Mehcad Brooks has become a familiar presence as a regular on TV's Supergirl, now entering its fifth season. As James Olsen, he was never the lanky, freckled redhead dwarfed by best pal Superman in comic books, but the impressive 38 year old appears to be taking his physique to another level in preparation to play Jax in the Mortal Kombat movie reboot.

Having already reacted to news of his casting; Brooks shared a revealing photo to Instagram showing off his transformation. It appears training has added some serious bulk to the actor and model's already muscular 6'4" frame!

Jax was originated for arcades in Mortal Kombat II by bodybuilder John Parrish, whose arms and physique inspired changes to the digitized character design. A special forces soldier with phenomenal strength, Jax was later enhanced with now iconic metal arms in MK3.

Brooks appears to be working hard to embody the character as fans know it, shedding the presumptions that come with his CW past as he also leaves Supergirl. In another message to followers, he reminisced about growing up playing Mortal Kombat video games.

This didn’t really hit me until I was on the plane to Australia Sunday and I mouthed the words “I’m in Mortal Kombat”. I’ve been playing this game since I was a kid with #Scorpion and #Jax I played it most days after homework, sometimes before and up all night at friend’s places at sleepovers. My friends parents would ask us why we hadn’t slept and we just kept saying shit like “fatality” and “finish him”. We were nerds. Video game junkies they called us. Now y’all are called #gamers and get paid for it. I was before my time I guess. #MortalKombat was kind of the violent uncle I never had. I love you MK. You raised me. Don’t tell Mom. #justakidfromaustin

Filming for Motal Kombat begins next month in South Australia, where almost 2,500 hopefuls lined up to appear as extras over the weekend. The film will also feature Joe Taslim as Sub-Zero, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, and Tadanobu Asano as Raiden. Share your thoughts about the live-action Jax in the comments below and follow all the MK movie news and discussion on the Media & Merchandise forum!