After originally being scheduled for an October 2025 release, Mortal Kombat II finally arrives in theaters next month. The trailers have all been well-received, and with Karl Urban's Johnny Cage taking centre stage in place of the newly created (and largely forgettable) Cole Young, excitement for the next chapter in the video game franchise is high.
Released at the height of the pandemic in 2021, Mortal Kombat was streamed on HBO Max for free on the same day it opened in theaters. It was hardly surprising, then, that it only grossed $84.4 million worldwide.
At the time, though, that was considered a good result, explaining why Warner Bros. decided to forge ahead with a sequel. Five years later, it's nearly here, and the movie has now hit long-range tracking.
Tickets for Mortal Kombat II went on sale yesterday, and as we first reported on GameFragger.com, Box Office Pro has some early opening weekend forecasts for the movie. According to the site, it's on track to debut with $50 million to $65 million at the North American box office.
That's a big step up from that first instalment's $23.3 million debut.
We don't have international projections, but it's safe to say that Mortal Kombat II's opening weekend will surpass what Mortal Kombat made during its entire run. It's too soon to talk about a threequel, but assuming the movie's momentum continues from there, it won't be game over for this franchise just yet.
Addressing the chances of a third instalment, franchise producer Todd Garner previously said, "We’re hoping that this is not the end of the franchise. There are plans going forward; other characters that aren't in this movie, characters that may come back."
"If we're allowed to do further movies - hopefully this one does well enough - there's chances to do other things, spin-offs, another sequel to propel the story," he added.
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 will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, and is only in theaters and IMAX on May 8, 2026.