Mortal Kombat 2 Movie Release Date Gets Pushed Back

Mortal Kombat movie fans will unfortunately have to wait longer than expected for the second film to release. Mortal Kombat 2‘s release date has been pushed back into 2026.

Fans got their first significant look at Mortal Kombat 2 not all that long before the delay was announced. The trailer showed off the first look at Karl Urban’s take on Johnny Cage, as the actor tries to cope with the fatal combat tournament and the unusual powers many of the competitors possess.

Mortal Kombat 2 Movie Gets Delayed to 2026

Originally, Mortal Kombat 2 was set to release in theaters on October 24, 2025, but according to Deadline, it has now been pushed back to May 15, 2026. An exact reason for its delay hasn’t been stated, but a release leading into Memorial Day and summer will likely serve the film well. Action movies have a history of performing well during this time, when many students get out of classes and the weather begins heating up.

While capitalizing on potential summer boosts to the box office will likely be a boon, the movie is notably also landing in advance of a major action-adventure film. Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, which will serve as a continuation of the popular Disney+ series The Mandalorian, will release on May 22, 2026. Outside of The Mandalorian and Grogu, it doesn’t seem there will be much directly competing with Mortal Kombat 2 until mid-June, which should give the fighting game adaptation plenty of time to earn at the box office.

The 2021 Mortal Kombat movie reviews from critics were mixed, but it got a better score from viewers, and was ultimately a box office success. The film had a budget of $55 million, and it took home $84.4 million in the box office, outperforming estimates and becoming HBO Max’s most successful film launch at that time. It released in April, so launching the sequel in mid-May could propel it to even higher numbers. Mortal Kombat 2 reportedly had a slightly higher budget of $68 million, so it will need to perform well to make the investment worth it.

It remains to be seen if Mortal Kombat 2 can meet the expectations fans and investors have of it, but its trailer’s success could translate into box office domination. The Mortal Kombat 2 Red Band trailer received just shy of 107 million views in just 24 hours, beating every other Red Band trailer and its predecessor, as the first Mortal Kombat movie trailer only saw 47 million views in the first 24 hours.