Uncaged Again: Mortal Kombat II Brings New Life to Johnny Cage

Swap that Butcher’s coat from The Boys; Karl Urban is donning a pair of fancy shades for his latest project. The New Zealand actor will take on the role of Johnny Cage, the brash, martial arts film actor, in the upcoming Mortal Kombat II. The follow-up to Warner Bros.’ 2021 Mortal Kombat reboot was officially announced last year. Mortal Kombat II is the fourth live-action film based on the video game series, following the original’s release in 1995.

Coincidentally, the teaser trailer for Mortal Kombat II dropped on the same day as a fake in-universe trailer for Uncaged Fury, a late 9 90s-style action flick “starring” Johnny Cage. Spoof poster mockups in the trailer cheekily allude to other in-universe Cage film roles, including Cool Hand Cage, Hard to Cage, and Rebel Without a Cage.

The 30th anniversary of the original Mortal Kombat is coming up in 2025 as well. The first live-action adaptation of the video game franchise was a critical disaster on release but proved a hit at the box office and eventually earned cult classic status among fans. Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa’s performance as sorcerer Shang Tsung remains a fan favorite among the film’s cast. 1997’s Mortal Kombat: Annihilation was not so lucky. The film performed incredibly poorly critically and commercially, which saw Midway Games, the video game’s publisher at the time, file for bankruptcy shortly afterward.

After Warner Bros. acquired the rights, Simon McQuoid was brought in to direct a reboot nearly two decades after the original film. The 2021 Mortal Kombat reintroduced audiences to the franchise’s hero, Lewis Tan’s Cole Young, a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter who is drafted to take part in a war for Earthrealm, a dimension that serves as home to the games’ tournament. Despite the film garnering mixed reviews, it performed just well enough at the box office to be greenlit for a sequel, with McQuoid back on board for a second go. In the first film, Cole heads to Los Angeles to recruit MMA actor Johnny Cage.

Mortal Kombat II’s official synopsis will make it seem like audiences are expected to be familiar with the first film in the reboot series. In the film, the champions who are now joined by Cage must square off in an “all-in, no-rules” war to put a stop to Shao Kahn’s attempts to conquer Earthrealm. For the first time in the Mortal Kombat universe, the entire realm is on the line.

Several actors from the original are returning for the second film, including: Lewis Tan (Cole Young), Jessica McNamee (Sonya Blade), Joe Taslim (Bi-Han/Noob Saibot a.k.a. Sub-Zero), Tadanobu Asano (Lord Raiden), Josh Lawson (Kano), Ludi Lin (Liu Kang), Mehcad Brooks (Jax Briggs), Chin Han (Shang Tsung), Hiroyuki Sanada (Scorpion), and Max Huang (Kung Lao).

A host of new fighters have also been added to the cast: Adeline Rudolph as Kitana, Tati Gabrielle as Jade, Damon Herriman (Kabal voice in the previous film) will take on the live-action role of Quan Chi, Martyn Ford as Shao Kahn, CJ Bloomfield as Baraka, Desmond Chiam as King Jerrod, and Ana Thu Nguyen as Queen Sindel.

The trailer opens with a comedic, albeit self-aware, introduction to Johnny Cage, who is recognized by a fan in a local dive bar. “I loved Citizen Cage as a kid,” the fan tells him. “They should do a reboot!” A bitter Cage, who resents the fact that his star has fallen, scoffs that “nobody wants that” since the type of action films Cage was used to starring in has been out of style since the 1990s.

Cage naturally points out that he has no supernatural abilities. “I’m just incredibly handsome,” is his defense for agreeing to take part in this “tournament.” He eventually changes his mind, but not before he makes it clear to those around him that he would like opponents to be especially careful not to damage his face. From there, the trailer gives us everything we would expect from a Mortal Kombat film—stylish, bloody, in-combat brutality, gruesome finishing moves, and some of the catchphrases made famous by the games, including Scorpion’s, “Get over here!”

Mortal Kombat II will arrive in theaters on October 24, 2025.