All Mortal Kombat Movies & TV Shows to Watch Before Mortal Kombat II

Ahead of the release of the 1995 live-action Mortal Kombat, there was an animated prequel released called Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins. Running at just under an hour long, this tie-in film introduced the characters of Raiden, Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, and Johnny Cage, focusing on their journey to the tournament island, where Raiden gave them lots of handy hints and tips about how each could win Mortal Kombat. 

A glorified marketing machine, Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins is often forgotten, but one that fans of the first movie should hunt down at their earliest convenience.

Directed by Paul W. S. Anderson, Mortal Kombat is one of the earliest examples of the live-action video game adaptation on the big screen. Belittled by the snobbish, Mortal Kombat is actually a very solid ‘reversioning’ of the beat-’em up game. With the video game’s plot set within the simple framework of a fighting tournament, it is remarkable that Anderson was able to fabricate any semblance of a story. Granted, the story is still basic, with the trio of Liu Kang, Johnny Cage, and Sonya Blade chosen as representatives of the Earth realm at the latest Mortal Kombat tournament. 

The plot is primarily drawn from the alliances and rivalries as set out in the video games series’ instruction manual bios, but that is just enough meat to keep the viewer sated. Where Mortal Kombat excels is with its fight scenes, the inclusion of Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as iconic villain Shang Tsung, and that legendary title song. 

Despite both the game series and movie being rated certificate 18, an animated series aimed at children, Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, arrived in 1996. For anyone who was not around in the ‘90s, this was a regular occurrence; Robocop was also given a live-action family-friendly series, Robocop: The Series, and Starship Troopers spawned Roughnecks. These shows all worked because the ‘90s were something of a wild west when it came to children watching movies they were way too young for. 

Acting as an alternate sequel to the movie, Defenders of the Realm followed the quest of Liu Kang, Sonya Blade, Jaxx, Kitana, and a now good Sub-Zero as they fought Emperor Shao Kahn’s legion of fighters sneaking into the Earth realm via portals. As cartoons go, Defenders of the Realm was standard Saturday morning entertainment, and worked vastly better as a sequel than the movie that the fans received. 

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation is easily the worst entry into the Mortal Kombat pantheon, and yet it still holds a strange allure. Opening seconds after the ending of its predecessor, Mortal Kombat: Annihilation immediately kills a key character. The changing of most of the cast is also distracting, considering its direct continuation of Mortal Kombat. It also seeks to address the lack of a complex plot of the first film by stuffing in too many ideas and subplots. It becomes a muddled mess, and yet there is a strange beauty to its madness. 

There are some excellent moments, such as the showdown between Scorpion and Sub-Zero, but it is best watched by those most devoted to their quest for Mortal Kombat knowledge. 

After the success of sword ‘n’ sandal fantasy shows Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, came Mortal Kombat: Conquest. A prequel to the movie, the show followed Lui Kang’s ancestor, Kung Lao, who, after winning his tournament, found himself battling warriors of Shao Kahn and Shang Tsung. Assisted by bodyguard Siro and ex-theof, Taja, the trio worked to keep the peace between tournaments, but found themselves drawn into a variety of devious traps. 

Although by no means as well-loved as Xena or Hercules, Mortal Kombat: Conquest is still essential viewing for fans of the original movie and games, as it adds plenty of history to the world. The show was one of the early credits for Daniel Bernhardt, a stunt-performer and actor now best known for his appearances in John Wick, The Matrix movies and Steve Kostanski’s Deathstalker reboot. 

Before the most recent movie, Mortal Kombat: Legacy, was the jewel in the crown of adaptations of the video game. A web mini-series, Mortal Kombat: Legacy, explored a variety of game characters before and during a tournament. At around 10 minutes per episode, Mortal Kombat: Legacy offers sneaky glimpses into the lives of the fighters. Content ranged from the origins of their powers, or historic feuds, to more ‘day in the life of’ drama, but all of it is vital entertainment for fans of these characters. 

Mortal Kombat: Legacy was also wise enough to bring Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa back as Shang Tsung, which was very well received by audiences. Sadly, the show only ran for two seasons, with a third season cancelled during production. That the reboot film was not based around this show is a crime, as good as Karl Urban is sure to be as Johnny Cage, they really should have stuck with Legacy’s casting choice, Caper Van Dien.  

Mortal Kombat Legends is not one, but a collection of several direct-to-video animated movies. Titles include Scorpion’s Revenge, Battle of the Realms, Snow Blind, and Cage Match, with the stories revolving around the more well-known fighters, whilst having an element of interconnectivity between them. An overlooked series of movies, this animated alternative has far more consistent quality than its live-action counterparts. 

After over 20 years away, Mortal Kombat finally returned to the big screen with the reboot Mortal Kombat. The plot joins non-video-game character Cole Young, a washed-up MMA fighter who is called to participate in the upcoming Mortal Kombat tournament. A descendent of the mighty warrior, Scorpion, Cole catches the attention of Outworld, and along with fellow combatants Sonya Blade, Kuang Lao, Lui Kang, and Jaxx, finds himself fighting for his life before the tournament has even begun. 

The reboot of Mortal Kombat was released during the pandemic, which meant that it didn’t perform as well as it could have. It did, however, prove itself to be worthy of a sequel, and one can only hope that Mortal Kombat II will build on the steady foundation laid here. Right from the opening in Feudal Japan, which saw Scorpion and Sub-Zero at loggerheads, Mortal Kombat announced itself as a film for the fans. Directed by Simon McQuoid, who returns for the sequel, the reboot combines the best elements from the original film, with flashes of Mortal Kombat Legacy and plenty of Easter eggs for gamers to make it a brilliant reset of the franchise. Fingers crossed, Mortal Kombat II follows in its footsteps.