Mortal Kombat (film series)
Mortal Kombat is an American series of martial arts action films based on the fighting video game series of the same name by Midway Games. The first film was produced by Lawrence Kasanoff’s Threshold Entertainment as part of a plan to create Mortal Kombat projects in multiple forms (films, cartoons, TV shows, etc.)
| Mortal Kombat | |
|---|---|
| Produced by | |
| Based on | Mortal Kombat by Ed Boon & John Tobias |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $48 million |
| Box office | $173 million |
After two films in the series were completed, game publisher Midway filed for bankruptcy. Warner Bros., having become the parent of New Line Cinema in 2008 (after over a decade of both operating as separate divisions of Time Warner), made a bid to purchase most of Midway's assets, including Mortal Kombat. In June 2009, Kasanoff and Threshold sued in bankruptcy court, arguing that they owned the copyright to many of the characters from the series.[1]
On July 1, 2009, the bankruptcy court approved the sale of most of Midway’s assets to Warner Bros.[2] subject to the intellectual property claims of Threshold Entertainment.[3]
Films
Live-action
| Film | U.S. release date | Director(s) | Screenwriter(s) | Story by | Producer(s) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Original series | |||||||||
| Mortal Kombat | August 18, 1995 | Paul W. S. Anderson | Kevin Droney | N/A | Lawrence Kasanoff | ||||
| Mortal Kombat: Annihilation | November 21, 1997 | John R. Leonetti | Brent V. Friedman and Bryce Zabel | Lawrence Kasanoff, Joshua Wexler and John Tobias | Lawrence Kasanoff | ||||
| Reboot | |||||||||
| Mortal Kombat | April 16, 2021 | Simon McQuoid | Greg Russo and Dave Callaham | Oren Uziel and Greg Russo | James Wan and Todd Garner | ||||
Mortal Kombat (1995)
Three unknown martial artists are summoned to a mysterious island to compete in a tournament whose outcome will decide the fate of the world.
Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)
A group of martial arts warriors have only six days to save the Earth from an extra-dimensional invasion.
Mortal Kombat (2021)
A washed-up mixed martial arts fighter named Cole Young is unaware of his hidden lineage or why assassin Sub Zero is hunting him down. Concerned for the safety of his family, he seeks out a clique of fighters that were chosen to defend Earthrealm against Outworld.
Animated films
| Film | U.S. release date | Director(s) | Screenwriter(s) | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins | April 11, 1995 | Joseph Francis | Kevin Droney | TBA |
| Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge | April 14, 2020 | Ethan Spaulding | Jeremy Adams | Rick Morales and Jim Krieg |
Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins (1995)
On April 11, 1995,[4] New Line Home Video, Turner Home Entertainment and Threshold Entertainment released a tie-in animated film on VHS and Laserdisc, titled Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins. Serving as a prequel to the feature film, it follows the protagonists Liu Kang, Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade as they travel on a mysterious boat to the Mortal Kombat tournament. On the way they meet Raiden, who provides them with some hints about how to survive the tournament and defeat Shang Tsung and his army of Tarkatan minions. Upon arriving at the island where the battles takes place, Rayden retells the origins of Shang Tsung, Goro, Scorpion, Sub-Zero and the Great Kung Lao in between fight scenes.
The film featured a combination of traditional animation, motion capture, and CGI to explain the origins behind some of the movie's main characters, as well as a fifteen-minute behind-the-scenes documentary of the theatrical release. Trailers of the film were seen on the promotional screener VHS copy, and on other VHS releases from Turner Home Entertainment and New Line Home Video. The film was included on the Mortal Kombat Blu-ray released in April 2011.
Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge (2020)
In January 2020, it was reported that a direct-to-video animated film called Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge was to be released by Warner Bros. Animation on digital April 14, 2020, and would be released on Blu-ray, DVD, and 4K Ultra HD on April 28, 2020. The film would be directed by Ethan Spaulding and written by Jeremy Adams. The voice cast includes Patrick Seitz as Scorpion, Steve Blum as Sub-Zero, Darin De Paul as Quan Chi, Jordan Rodrigues as Liu Kang, Joel McHale as Johnny Cage, & Jennifer Carpenter as Sonya Blade. Kevin Michael Richardson also reprises his role of Goro from the 1995 live action film.[5] The film's premise centers around Scorpion seeking revenge on those who murdered his family and clan, after being resurrected by Quan Chi, while Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, and Sonya Blade are chosen to participate in the Mortal Kombat tournament to save Earthrealm from Outworld.
Cast and crew
Cast
| Key | |
|---|---|
| V | Indicates the actor/actress lent only their voice for their film character. |
| Dark gray cell indicates the character was not in the film. | |
Crew
| Occupation | Film | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Mortal Kombat | Mortal Kombat: Annihilation |
Mortal Kombat | |
| Director(s) | Paul W.S. Anderson | John R. Leonetti | Simon McQuoid |
| Producer | Lawrence Kasanoff | James Wan Todd Garner Simon McQuoid E. Bennett Walsh | |
| Writer(s) | Kevin Droney | Screenplay by Brent V. Friedman Bryce Zabel Story by Lawrence Kasanoff Joshua Wexler John Tobias |
Screenplay by Greg Russo David Callaham[6] Story by Oren Uziel[6] Greg Russo |
| Composer | George S. Clinton | Benjamin Wallfisch | |
| Director(s) of photography | John R. Leonetti | Matthew F. Leonetti | Germain McMicking |
| Editor(s) | Martin Hunter | Peck Prior | Scott Gray Dan Lebental |
| Production company(s) | Threshold Entertainment | New Line Cinema Atomic Monster Productions Broken Road Productions | |
| Distributor(s) | New Line Cinema | Warner Bros. Pictures | |
Reception
Box office performance
| Film | U.S. release date | Box office revenue | Budget | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | International | Worldwide | ||||
| Mortal Kombat | August 18, 1995 | $70,454,098 | $51,741,822 | $122,195,920 | $18 million[7] | [8] |
| Mortal Kombat: Annihilation | November 21, 1997 | $35,927,406 | $15,449,455 | $51,376,861 | $30 million[9] | [10] |
| Total | $106,381,504 | $67,191,277 | $173,572,781 | $48 million | ||
Critical and public response
| Film | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | CinemaScore |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mortal Kombat | 47% (37 reviews)[11] | 58 (12 reviews)[12] | A–[13] |
| Mortal Kombat: Annihilation | 2% (42 reviews)[14] | 11 (12 reviews)[15] | C+[16] |
Music
Soundtracks
| Title | U.S. release date | Length | Composer(s) | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mortal Kombat: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | August 15, 1995 | 68:28 | TBA | TVT |
| Mortal Kombat: Original Motion Picture Score | October 11, 1995 | 42:01 | TBA | Rykodisc |
| Mortal Kombat: Annihilation – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack | October 28, 1997 | 72:08 | TBA | TVT |
Novelizations
A novelization of the first movie by "Martin Delrio" (James D. Macdonald and Debra Doyle) was released through Tor Books. It is based on an early version of the film's script, and as such it includes several deleted or unfilmed scenes, such as a fight between Sonya Blade and Jade.
References
- Andy Chalk. "The Escapist : News : Midway Sued Over Mortal Kombat Rights". Escapistmagazine.com. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
- Dunca, Geoff. "Time Warner Buying Most of Midway Games for $33 Mln". Digital Trends. Retrieved July 6, 2009.
- Gross, Kevin. In re: Midway Games Inc., et al., Debtors, Bankruptcy No. 09-10465; Threshold Entertainment, Inc. v. Midway Games Inc., et al., Adv. Case No. 09-51081, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, D. Delaware, March 29, 2011; and "Finish Him! Bankruptcy Court Dismissed Suit Over Mortal Kombat Intellectual Property Rights for Lack of Subject-Matter Jurisdiction", Morris James, LLP, September 2, 2011
- "Mortal Kombat on Video". GamePro. IDG (69): 24. April 1995.
- Mortal Kombat Animated Movie in the Works With Joel McHale, Jennifer Carpenter - IGN, retrieved June 12, 2020
- "Mortal Kombat (Reboot) - WGA Directory". findawriter.wgaeast.org. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
- "Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)". The Numbers. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
- "Mortal Kombat". Box Office Mojo. Boxofficemojo.com. October 10, 1995. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
- "Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)". The Numbers. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
- "Mortal Kombat: Annihilation". Box Office Mojo. Internet Movie Database. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
- "Mortal Kombat reviews". Rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
- "Mortal Kombat reviews". Metacritic.com. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
- "CinemaScore". cinemascore.com.
- "Mortal Kombat: Annihilation". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
- "Mortal Kombat: Annihilation". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
- "CinemaScore". cinemascore.com.
External links
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