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Real talk: I sat through the 2021 Mortal Kombat and while I loved seeing Joe Taslim absolutely crush it as Sub-Zero, the fatalities left me feeling… empty? Like, we’re here for the gore, the drama, and the absolute disrespect of a finishing move. With the sequel finally hitting theaters, we need to address the elephant in the room: the movies just aren’t hitting like the games. Honestly, if we don’t get some actual ‘Finish Him’ energy this time, I’m going to riot.
1. The CGI blood is lowkey giving PS3 graphics
Look, I’ll be honest — the 2021 movie had a decent budget, but why did the blood look like strawberry jelly? We need that visceral, ‘I can’t believe I just saw that’ feeling. When Kano ripped that heart out, it should have been a moment. Instead, it felt like a tech demo. If Mortal Kombat 2 doesn’t give us some practical effects mixed with better rendering, what are we even doing here?
2. We need the ‘FINISH HIM’ tension back
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In the games, that moment where the music drops and the loser is just wobbling? It’s iconic. It’s pure theater! In the movies, the fatalities just kind of… happen in the middle of the fight. There’s no build-up. There’s no drama. We need that pause. We need the audience to hold their breath before the carnage starts. Give us the suspense, please!
3. The ‘Arcana’ system is making things way too complicated
Here’s the thing about this show that nobody talks about: the Arcana plot is a total mood killer. Why do they need magical birthmarks to do fatalities? In the games, they’re just badass martial artists with supernatural skills. Tying fatalities to some ‘inner glow’ makes them feel less like a skill and more like a lucky break. Just let them be great without the extra homework.
4. Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage better bring the disrespect
Reports say Karl Urban is going to be the highlight of the sequel, and honestly, we’re living for it. But his fatalities need to be peak Johnny Cage. We’re talking the triple-uppercut or the ‘Here’s Johnny’ award show moment. If his finishers aren’t hilarious and disrespectful, it’s a missed opportunity. He’s the king of sass; let him use it!
5. The lighting is always too dark to see anything
Why is every fight scene in these movies happening in a basement or a dark forest? I want to see the detail! I want to see the absolute mess! The 2021 movie had a 55% on Rotten Tomatoes, and I bet 10% of that was just people squinting at the screen. Give us some bright, saturated, high-contrast arenas so we can actually appreciate the choreography.
6. Stage Fatalities are literally right there
Where is the Pit? Where are the spikes? Where is the acid pool? The movies keep focusing on character-to-character kills, but the environment is half the fun. Imagine a high-budget sequence where someone gets knocked into a ceiling of spikes. It’s classic MK. If the sequel doesn’t include at least one stage-based death, I’m calling the Elder Gods.
7. Stop cutting away during the best parts
We’re all adults here. We know what we signed up for. Every time the camera cuts to a reaction shot right when the fatality hits its peak, an angel loses its wings. We want the full, uncut, glorious mess. If you’re going for an R-rating, actually use it. No more ‘implied’ deaths. We want the full 4K experience of the carnage.
8. The dialogue feels like a fan-fiction fever dream
When Kung Lao said ‘Flawless Victory,’ I physically cringed. I love the fan service, but it has to feel natural! Fatalities shouldn’t be followed by a cheesy one-liner that sounds like it was written by a bot. Let the violence speak for itself. Or, if they must talk, make it actually cool. Sub-Zero’s lines were the only ones that actually hit hard.
9. We need more character-specific finishers
In the last movie, a lot of the kills felt like generic action movie deaths. Scorpion’s spear is iconic, but we need more. Give us Mileena’s actual bite. Give us Kitana’s fan-shredding. Every character has a ‘signature’ move that fans have loved for 30 years — use them! Don’t just give us another generic stabbing and call it a day.
10. The pacing is killing the vibe
The 2021 movie felt like it was rushing to get to the tournament that never even happened. Because of that, the fights felt short and the fatalities felt rushed. We need the sequel to slow down. Let the fights breathe so the fatality feels like a hard-earned reward at the end of a grueling battle. Quality over quantity, always.
11. Bring back the humor, seriously
Mortal Kombat is dark, but it’s also campy and hilarious. The games have Babalities and Friendships for a reason! While I don’t need a Friendship in the middle of a serious movie, the fatalities should have that ‘over-the-top’ dark humor. It’s what makes the franchise unique. If it’s too self-serious, it just becomes another boring action flick.
12. The ‘Cole Young’ problem needs a solution
Look, I don’t hate Cole, but we all know we’re here for the legends. If the fatalities in the sequel are all centered around a movie-original character again, people are going to be annoyed. We want to see the OGs—Liu Kang, Jax, Sonya—doing their thing. The fatality ‘problem’ is mostly just a ‘we want the game characters’ problem. Fix that, and you fix the movie.
FAQs
When is Mortal Kombat 2 coming out?
Mortal Kombat 2 is currently slated for a late 2025 or early 2026 release, depending on post-production. Fans are hyped to see Karl Urban join the cast as Johnny Cage!
Is the Mortal Kombat movie sequel R-rated?
Yes, it is confirmed to be R-rated. The producers have promised more ‘authentic’ fatalities that reflect the brutal nature of the video games we all know and love.
Will Johnny Cage be in the new Mortal Kombat movie?
Absolutely! After being teased at the end of the 2021 film, Johnny Cage will be a main character in the sequel, played by The Boys star Karl Urban.
At the end of the day, we just want a Mortal Kombat movie that feels like the game we’ve been playing since the 90s. The sequel has a huge chance to fix the mistakes of the first one and give us the legendary fatalities we deserve. Are you hyped for Karl Urban as Johnny Cage? Let me know in the comments! Get over here and share this with your squad!
