Following the release of Mortal Kombat in April 2021, producer Todd Garner, writer Greg Russo, and director McQuoid began conversations about the future of the franchise, including standalone films focused on Johnny Cage and Bi-Han, and a sequel to the 2021 film. By 2022, Warner Bros. Pictures had green-lit the sequel, with Slater set to pen the screenplay and McQuoid returning to direct the project. Filming began in June 2023 in Australia, was paused in mid-July due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, resumed in mid-November, and wrapped in late January 2024.
Mortal Kombat 2 is scheduled to be theatrically released by Warner Bros. Pictures on October 24, 2025.
Following the release of Mortal Kombat in April 2021, actor Joe Taslim revealed that he is contracted for four additional Mortal Kombat films, if Warner Bros. Pictures decides to create a franchise.[14] Director Simon McQuoid stated that he is open to returning to direct a sequel if the story for it is good.[15] In an interview after the film's release, McQuoid said that the character Johnny Cage was not introduced in the film because Johnny Cage was a "giant personality" and would throw the film out of balance. He revealed that potential sequels could explore the material for characters like Cage and Kitana. He also expressed that he would like to include more female characters.[16] Co-writer Greg Russo told Collider that he sees the reboot as a trilogy with the first film set before the tournament, the second film set during the tournament and the third film set post-tournament.[17]
In November 2021, producer Todd Garner hinted at a sequel in development on Twitter,[18] and in January 2022, the film was confirmed to be in development with Jeremy Slater writing the script.[19] In May 2022, Slater confirmed plans to include Johnny Cage in the film, after being set-up at the end of Mortal Kombat, though he noted his exact role in the story has not been determined.[20] That same month, Slater mentioned the film would "embrace some of [the] weirdness" inherent to the Mortal Kombat franchise, and that he wanted the film to be "unpredictable" and defy fan expectations.[21] In June 2022, he further explained that the sequel would address both positive and negative fan reactions to the first film.[22] In July 2022, it was announced that the film had been greenlit by New Line and that McQuoid would return to direct the sequel.[23]
