Mortal Kombat 2 Writer Explains Why One Video Game Fighter Was Cut

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Mortal Kombat 2 has hit the big screen, but it’s one fighter down.

Mortal Kombat 2 is the follow-up to the 2021 film, based on the well-known Mortal Kombat video game series created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. Directed by Simon McQuoid, the movie centers on martial artist Johnny Cage (played by Karl Urban) as he joins Earthrealm’s battle against the forces of Outworld, led by the powerful emperor Shao Kahn (Martyn Ford).

The Mortal Kombat video game series has a huge number of characters, making it impossible to include them all in one movie. Jeremy Slater, the writer for Mortal Kombat 2, told GamesRadar+ that deciding which characters to feature was a real challenge. He also mentioned that Tremor was very close to being included in the sequel, but ultimately had to be cut due to space constraints.

Writer Jeremy Slater revealed that Tremor, a ninja with the ability to manipulate lava and metal, was initially planned for a fight scene with Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee) in the movie. Slater felt Tremor’s powers would have added a lot of excitement to the action. The character is also a favorite among longtime fans of the Mortal Kombat video game series. In the first draft of the script, the fight was supposed to result in Tremor’s death.

As the team continued writing Mortal Kombat 2, they felt the character Tremor didn’t quite fit the story. So, Paul W.S. Anderson decided to use Sindel, Kitana’s mother, instead. He explained that the team realized Sindel was a better fit for the sequel and hadn’t been used enough in the first draft. They felt using Sindel would allow them to fully develop her character and create a more powerful emotional connection with the audience.

Slater believed Tremor wouldn’t have had enough screen time to become a fully realized character, making it hard for viewers to truly care about him. Replacing him with Sindel allowed for greater emotional depth in the story and let the filmmakers showcase her special powers during the exciting action sequences in Mortal Kombat 2.

Despite being well-liked by gamers, Tremor isn’t a very well-known fighter within the entire Mortal Kombat series. He’s only available as downloadable content in the games and first appeared in Mortal Kombat: Special Forces, released back in 2000.

Mortal Kombat 2 is currently playing in theaters now.

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2026-05-10 02:38