UPDATE from the producer at the bottom of the article about the validity of this information: 

Age has not treated the first two Mortal Kombat films well. The special effects, though exceptional for the time, appear cheesy and outdated now. The original film still counts as a success in terms of both money and nostalgia. On the other hand, Mortal Kombat Annihilation deserves every bit of scorn it still receives to this day. With director Simon McQuoid’s reboot on the way, fans have begun speculating how the next installment will be received. Now that new casting details have been released, we finally have an idea of how the project is shaping up.

According to a report from That Hashtag Show, many classic favorites will return to the next film. However, McQuoid plans to change a lot of characters in ways that fans may find jarring. Here are the three casting calls with the biggest changes to characters.

Cole Turner

“Lead Male. 30s. A brand new character to the MK franchise. Cole is a struggling and widowed boxer who cares more about his young daughter than anything. He is incredibly determined and refuses to quit in the face of fantastical adversity.”

The decision to abandon the standard MK focal point (Liu Kang) strikes me as bold, but probably wise. Fans likely desire a shift in the narrative from every other Mortal Kombat storyline. However, Mortal Kombat has one of the deepest rosters of any franchise, video game or otherwise. Why McQuoid feels the need to bring in a total stranger to the reboot is beyond me.

In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if this is a bit of misdirection. Three major characters do not appear in the call sheet: Johnny Cage, Sub-Zero, and Scorpion. Scorpion’s backstory is littered with tragedy; could Turner become Scorpion through the tournament? That feels like a complete whitewashing of the character, but anything is possible. More likely, in my mind, is the possibility Turner adopts the alias/stage name of Johnny Cage. Here’s to hoping that the lead of the film is a character we all know and love.

Sonya Blade

“Supporting Lead Female. 30s. The beautiful, brainy blonde writer who chases the prophecy of Mortal Kombat. She recruits Cole and fights bravely and selflessly for a team she can only be a true part of once she earns a medallion in combat.”

The description fits with the Cole = Cage theory. As she is the lead female, her relationship with Turner will be central to the plot of the film. Fans would likely riot if Sonya did not end up with Johnny Cage.

However, turning Sonya from a badass cop into a brainy writer is an odd choice. I don’t know why the filmmakers are completely rewriting canon, particularly on with as many interwoven threads as Mortal Kombat.

Jin/Lord Raiden

“Male. 14. The immortal thunder God and protector of the Earth realm, who leads and trains the Earth team in the Underworld.”

Love this change. Watching a kid with godly powers boss around Liu Kang and company should be hilarious. This doesn’t mesh with canon, but as the God of Thunder, Raiden can take basically any form he wants. This offers to be the best change in the series we know of so far.

Most of the other listed descriptions match the characters we know and love. The list, which can be found here, includes Liu Kang, Jax, Mileena, Kung Lau, and Shang Tsung. Kitana, Goro, and Reptile are also notably absent from the list. Whether the list is incomplete or the film will heavily rely on CGI remains to be seen. Regardless, these creative choices will surely have Mortal Kombat fans abuzz, for better or for worse.

Let us know your expectations for the new movie in the comments below. For more Mortal Kombat news, follow DFTG on Twitter and Facebook!

Update July 11th: 

https://twitter.com/Todd_Garner/status/1016672953965084672