- calendar_today September 3, 2025
Karl Urban Brings Action and Absurdity to Mortal Kombat II
Karl Urban is trading in his infamous butcher’s coat from The Boys to don a pair of posh sunglasses for Warner Bros.’ upcoming Mortal Kombat II. The Lord of the Rings and Star Trek alum is taking on the role of Johnny Cage, the know-it-all action star of cheesy martial arts movies and a fan-favorite character in the decades-old video game series. The sequel to Warner Bros.’ 2021 Mortal Kombat reboot will be the fourth live-action adaptation since the original game-inspired movie launched in 1995.
The new trailer’s release is a particularly clever stunt in terms of marketing. Released just one day after Warner Bros. dropped a fake in-universe trailer for Uncaged Fury, a cheesy ’90s-style action film “starring” Johnny Cage, the real trailer parodied many of the Cage character’s other fake film credits, including such bad-ass throwbacks as Cool Hand Cage, Hard to Cage, and Rebel Without a Cage.
2025 is also the 30th anniversary of the first Mortal Kombat live-action feature, which, despite being a critical flop at the time, did extremely well at the box office and found a cult audience in the years since. Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa’s performance as sorcerer Shang Tsung, in particular, has stuck with fans over the years and is still often held up as the gold standard for the character. The film’s big-screen follow-up, 1997’s Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, is remembered much less fondly—performing both critically and commercially, and with the game’s publisher Midway filing for bankruptcy soon after.
Warner Bros. acquired the rights for the live-action franchise and hired Simon McQuoid to direct a reboot over two decades after the original Mortal Kombat. 2021’s Mortal Kombat, which introduces Lewis Tan as Cole Young, an MMA fighter unexpectedly embroiled in the struggle between Earthrealm and Outworld, was a success enough to get the sequel greenlit, once again with McQuoid at the helm. The first movie wrapped with Cole traveling to Los Angeles to recruit Cage, so it’s Cage’s world, and we’re just living in it.
Fan Favorites, Newcomers, and a Jaded Johnny Cage
Mortal Kombat II’s official synopsis doesn’t waste much time on world-building and expects audiences to be familiar with the events of the first movie. In the sequel, the champions (plus Cage) are reunited for an all-in, no-rules fight to defeat Shao Kahn and prevent him from conquering the Earthrealm.
Several returning cast members from the previous installment were revealed alongside the trailer. In addition to director McQuoid, the sequel includes Lewis Tan as Cole Young, Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han/Noob Saibot (aka Sub-Zero), Tadanobu Asano as Lord Raiden, Josh Lawson as Kano, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Mehcad Brooks as Jax Briggs, Chin Han as Shang Tsung, Hiroyuki Sanada as Scorpion, and Max Huang as Kung Lao.
The new film also sees many new fighters joining the familiar roster. Adeline Rudolph is playing Kitana, Tati Gabrielle is playing Jade, Damon Herriman, who voiced Kabal in the previous installment, is now starring as Quan Chi, Martyn Ford is playing Shao Kahn, CJ Bloomfield is playing Baraka, Desmond Chiam is playing King Jerrod, and Ana Thu Nguyen is playing Queen Sindel.
The trailer opens with a self-aware yet hilarious introduction to the character of Cage. In the first scene, he’s in a dive bar and is recognized by an over-eager fan, who exclaims, “I loved Citizen Cage as a kid! They should do a reboot!” Bitter about his career path, Cage replies that “nobody wants that” because his “kind of movie died in the ’90s.”
He’s cut off by Lord Raiden and Sonya Blade. “Johnny Cage,” Raiden says in the trailer, “you have been chosen to fight.” He doesn’t believe it at first, as he thinks they’re just a couple of crazy fans, but he soon finds himself in an otherworldly arena where he’s about to take part in a “fighting tournament to the death.” “F— that,” Cage responds, predictably.
The film’s star character notes that he’s “missing all the special powers and shit,” but concedes to participate in the tournament after being told that the fate of Earthrealm is at stake. Though he does state that opponents “keep your hands off my mug” as he enters the tournament. The trailer provides fans with exactly what they’re looking for in a Mortal Kombat film, showcasing gruesome, stylized fights, dramatic finishing moves, and the requisite video game catchphrases from everyone—especially Scorpion and his, “Get over here!”
The film will have to balance its violent, stylized combat with its somewhat tongue-in-cheek humor to please fans of the franchise. But if the first trailer is any indication, the film will live up to expectations on both fronts, with all the blood-pumping spectacle that goes along with it.
Mortal Kombat II will arrive in theaters on October 24, 2025.
