Shang Sung (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) — or allow Sung to take over the Earth.
One way or the other, with all the blockbuster business that MORTAL KOMBAT still does across multiple platforms, it's only a matter of time before the whole shebang gets another big-budget tentpole-style Hollywood adaptation… or an animated film. So that said, would you be down for an animated MORTAL KOMBAT movie featuring the likes of Joel McHale and Jennifer Carpenter? Let us know below!