Now That the Mortal Kombat Sequel Is in the Works, What Characters Do We Want to See Test Their Might?
Spoilers to Mortal Kombat (2021) and some Mortal Kombat lore
Yesterday, it was announced that the sequel to the 2021 Mortal Kombat film was officially in development. According to Deadline, Jeremy Slater (who is the head writer for the upcoming Moon Knight series headed to Disney+) is set to write the film.
While there are no details about the film yet, that hasn’t stopped fans—including the cast from the last round of kombat with a “k”— from taking to Twitter with their wish list of characters for the next installment.
Actor Lewis Tan, who played protagonist Cole Young in the 2021 movie, tweeted that he wanted Kitana and Smoke, and went on to add Noob Saibot to the list, too.
Inspired by Tan’s tweet and fueled by being an MK fangirl for decades, I’ve decided to make my own list of characters who I would love to see show up in Mortal Kombat 2. I’m assuming an actual tournament will take place this time as the 2021 film primarily focused on Shang Tsung trying to eliminate kombatants before the whole “a handful of people on a leaky boat are gonna save the world” thing.
The list will only include characters who weren’t in the first film, but I will dive into whether or not my picks were hinted at.
Kitana
It was surprising that Kitana wasn’t in the first film when Mileena was there, but with a second movie in the works, it would be a good time to have the princess show up. I predict a bit of confusion from our heroes, who had the “fun” task of fighting Mileena off, so I’m betting that they’ll mistake Kitana for her twin.
Save for maybe Liu Kang and Raiden, since Kitana’s fan was on display in Raiden’s temple.
The real question is what will her alignment be in the movie? Will she already be working to betray Shao Kahn, or is that something she’ll have to work up to? Either way, she’s always been one of my favorites, and I hope to see her as one of the main characters.
Jade
As Kitana’s closest friend and personal bodyguard, it would make sense to have her be in the second film alongside her princess. It would also make for an interesting addition to the cast depending on how Kitana is handled. Jade is usually put in a position where she has to choose between being loyal to Shao Kahn or her best friend, so I would love to see that be a plot point in the movie.
Beyond that, though, Jade is just so frickin’ cool. I’m more than ready to see her in action. With this series of movies being a lot more brutal, I’m eager to see one of her smooth, but cruel, fatalities on the big screen.
Noob Saibot
This just feels like the natural progression of things. With Bi-Han dead, the opportunity to bring in Noob Saibot is right there since that’s who Bi-Han eventually becomes. I feel like the movie was already hinting at it due to his darker color scheme in the film.
Bi-Han was already vicious in the 2021 film, Noob Saibot is probably gonna be one of the most intimidating characters on the screen.
Johnny Cage
I think this is a given considering the poster in Cole’s gym at the end of the film. I don’t think it’s a question on if we’re getting Caged, but when.
Much like Kitana, the real question is which story are we getting for the character? I’m gonna assume it’ll be the cocky movie star who gives you an autograph for his Friendship Finisher, but there is a chance for some “failed actor desperate to see his name in lights again” Cage. I doubt it’ll be the Johnny Cage in the later games, the one who’s a lot more serious as he’s training the next generation (his daughter included).
That takes a lot more build-up, so get ready for some potential “this is a movie set, right” until he finally realizes that the fighting is real.
Kuai Liang’s Sub-Zero
Another character who I would love to see is the new Sub-Zero that appears after the death of the original. Unlike his brother, Bi-Han, Kuai Liang tends to help the heroes and is more of an ally than an adversary.
Kuai Liang’s Sub-Zero adds a lot to the franchise, from trying to do better with the Lin Kuei after all of their misdeeds, to even making amends with Scorpion in the newer series of videogames. Granted, it takes a long time to reach a point where the two stand side by side, but having Kuai Liang show up is a step in that direction.
I really just want Scorpion and Sub-Zero to drink tea together.
Smoke
Smoke was Kuai Liang’s best friend when they were in the Lin Kuei, but unfortunately, he was forced into the cyborg initiative and robotized. This was a huge sign of how insidious the clan had become. Granted, the violence against Scorpion’s clan, the Shirai Ryu was also a red flag (though one orchestrated by Quan Chi, more on him later), but the fact that the Grandmaster would do this to his own people was a major turning point in how Kuai Liang viewed them.
With Smoke, I’m hoping we get to see him before he’s turned into a cyborg and are able to get a build-up with his friendship with Kuai Liang (especially since, in some versions of the story, he basically sacrifices himself so Kuai Liang can get away from the Lin Kuei). He would also make a great entry point for the cyborg characters (Cyrax is my personal favorite) and provide a lot of weight to Kuai Liang’s story.
Cyrax and Sektor
Speaking of my personal favorite cyborg, if we’re gonna have Smoke, I would love to see Cyrax and Sektor – pre-cyborg, if at all possible. I know it’s kinda cheating to list them together, but they really do come as a pair, and it would be interesting to actually see how they feel about the whole cyborg initiative from the Lin Kuei (especially since Cyrax questions things and Sektor doesn’t).
Having robotic characters seems like an off-putting element, but I’ve actually always liked Cyrax, Sektor, and Smoke and how they showed just how rotten the Lin Kuei had become. That and, well, gameplay-wise, I would spam Cyrax’s net a lot.
Shao Kahn
While the film does have a brief hint of Kotal Kahn, it would make more sense that we get Shao Kahn first.
Though yes, I do want to see Kotal Kahn, too.
The reason why I want to see Shao Kahn in the movie is that I’d like to see a depiction of him that actually terrifies me. Shao Kahn is an intimidating presence, which is something that Mortal Kombat: Annihilation failed to depict on-screen (note: that film failed all of its characters, tbh). So I want to see the absolute force of Shao Kahn, especially if it leads us to the point the games do – Kitana taking her rightful place as ruler of Outworld.
Before that, though, I hope we get to see Shang Tsung fight.
Quan Chi
Is it too early for Quan Chi? Maybe, but maybe not.
One of the easter eggs in the film is Shinnok’s amulet, which is on display in Raiden’s temple like Kitana’s fan. This could mean the appearance of Quan Chi since he’s interested in Shinnok’s amulet. While it would be jumping the gun, the movie did have characters from later games like Nitara, who first appeared in Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, and Reiko, who appeared in Mortal Kombat 4.
That could be because they just wanted to have those characters, but I’d like to take it as a sign that the characters we get aren’t going in order of their appearance in the games.
That being said, Quan Chi showing up would kickstart a lot of things in the film series. On top of potentially introducing Shinnok, it would also lead toward the big reveal of Quan Chi being behind the brutal annihilation of Scorpion’s clan. There’s also Quan Chi’s temporary alliance with Shang Tsung, which would be an interesting turn of events if that started before we even got to meet Shao Kahn.
Maybe the good guys could just let the bad guys betray each other and sort out the mess later.
Sheeva
Let me be honest, I don’t have any sort of evidence that she was hinted at in the movie beyond “there’s usually a monstrous threat to scare the shit out of the heroes,” I just really like Sheeva.
And I understand that all of the characters were done dirty in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation but seeing this absolute queen defeated by a cage? Not the Johnny Cage kind, but an ACTUAL cage? Just.. no. I need to see a redo of her on the big screen.
Make her the next monster pick. I know chronologically it’s Kintaro, but give me Sheeva, please.
Those are my picks for who I’d like to see in Mortal Kombat 2. Who are you hoping joins the cast?
(Image: Warner Bros/HBO Max)
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