For decades fans of pop culture have been vexed and perplexed by Hollywood's knack for radically altering the popular properties they license for the big screen. Mortal Kombat has been no exception: heavily promoting a character invented for the film. Writer Greg Russo discussed the unlikely star of the new movie in a recent interview. Full story:

Speaking with pop culture and lifestyle site Inverse: screenwriter Greg Russo explained an original creation was already part of the project when he inherited a previous script in 2016. "It was something the studio wanted", he explains.

Rumors of a new lead protagonist began circulating in 2018, and despite aggressive rebukes from James Wan and Ed Boon, the character only appeared to undergo a slight name and style change before materializing in the first featured preview. This identification came sixteen months after Lewis Tan publicly joined the cast.

Russo revealed one of the most substantive changes he made was connecting the character more deeply with the world of the series. "... it had no tie to the mythology of Mortal Kombat. I thought, if we’re going to do it, I want to make sure we do it right and that this character fits into the mythology in an organic way."

"Doing it right" was a mantra James Wan shared in interviews around the time Russo joined as screenwriter. As explained by producer Todd Garner, the result is a character who "sees the eyes of anyone who's never played the game". He'll offer new viewers a point of view as he discovers the world of Mortal Kombat, and as revealed in the official synopsis, his hidden heritage.

In “Mortal Kombat,” 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?

Similar to reasoning offered by the director, Russo cites the series' expanding roster as justification for the introduction, but he's self-aware about the pitfalls, also noting: "I’ve seen movie franchises where they bring in a new character and that character is the poster child of the movie, and I felt that was wrong". He also assures classic characters won't be under represented: "They're going to do their cool shit and no one is going to feel they’re in a corner doing nothing."

Mortal Kombat has enjoyed strong box office in limited international markets and will soon officially be in wide release and streaming to HBO Max on April 23rd. Prepare yourself with the latest behind-the-scenes featurette and official red band trailer.

With just over a week until Mortal Kombat is released theatrically around the world -- a new featurette is offering another glimpse behind-the-scenes of the violence of the new movie. Watch:

Brutal fighting and "sickeningly violent" fatalities are a focus of the new featurette, which highlights the abilities of the actors who were hired to infuse the film with authentic martial arts through a prism of acting. Director Simon McQuoid maintains a desire to "make it real".

Special acknowledgement is given to Joe Taslim, whose fast-paced martial arts are compared to Bruce Lee in the need to slow them down for the camera. Actor Mehcad Brooks (Jax) describes the realization of what he was in for after watching The Raid: the 2011 movie that made Taslim a star.

The featurette anchors the film's origins in the first arcade Mortal Kombat video game, but the game isn't necessarily it's main jumping off point. Footage from the game amusingly shows one of the main characters who won't be in the film.

The director misidentifies early installments as 8-bit, but uses the early technology of the first games to frame his desire to elevate the characters to a level they haven't seen before. This expression might provoke fans who've played recent installments, but speaks to efforts to combine gaming iconography with historical reference. Hiroyuki Sanada, playing a Scorpion transposed for the film's plot to feudal Japan, speaks of infusing his fighting performance with Japanese reference, while also creating distinctions from screen rival Sub-Zero.

Fans of the games will almost certainly be excited by new footage that shows the fight between Liu Kang (Ludi Lin) and Kabal (Daniel Nelson). The preview shows a clear close-up of the film's adaptation of Kabal's iconic mask, and also shows the fighter using purple-highlighted speed to streak around his opponent. The effect is very reminiscent of his recent appearance in Mortal Kombat 11.

[Related Article: Mortal Kombat Meet the Kast Featurette]

Mortal Kombat has enjoyed a strong overseas opening weekend and will officially be released theatrical and streaming to HBO Max (for 31 days in the US) on April 23rd! Watch the official red band trailer and join the conversation in the Media & Merchandise forum!

The domestic release of Mortal Kombat may have been pushed back an extra week, but internationally the movie has already begun screening in seventeen foreign markets. Figures from the first week show positive returns from the franchise blockbuster. Read on for details:

Deadline reports that Mortal Kombat has taken a robust $10.7 million in its first week on 4,596 overseas screens. This reportedly makes it the biggest Hollywood blockbuster to open in the last year, demonstrating recovery from a widely experienced COVID-19 pandemic depression.

According to Deadline: Russia led the charge with $6.1 million taken in the opening week. Middle East and Asian nations rounded out the biggest earning sectors since the April 9th open: Saudi Arabia ($691,000), United Arab Emirates ($689,000), Thailand ($574K), and Taiwan ($554K).

The super-sized screen of IMAX is also proving to be a successful draw for Mortal Kombat, taking $1.1 million on 125 screens. Deadline notes 37 IMAX screenings will soon be added across Asia, South America, , Kenya and Spain. A special poster was created to promote the screenings.

[Related Article: Mortal Kombat Releases International Movie Poster]

It's too soon to call the movie a hit, but it seems on trend to be one of the biggest movies of the last 16 months, continuing a strong return to theatres for Warners started with Godzilla vs Kong. Like the giant monster movie, Mortal Kombat maximizes screentime with a total length under two hours.

Watch the Meet the Kast featurette and revisit the official red band trailer to prepare yourself. Then dive in to the Media & Merchandise forum to join the countdown to the April 23rd release!

Originally released in 1994: Techno Syndrome has gone on to live up to its name -- infecting generations who've come to regard it the theme of Mortal Kombat. Many first heard it during the 1995 feature film and now the latest theatrical reboot meets expectant demand with a new 2021 cover version. Listen to the new strain:

Techno Syndrome was originally released as part of Mortal Kombat: The Album: a 1994 concept recording by Oliver Adams and Maurice Engelen as "The Immortals". The Belgian duo created themes for each of the main characters in the original Mortal Kombat, with two tracks dedicated to the general sensation of the video game.

Known as the "Theme to Mortal Kombat" once included in the major motion picture adaptation, the infectious dance track became part of a phenomenon that intertwined with home ports of the video game, and the memetic cry heard in the Mortal Monday advertising campaign. Fan sleuthing recently uncovered the identity of the voice behind the iconic shout.

The rallying bellow returns in the newest version of the song, an embellished modern EDM cover by Benjamin Wallfisch. Listen to the full track embeded above, and hear an orchestral version in the official red band trailer.

[Related Article: Emergence: The Song From the Mortal Kombat Movie Trailer]

Mortal Kombat is now showing in some territories, with a wide release in theatres, IMAX, and streaming to HBO Max in the United States for 31 days after premiering April 23rd. Share your thoughts about the movie soundtrack in the comments below and find more sights and sounds in the Media & Merchandise forum.

Mortal Kombat is making its return to the big screen and it's going to include showings on the biggest screen of IMAX! To promote the occasion fan-favourite digital artist BossLogic has been enlisted to create a dynamic new poster that shows off the soon-to-be larger than life fighters! Take a look:

Australian artist BossLogic created artwork visualizing the cast before the release of the film, and arranges the fighters in front of the dramatic watch of series mascots Scorpion (Hiroyuki Sanada) and Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim). Outworld's fighters are predominantly positioned over Earthrealm's defenders, including Kano (Josh Lawson), whose loyalties seem destined to shift once the action begins.

Mortal Kombat is already screening in some regions, but officially opens in wide release April 23rd. IMAX showtimes begin in Australia starting April 21st. Visit the IMAX website for additional information on showtimes.