New Line Cinema is moving forward with a “Mortal Kombat” sequel, with the 2021 film’s director Simon McQuoid set to return, sources tell TheWrap.
The previous film was a new adaptation of the popular video game franchise that offered a grittier, more violent take on the material than the 1990s films. It was released in April of 2021 both in theaters and on HBO Max, and was an early pandemic hit for distributor Warner Bros., ranking as one of the top feature titles on HBO Max since the streaming service debuted.
Jeremy Slater (“Moon Knight,” “The Umbrella Academy”) is writing the screenplay for the sequel, and news of his involvement was first revealed in January.
“Mortal Kombat” marked McQuoid’s feature directorial debut, and the film ended with a clear path forward for the franchise as the titular challenge does not occur within the events of the first movie. A post-credits scene also teased the inclusion of the character Johnny Cage in a sequel.
The cast included Lewis Tan as Cole Young, Jessica MacNamee as Sonya Blade and Hiroyuki Sanada as Scorpion.
“Mortal Kombat” (2021) was produced by Atomic Monster’s James Wan, Broken Road Production’s Todd Garner, Simon McQuoid and E. Bennett Walsh. McQuoid directed from a screenplay by Greg Russo and Dave Callaham, from a story by Oren Uziel and Russo, based on the video game created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. Richard Brener, Dave Neustadter, Victoria Palmeri, Michael Clear, Jeremy Stein and Larry Kasanoff served as executive producers.
A native of Perth, Australia, McQuoid, a trained graphic designer, began his career working in ad agencies across both Australia and the U.S. He then moved into directing commercials. Simon’s work for Xbox, PlayStation, “Call of Duty” and “Halo 3” collectively won him a multitude of awards, including the Film Grand Prix at Cannes and a Grand Clio, and put him on the map for the “Mortal Kombat” directing gig.
McQuoid is also developing the sci-fi project “Omega” at Sony. He is repped Daniel Cohan and attorney Gregory Slewitt.
Deadline first reported the news.