Mortal Kombat (2021)
Mortal Kombat is a 2021 American martial arts fantasy film co-produced and directed by Simon McQuoid, in his directorial debut, from a screenplay by Greg Russo and Dave Callaham, based on the video-game series created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. The film serves as a reboot of the Mortal Kombat film series and is the third installment in the franchise. It stars Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Tadanobu Asano, Mehcad Brooks, Ludi Lin, Chin Han, Max Huang, Joe Taslim, and Hiroyuki Sanada. The film follows Cole Young, a washed-up mixed martial arts fighter who is unaware of his hidden lineage or why the assassin Sub-Zero is hunting him down.
Plot:
In Japan in 1617, assassins led by Bi-Han assault the estate of Hanzo Hasashi’s clan and murder everyone, including Hanzo’s family. After killing the attackers, Hanzo fights Bi-Han but succumbs to his wounds and dies, his soul condemned to the Netherrealm. Raiden, god of Thunder, later takes Hanzo’s surviving infant daughter to safety. In 2021, the realm of Outworld has defeated Earthrealm in nine tournaments known as “Mortal Kombat”. The rules state that if Earthrealm loses a tenth one, it will be conquered by Outworld. An ancient prophecy states that the “blood of Hanzo Hasashi” will unite a new generation of Earthrealm’s champions to prevent Outworld’s victory.
Sorcerer and Outworlder Shang Tsung sends his warriors to preemptively eliminate Earthrealm’s champions, identified by a dragon mark, before the tenth tournament begins.
MMA fighter Cole Young and his family are attacked by Bi-Han, who now calls himself Sub-Zero. Special Forces Major Jackson “Jax” Briggs rescues the Youngs, directing them to find his partner, Sonya Blade. Jax stays to battle Sub-Zero but loses his arms in the process.
Filming:
Joe Taslim was the first actor cast for the production in July 2019, as Sub-Zero. In August, Mehcad Brooks, Tadanobu Asano, Sisi Stringer, and Ludi Lin were cast in the roles of Jax Briggs, Raiden, Mileena, and Liu Kang respectively. Later that month, Josh Lawson, Jessica McNamee, Chin Han and Hiroyuki Sanada were cast as Kano, Sonya Blade, Shang Tsung and Scorpion respectively, with Lewis Tan in the role of Cole Young, an original character created for the film. On September 16, 2019, it was announced that Max Huang had been cast as Kung Lao.