Mortal Kombat II will release in theaters soon, and the upcoming sequel already looks poised to beat its predecessor in a big way. Looking at all the Mortal Kombat movies released over the years, the video game property has built a strong and beloved franchise that now has the potential to last for many more films.

With new characters coming in Mortal Kombat II, the movie looks to be something very fresh. The games, beginning with 1992’s Mortal Kombat, were controversial, showing off brutal violence and blood. This led to US Senate hearings, which resulted in the creation of the ESRB and its rating system for video games.

The new movie looks violent too, already showing off Mortal Kombat fatalities in the marketing. Fortunately, this method is already looking to pay off. While the film does not release until October, anticipation for the movie has built significantly, and it looks to perform even better than the first due to one new detail.

Mortal Kombat 2’s Record Trailer Views Is A Good Sign For Its Box Office Potential

The Red-Band Trailer Set A New Viewership Record

The trailer for Mortal Kombat II is already breaking records for the film. According to ᴅᴇᴀᴅline, Mortal Kombat II’s red-band trailer garnered 106.8 million views in only its first day of release. This number is staggering and has made it the most-watched red-band trailer in its first 24 hours.

This is even more significant when considering some of the previous record-holders. ᴅᴇᴀᴅpool 2 set a previous record in 2018, earning 52 million views, and went on to gross $785 million worldwide. Mortal Kombat II has more than doubled this number, which might be a great testament to the film’s box office potential.

Granted, there are some complications here. The Suicide Squad set the most recent trailer record in 2021, with 58.7 million views, and that movie only earned $168.7 million in cinemas. However, that movie was given a simultaneous release in theaters and on HBO Max, which contributed to lower grosses.

Video game movies have been the H๏τtest commodity in Hollywood in recent years, and there is reason to believe that Mortal Kombat II will be a major success. A Minecraft Movie is one of the biggest films of 2025, and The Super Mario Bros. Movie was the second-biggest film of 2023.

All of this speaks to changing expectations in the marketplace. Video games garner huge audiences, and their adaptations, both on the big and the small screen, have been able to attract attention from various sectors. With The Last of Us being one of the biggest shows on television, there is room for more adult adaptations in movies.

Fortunately, Mortal Kombat II will be receiving a full theatrical release, and will not stream until this run is over. All of this should allow the film to perform more typically in cinemas than these other record holders.

There is room for Mortal Kombat II to grow in the cinematic marketplace, and this result makes this look inevitable. The new film looks stronger and more accessible than the previous entry, and all of this should coalesce to make the October release of this film among the best for an R-rated video game adaptation.

Mortal Kombat 2 Should Crush 2021’s Mortal Kombat At The Box Office

There Is Already Greater Interest In The Sequel Than The Original Film

The previous Mortal Kombat movie earned only 47 million views on its first red-band trailer within the same timeframe. Notably, that film, like The Suicide Squad, was released simultaneously in theaters and on streaming, so it only earned $84.4 million worldwide. This is a low figure, and there are many reasons to believe the new film will do better.

Mortal Kombat II already looks like a reboot to the series, and is set up for incredible box office success. The new film looks like a great entry point for new viewers, giving Johnny Cage the role of the audience surrogate. The film’s charm and style seem to have connected with viewers, who have watched the trailer over and over.

Big trailer releases do not necessarily result in incredible box office returns, but there is usually some overlap. Outside the R-rated sphere, for example, Spider-Man: Homecoming debuted its trailer to 116 million views, which translated to $880 million. While box office habits have changed, it is now difficult to imagine Mortal Kombat II not being a success.

It looks inevitable that the film will overtake the grosses of the previous entry, and likely that the film could even overtake the original 1995 film, which earned $122 million. The new movie carries a budget of $68 million, which means it needs to earn somewhere in that range to find profitability, but this now looks more likely than not.

The first Mortal Kombat from 2021 had a mixed reception, but it looks as though the new film is working hard to rectify any issues. Mortal Kombat II certainly has the potential to be among the biggest video game adaptations yet, and the new footage is getting audiences excited. Hopefully, the film lives up to the hype.