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This fall, Mortal Kombat II will finally hit theaters about four years after the release of the first movie. While the 2021 film was not without its criticism, the sequel is looking to be much better received if the extremely positive test screenings are any indication.
Though he didn’t work on the previous movie, MCU and Monsterverse vet Jeremy Slater (Moon Knight, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire) was brought on board to write the script for Mortal Kombat II. In a new interview with , Slater spoke about the goal of satisfying fan expectations with the anticipated movie. One thing he knew that he had to follow through on was featuring a tournament that would deliver after not having a presence in the first film, one of the movie’s primary complaints.
“I was adamant that we had to have this tournament in the movie. We can’t make people wait another movie and then be like, ‘Come back for the finale,’” as Slater put it. “It was finding a structure to make the tournament as satisfying as you want it to be because this had years of build-up. It’s figuring out who the individual matches are going to be, which characters do you pair off for maximum emotional impact, but also for the most dynamic fights. Then, also, what is the larger story you are telling between the tournament?”
At the same time, Slater knew that making Mortal Kombat II an enjoyable movie wasn’t as simple as writing in a tournament. Naturally, there’s going to be some time to kill in between the fights, and it was important that none of these scenes felt boring in comparison to the big, bloody brawls. Noting how many classic martial arts movies have a «lot of sitting around waiting,» Slater said there was a lot of effort put in to making these scenes equally compelling.
Slater said, “I was very cognizant of that — that we need to be telling a story on the margins where there is just as much exciting stuff happening outside of the tournament as inside of the tournament, so you’re never bored and both of these stories are moving the movie forward.»
Test Screening Reactions Are Very Strong According to Jeremy Slater
Another strategy employed was to be careful about which characters to lend the most screen time to in Mortal Kombat II. While having a «cast of 20 people» allowed for many major characters to be included, it also means that only a handful will be able to have their stories explored in a meaningful way. Rather than making a three or four-hour movie, decisions were made to focus on the «story the audience cares about.»
He added, “Then making sure when you get to those moments that matter — the fights, the fatalities, the surprises, the deaths — that they land and they are as satisfying as everyone wants them to be. I think we nailed it. [The film] had the best stunt team in the business. The actors are phenomenal. It’s so much funnier and bigger than the first movie.”
The screenwriter then went on to share the reactions that people are having to Mortal Kombat II at the sequel’s test screenings. As someone who loves the original video games himself, he was stoked to see other fans enjoying Mortal Kombat II to the extent that they are. In fact, Slater compared the reactions to how he felt when watching 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, a film widely considered to be among the best superhero movies ever made.
“I’m so excited for people to see the movie,” Slater explained. “It’s been done for a while. We’ve been waiting for the right release date and waiting for the right window. I have been to those test screenings, which are full of Mortal Kombat fans, and watching them react to it the way I reacted to Avengers: Endgame. They were cheering and jumping out of their seats. Every joke is landing and they are loving it. It’s one of the greatest moments of my life. That’s why you get into this business.”
Mortal Kombat II will be released in theaters on Oct. 24, 2025.
