We’re still waiting on official confirmation that Mortal Kombat is getting a sequel, but the signs are encouraging after the video game reboot managed to turn a profit at the box office and exceeded expectations on HBO Max in the eyes of the WarnerMedia top brass. The $55 million budget of the first installment was a drop in the ocean for an action-packed blockbuster, and with a return on the initial investment already being made, a follow-up is surely going to happen.
Director Simon McQuoid and writer Greg Russo have already teased that a trilogy has been roughly sketched out, and given that there were absolutely no dramatic stakes in Mortal Kombat after the end of the movie basically confirmed that almost the entire principal cast will be returning, the titular tournament is virtually guaranteed to be the focal point of the story.
The final shot, meanwhile, revealed that Johnny Cage is on the way, and there’s unsurprisingly been a huge number of candidates named in conjunction with the part, ranging from the hugely unlikely Ryan Reynolds to the entirely plausible James Marsden, via WWE wrestler The Miz repeatedly staking his own claim.
However, insider Daniel Richtman has now put forth Charlie Hunnam as a contender reportedly under consideration by the studio, but that’s about the beginning and end of his say on the matter. The 41 year-old is certainly handsome and chiseled enough for the franchise’s resident A-lister, and he’s a much better actor than he often gets credit for, but it just so happens that effects-driven projects tend to result in his weakest performances.
His flat turns in Pacific Rim and King Arthur: Legend of the Sword are a million miles away from the charismatic and convincing dramatic talent seen in The Gentlemen, Papillon and Jungleland, and it wouldn’t be too harsh to say that he’s certainly not the best choice available for Mortal Kombat‘s Johnny Cage.
