One Mortal Kombat actor confirms the return of his iconic character in the sequel

Hiroyuki Sanada as Scorpion in Mortal Kombat
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

A Mortal Kombat actor has confirmed the return of their iconic character in the sequel – but won’t say much else about his forthcoming role.

Hiroyuki Sanada, who played the kunai-wielding Scorpion in the 2021 Mortal Kombat movie, revealed his involvement in Mortal Kombat 2 during an interview with ComicBook.com.

"I have no idea what to say," Sanada said when asked about whether Scorpion would face off against Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage in the sequel. "Yeah, I've just finished shooting in Australia."

While many would have assumed Sanada would return as Scorpion – especially given how the first movie gave him an ‘in’ to return for any future tournaments – he had not been confirmed to be part of the Mortal Kombat 2 cast. 

Instead, we got news of newcomers – including the aforementioned Johnny Cage and his incredibly obnoxious wardrobe choices.

Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage is joined by a whole host of new kombatants, including – deep breath – Tati Gabrielle (Uncharted) as Jade, Adeline Rudolph (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) as Kitana, Martyn Ford (F9) as Shao Kahn, Desmond Chiam (Falcon and The Winter Soldier) as King Jerrod, Damon Herriman (Justified) as Quan Chi, C.J. Bloomfield (Furiosa) as Baraka, and Ana Thu Nguyen (One Night) as Sindel.

Several actors also return, with Sanada featuring alongside familiar faces such as Lewis Tan’s Cole, Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), and Joe Taslim (Bi-Han).

Filming wrapped in January 2024, though producer Todd Garner hit a Fatality on our hopes of seeing any footage anytime soon, suggesting a trailer was “months” away.

For more, check out all the upcoming video game movies currently in the works.

Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.