Mortal Kombat II Release Date Moved Up By 1 Week After Delays

The return to the Netherrealm is coming sooner than previously planned in a new Mortal Kombat II release update. The next installment in the live-action adaptation of the iconic fighting game franchise is expected to pick up shortly after the 2021 Mortal Kombat reboot’s ending, in which Sonya Blade, Jax and Cole Young set out to build a new roster of Earthrealm fighters, particularly Johnny Cage.

Featuring new and returning faces, including Karl Urban as Cage and Martyn Ford as Shao Kahn, Mortal Kombat II was originally set to release on October 24, 2025, but saw a surprise shake-up in its plans as it was pushed to May 2026. Reports have indicated that the decision came from Warner Bros. looking to follow up on the box office success of 2025’s Superman with another summer release.

After previously delaying the film from October 2025 to May 15, 2026, Warner Bros. Pictures has made another change to Mortal Kombat II‘s release date. The video game adaptation sequel is now slated to hit theaters on May 8, bringing the film out one week earlier.

While it’s currently unclear why the studio has elected to change it again, Mortal Kombat II‘s new release date is making for an even better chance for the film to excel at the box office. Most of May 2026 comprises smaller releases, with the May 15 weekend, in particular, seeing the debuts of Maude Apatow’s Poetic License and the thriller Is God Is.

However, May is a unique month in that it’s bookended by the Ryan Reynolds-led Animal Friends and The Devil Wears Prada 2 in its first week, and The Mandalorian and Grogu in its last week. Given Mortal Kombat II comes with more of a mature demographic target than the rest, there’s no real movie it’s in direct competition with.

That being said, the movie aiming for a window in which it can avoid the teenage crowd Mandalorian brings in is ultimately a better decision for Mortal Kombat II. The previous film hit theaters in late April 2021 and, in spite of the hurdles of the COVID-19 pandemic and simultaneous HBO Max release, it still became a modest box office success. As such, keeping the franchise in the late spring may best lay the groundwork for the future.