Mortal Kombat Director on Expanding the Franchise to New Fans

It's hard to say just how much of the iconic Mortal Kombat franchise will be in the new reboot movie when it releases on April 23rd in theaters and on HBO Max, but from what has been released so far, and what the cast and crew have said about it, it certainly sounds like it remains true to the core elements and more. Director Simon McQuoid reinforced this during a recent press event attended ComicBook.com by clarifying that the whole point was to expand the franchise for new fans rather than changing it altogether.

"We really did consider the new fans a lot in this film, but we always felt that we could respect the fans and the material and not alienate anyone new," McQuoid said at one point during the event. "We don't really change anything fundamentally to try and pay service to new fans. It was like, 'Come on the ride with us. The fans have been here before, and you'll enjoy it.' We wanted to actually expand it out to new people rather than change it to make it easier for new people. So, that was quite a fundamental point of view going in. But it's like, 'No, no, let's expand it out so more people can enjoy the truth of what's here rather than change that truth.'"

Here is the official synopsis for the upcoming Mortal Kombat movie:

"MMA fighter Cole Young, accustomed to taking a beating for money, is unaware of his heritage—or why Outworld's Emperor Shang Tsung has sent his best warrior, Sub-Zero, an otherworldly Cryomancer, to hunt Cole down. Fearing for his family's safety, Cole goes in search of Sonya Blade at the direction of Jax, a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Soon, he finds himself at the temple of Lord Raiden, an Elder God and the protector of Earthrealm, who grants sanctuary to those who bear the mark. Here, Cole trains with experienced warriors Liu Kang, Kung Lao and rogue mercenary Kano, as he prepares to stand with Earth's greatest champions against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe. But will Cole be pushed hard enough to unlock his arcana—the immense power from within his soul—in time to save not only his family, but to stop Outworld once and for all?"

The Mortal Kombat reboot film is now scheduled to release on April 23rd on both HBO Max and in theaters. The cast includes Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Mehcad Brooks as Jax, Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, Hiroyuki Sanada as Scorpion, Josh Lawson as Kano, Tadanobu Asano as Raiden, Joe Taslim as Sub-Zero, Chin Han as Shang Tsung, Sisi Stringer as Mileena, and Lewis Tan as new character Cole Young. It wrapped filming in late 2019. You can check out all of our previous coverage of the film right here.

What do you think about what we have seen of the upcoming Mortal Kombat movie so far? Are you familiar with the franchise, or will you be coming in fresh? Let us know in the comments, or feel free to reach out and hit me up directly over on Twitter at @rollinbishop to talk about all things gaming!