Mortal Kombat II (2026)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A washed-up actor is recruited by a thunder god to join a team of warriors in an interdimensional tournament to stop a tyrannical emperor.
The story
Following a history of conflict between Earthrealm and Outworld, the tenth Mortal Kombat tournament is approaching. Raiden and Sonya Blade recruit Johnny Cage, a washed-up martial arts actor, to join their team of fighters. They must compete in a dangerous interdimensional tournament against the Outworld warriors to stop the tyrannical emperor Shao Kahn. With the help of the Edenian princess Kitana, the heroes must navigate a deadly gauntlet of warriors to protect their realm from conquest.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In a flashback, Emperor Shao Kahn conquers Edenia and takes Princess Kitana and Queen Sindel as his subjects. Twenty years later, as the tenth Mortal Kombat tournament approaches, Quan Chi revives Kung Lao and Kano. Raiden and Sonya Blade recruit Johnny Cage to join the Earthrealm fighters. During the tournament, Sonya faces a corrupted Sindel while Johnny is forced to fight Kitana, who reveals herself as a spy for Raiden. Quan Chi and Shang Tsung use a stolen amulet to make Shao Kahn immortal. During the rounds, Liu Kang is forced to kill the revived Kung Lao, and Jax defeats Jade. After Cole is killed by Shao Kahn, the remaining heroes seek the amulet. Johnny finds confidence by defeating Baraka. Eventually, the heroes realize they cannot win while Shao Kahn holds the amulet. Kano betrays Shao Kahn to reveal that Bi-Han holds the amulet in the Netherrealm. In the final round, Liu Kang sacrifices himself to allow the others to proceed. Kitana switches sides to Earthrealm and fights Shao Kahn. Johnny, Kano, Hanzo Hasashi, and Jade defeat Bi-Han, destroying the amulet and unlocking Johnny's powers. Shao Kahn is defeated, and Raiden's power is restored. The film ends with the heroes planning to use Quan Chi to revive the fallen champions.
- First release year
- 2026
- Runtime (minutes)
- 116
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Simon McQuoid
- Writers
- Jeremy Slater · writer
- Cast and characters
- Karl Urban · Cage; Adeline Rudolph · Kitana; Jessica McNamee · Sonya Blade; Josh Lawson · Kano; Ludi Lin · Liu Kang; Mehcad Brooks · Jax Briggs; Tati Gabrielle · Jade; Lewis Tan · Cole Young; Damon Herriman · Quan Chi; Chin Han · not specified; Tadanobu Asano · not specified; Joe Taslim · not specified
- Genres
- martial arts; high fantasy
- Themes
- sacrifice; redemption; betrayal
- Tone and mood
- action-packed; violent; gritty
- Premise and plot tags
- martial arts; tournament; fantasy; multiverse
- Source material / true-story basis
- video-game series created by Ed Boon and John Tobias
- Franchise connections
- Mortal Kombat
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics but was noted for its high-quality spectacle and pyrotechnics, while being described as a 'tacky' but fan-focused sequel.
- Reported review scores
- CinemaScore · score: B · scale: A+ to F; PostTrak · score: 72% · scale: percent
- Production trivia
- The film features a cameo by series co-creator Ed Boon as a bartender.; The film was originally scheduled for release in October 2025.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…
