Caffeinated Clint
Australia’s Joel Edgerton is rumoured to be up for a role in the long-gestating “Mortal Kombat” movie reboot.
According to ThatHashtagShow, the “Black Mass” and “Boy Erased” actor is being courted to play Kano, complete with Aussie accent, in director Simon Mcquoid’s celluloid take on the video game.
With an Australian director (commercials vet) at the helm, and filming set to lens down under this summer (they need local actors to get the tax credit, yo!), no surprise that born Blacktown-born Edgerton is on the wish list. Not to say the guy doesn’t have what it takes to play such a physically-demanding role – aside from his skills in Shotokan karate, he also turned his body into a machine for the Tom Hardy two-hander “Warrior” a few years back.
The Greg Russo-written pic will reputedly center around a washed-up boxer (Cole Turner) that is recruited to help protect Earth (and his daughter). He must join forces with a team of fighters that are locked in an eternal battle with killers from another dimension.
Based on character breakdowns obtained from the site, you can expect to see the following fighters :
COLE TURNER – A washed up boxer that still puts up a good fight. He loves his daughter Emily and will do anything to protect her. He is recruited to fight in Mortal Kombat and turns out to have a mysterious upbringing.
EMILY – Cole’s 12-year-old daughter who is already a skilled boxing trainer. She proves to be tougher than she looks.
KANO – The large, rugged Australian ex-special forces turned merc-for-hire wanted by Interpol for arms dealing and drug running. He’s killed a lot of people yet still has a goofy attitude.
LORD RAIDEN – The Thunder God leader of the humankind’s contestants in Mortal Kombat. He oversees their training for the tournament.
SONYA BLADE – The tough blonde dressed in military gear and ready to become a stronger champion.
JACKSON “JAX” BRIDGES – With “Arms like cannons” he recruits Cole to the Mortal Kombat tournament.
LIU KANG – A Shaolin warrior from the White Lotus society that has the ability to throw fireballs.
KUNG LAO – A stoic warrior monk who throws his hat like a deadly frisbee.
SUB-ZER0 – The ice ninja with deadly eyes hidden behind a gruesome mask.
MILEENA – The female Outworld assassin dressed in leather armor and wielding deadly sais.
SHANG TSUNG – The ageless Outworld general that oversees the tournament and it’s fighters.
Though not listed, probably expect to see fan-faves Scorpion and Kabal in the film. Wouldn’t be a “Mortal Kombat” movie without them.
This new “Mortal Kombat” film has been in the works for years. At one stage it was set-up to be a continuation of the original Christopher Lambert-starring film, with everyone from Mink, Paul W.S Anderson and “Mortal Kombat: Legacy” director Kevin Tancharoen attached to direct, and much of the original cast returning.
Lambert was still onboard – as far as he knew, anyway – as recently as 2016.
“They have a great idea for the third one”, the actor, who turned down the opportunity to reprise his role in ”Mortal Kombat: Annihilation”, replaced by “Sex and the City” alum James Remar, told Loaded. “It will be very different. We are going to be traveling through time but in a very special way. So imagine characters having a battle in the middle of London and then whoosh, you smash through a window and find yourself on the hood of a New York cab.”
Linden Ashby, who played Johnny Cage in the 1995 original, told TV Guide in 2010 that he’s “been talking to the producers for the past month or so pretty intensely, and they say we are set to go. I’ll be reprising my role as Johnny Cage. It’s supposed to start shooting this summer.”
The aforesaid Mink, who had been attached to the project for several years, mentioned a few years back that the film kept running into budgetary problems.
Last time we spoke to the filmmaker he said the film had been experiencing some trouble garnering coin. It was an independent film at the time (Warner Bros didn’t own the property at that stage) and “as you may have noticed the economy in general is a little sluggish at the moment especially in Hollywood” Mink said. “Indy investors are more cautious at this particular time then recently so it takes longer than ever. MK more than likely will be an Indy film. The film’s projected budget will be between 50& 60 mill so it is a bit more tricky than just running down to the ATM or writing a cashiers check(maybe one of those Jumbo checks like Publisher Clearing House winners). Currently Threshold is working out the financing through a studio and or equity situation. This will take as long as needs to take. I know the frustration this causes the awesome MK fans but that’s the fact Jack….”
Kevin Tanchorean – who planned on casting Michael Jai White, reprising his role from the “Legacy” shorts – left for much the same reason… frustration.
In 2015, New Line decided to abandon plans to go all sequel and instead start with a clean slate, hiring James Wan to produce a snazzy-new update. Dave Callaham and Oren Uziel were hired to write the project. The “Aquaman” and “Saw” helmer’s attachement, it seems, was what the project needed to come to fruition. Though Wan is reportedly no longer involved, he helped whip the project into shape and convinced the studio it’d be a good move to make it. He also played a part in hiring fellow countryman Mcquoid for the job.
