Just a few days ago, hype for Mortal Kombat II was at an all-time high. The trailer for Mortal Kombat II broke records after its release in July and proved that the highly anticipated sequel might just be the movie that fans have been waiting decades for. As is teased in the trailer, the sequel will introduce Johnny Cage and focus on the tournament between Earthrealm and Outworld.

The first movie in the rebooted franchise didn’t include a tournament and chose to focus on a new protagonist more than fan-favorite characters, but it seems like the upcoming Mortal Kombat II will make up for these mistakes. This is incredibly exciting and could bode well for the future of the franchise, but a major update could change everything…

Less than two months before its original release date, it was announced that Mortal Kombat II has been delayed to next year. The film will now release on May 15, 2025, which means fans have to wait nearly seven more months to see the sequel. This release date change came as a huge shock, and could result in Mortal Kombat II being the final movie in the franchise.

Mortal Kombat 2’s Delay Could Hurt Fan Anticipation

The red-band trailer for Mortal Kombat II became the most viewed of all time, clearly proving that there is still a lot of interest in the franchise. Furthermore, according to Fandango, Mortal Kombat II was the second most anticipated movie coming out this fall. The film’s creative team, as well as the production companies and the movie’s distributor, Warner Bros., shouldn’t take this for granted.

Even though the 2021 Mortal Kombat movie is largely seen as a major disappointment, fans still have hope that the sequel can turn things around. Mortal Kombat II is definitely making all the right decisions by focusing on Johnny Cage and the tournament between Earthrealm and Outworld, but this release date change could result in the movie losing the favor of the fans.

By asking fans to wait another seven months to see Mortal Kombat II, the movie could lose the momentum that it had started to gain after the release of the first trailer. Depending on how the marketing is handled moving forward, there’s a chance that some people will forget about the sequel and won’t bother to see it when it eventually does come out next May.

It seems like Mortal Kombat II was delayed so that it could make more money as a true summer blockbuster. However, if hype for the movie dwindles following the delay, this strategy could actually backfire. Instead of being a summertime hit, Mortal Kombat II could flop and get overshadowed by other blockbusters.

Mortal Kombat 2 Had Less Box Office Compeтιтion Before Its Delay

Originally, Mortal Kombat II was supposed to hit theaters on October 24, 2025. Without a doubt, it would have been the biggest movie releasing on this day and easily would have topped the weekend box office. Its original release was two weeks after the release of Tron: Ares, so that would no longer pose a major threat to Mortal Kombat II’s total haul.

Additionally, it would have had a full two weeks to rule the box office before the release of Predator: Badlands on November 7. Therefore, Mortal Kombat II would have likely been the number one movie at the box office in its second week, as well. Overall, it seems like this two-week window, right around Halloween, was the perfect time for this ultra-violent franchise to make a major impact at the box office.

Now, Mortal Kombat II will only have one week to rule the box office before the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu, which will easily blow it away. In addition to the Star Wars movie, Mortal Kombat II will have to worry about other summer blockbusters taking away from its total box office haul, such as Masters of the Universe, Toy Story 5, and even Steven Spielberg’s upcoming UFO film.

Die-hard fans will obviously still watch Mortal Kombat II in theaters, but casual fans may opt to wait for it to release on streaming, especially if they are more excited for other summer releases. Therefore, instead of being a huge box office hit, Mortal Kombat II may underperform, just like the first film did.

Mortal Kombat’s Franchise Could End If Mortal Kombat 2 Underperforms

Throughout its theatrical run in 2021, the first Mortal Kombat grossed $84 million globally (via Box Office Mojo). It must be noted that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the movie was simultaneously released on HBO Max. This helps explain the movie’s underwhelming haul, but regardless, Mortal Kombat is a franchise that should be making hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office.

Since it is now getting a highly coveted summer release date, there is going to be a lot of pressure on Mortal Kombat II to perform well at the box office. If it isn’t a mᴀssive hit and is quickly overshadowed by other summer blockbusters, then there’s a chance the studio will decide not to greenlight a third Mortal Kombat movie.

Even though the rebooted Mortal Kombat movie franchise just seems to be getting started and has potentially finally found its footing, it could come to an unceremonious end thanks to this delay. Therefore, Mortal Kombat II’s release date change could unfortunately spell disaster for the franchise.