Mortal Kombat 1 Creator Ed Boon Tried to Get John Wick

Mortal Kombat 1 is out today for everyone, giving players worldwide the chance to check out how Fire God Liu Kang has reshaped the universe after beating Kronika in Mortal Kombat 11. They'll also get to see Megan Fox taking on the role of Nitara and Johnny Cage's new Jean-Claude Van Damme skin in action. However, if Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon had gotten his way, there would have been an even bigger crossover in Mortal Kombat 1. The team wasn't able to pull it off, but it sounds like there was an attempt to get Keanu Reeves' John Wick into the game.

The news came from an interview Boon did with The Rolling Stone. When asked if the team was influenced by modern action movies, Boon said, "I could certainly see the John Wicks of the world...as a matter of fact, that is one of the ones that we tried to get -- John Wick -- in Mortal Kombat, and we didn't get it." Boon doesn't get into specifics about why the partnership didn't happen, but given how many crossover characters we've seen in the past, it's not outside of the realm of possibility that we might see Wick in the game someday.

Will Future Mortal Kombat Games Use Famous Actors?

Early access complete. #MortalKombat1 is available today!pic.twitter.com/6uRi17PGYM

— Ed Boon (@noobde) September 19, 2023

In fact, it seems like we might see developer NetherRealm continue to use famous actors like Fox and Reeves in future entries. Boon also said, "One of the things that I entertained with this game -- and this is the 10 out of 10 version -- which we didn't do was, 'What if every character in this game was played by an actor?' Like we got Keanu Reeves to player Kenshi...this is, like, a pipe dream." With that in mind, it wouldn't be surprising to see the studio move that way further in the future, though Boon did note that actors might not be willing to sign up for all the work that comes with being in a video game.

Either way, it's clear that, even if the fanbase doesn't love the work that actors like Fox did, NetherRealm is interested in continuing the trend it started with Ronda Rousey. We probably aren't getting a full cast of Hollywood stars anytime soon, but when the Kombat Pack 2 is announced, don't be shocked if the team somehow is able to get Reeves into the studio. Obviously, he's worked in video games before with Cyberpunk 2077, so it's absolutely a possibility. 

Mortal Kombat 1 Kombat Pack 1 Fighters

With the game officially out, many players are wrapping up the story and looking toward the first Kombat Pack. We don't know exactly when we'll start to see the characters from the pack start to drop, but we do know who they all are. Here are the six characters who will be coming as fully playable fighters:

• Ermac
• Homelander
• Omni-Man
• Peacemaker
• Quan Chi
• Takeda

On top of that, we'll also be getting five more Kameo fighters, giving you several more options to switch between when you're looking for backup. Here they are:

• Ferra
• Johnny Cage
• Khameleon
• Mavado
• Tremor