What is the best order to watch the Mortal Kombat movies?

Ever woken up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, wondering how many Mortal Kombat movies there are? No? Oh. Well, somebody must have.

The Mortal Kombat movies keep on appearing, audiences seem to connect with them, and there is a big fan base behind the video-game-to-film franchise. Based on the video game series of the same name, the Mortal Kombat movie series has been fairly successful, and has now built up a sizeable collection of live-action and animated tales.

Want to know what they all are, and what order to watch them in? Then keep reading for all the details.

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Mortal Kombat live-action movies

Mortal Kombat (1995)

Let’s begin with the live-action movie series, which began in 1995 with the Paul W. S. Anderson-directed feature film, Mortal Kombat. The movie focused on three martial artists, who are forced to battle demonic foes (in another dimension) with the entire fate of the world hanging in the balance! (101 mins)

Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)

Following the release of 1995’s Mortal Kombat, a sequel soon followed in 1997 under the title Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. In this film, the world is in danger once again, with a group of martial-arts warriors given just six days to turn the tide. (95 mins)

Mortal Kombat (2021)

After the release of Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, the MK movie series went on hiatus for 24 years before returning in 2021 via a complete reboot. In this new entry – simply titled Mortal Kombat – MMA fighter Cole Young seeks out Earth’s greatest champions to help in his fight against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle. (110 mins)

Mortal Kombat II (2025)

With Mortal Kombat proving to be successful enough, the series continued with a second entry in 2025 via Mortal Kombat II. In this film, Earth’s greatest champions (including Johnny Cage) are pitted against one another in a battle to defeat Shao Kahn!

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Mortal Kombat animated movies

Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins (1995)

Onto animation now, which begins with the oft-forgotten direct-to-video title, Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins. Produced as a 2D/3D animated movie, Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins features a number of iconic MK characters (Subzero, Johnny Cage, etc) and was initially conceived as a straight-to-VHS tie-in to help promote the ’95 live-action movie (see above).

If you have never watched this ‘film’… don’t bother. The animation is awful, it’s a cheap tie-in, and is mostly forgotten for a reason. (40 mins)

Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge (2020)

With the live-action brand gearing up for a reboot during the 2020’s, Warner Bros. put a series of animated features into production, under the banner title: Mortal Kombat Legends. These direct-to-video titles focused on key characters from the video game series, with Scorpion’s Revenge being the first release in this collection.

In this movie, when Hanzo Hasashi loses his family during an attack by a rival clan, he is given the opportunity to compete in an inter-dimensional tournament. His prize is to save his loved ones. (80 mins)

Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (2021)

In the next animated offering, Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms, the Earthrealm heroes journey to Outworld to fight for the survival of their homeland. (80 mins)

Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind (2022)

Next up is Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind. In this animated movie, as Kano and the Black Dragon cause chaos around the globe, young warrior Kenshi must take on the looming threat of Outworld. (82 mins)

Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (2023)

In Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match, it is the 1980s and in Hollywood, struggling martial arts actor Johnny Cage searches for his missing co-star amidst a wealth of bloodthirsty fighters. (76 mins)

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Mortal Kombat movies in order (by collection)

If you wish to watch all of the movies in their separate continuities, do it as follows:

The live-action 1990s Mortal Kombat series

• Mortal Kombat (1995)
• Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997)

The live-action 2020s Mortal Kombat series

• Mortal Kombat (2021)
• Mortal Kombat II (2025)

The stand-alone direct-to-video animated short film

• Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins (1995)

The direct-to-video animated movies

• Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge (2020)
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (2021)
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind (2022)
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (2023)

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Who are the cast of the Mortal Kombat movies series and are the films the work of the same director?

The cast of the live-action Mortal Kombat movie series includes Christopher Lambert, Robin Shou, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Linden Ashby, Bridgette Wilson-Sampras, Talisa Soto, Chris Casamassa, Trevor Goddard, François Petit, Sandra Hess, Brian Thompson, Lynn Red Williams, Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Mehcad Broos, Joe Taslim, Tadanobu Asano, Chin Han, Max Huang, Ludi Lin, Tati Gabrielle, and Karl Urban.

The cast of the animated Mortal Kombat movie series includes Jennifer Carpenter, Joel McHale, Ike Amadi, Steve Blum, Artt Butler, Robin Atkin Downes, Darin De Paul, Grey DeLisle, Kevin Michael Richardson, Matthew Mercer, Manny Jacinto, David Wenham, Yuri Lowenthal, Patrick Seitz, Gilbert Gottfried, Kelly Hu, and Jennifer Grey.

In terms of directors, the Mortal Kombat movie series is the work of the following:

• Joseph Francis directed Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins
• Paul W.S. Anderson directed Mortal Kombat 1995
• John R. Leonetti directed Mortal Kombat: Annihilation
• Ethan Spaulding directed Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge, Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms, and Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match
• Simon McQuoid directed Mortal Kombat 2021 and Mortal Kombat II
• Rick Morales directed Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind

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Which are the best Mortal Kombat movies?

According to IMDb, the Mortal Kombat movies are rated as follows:

• Mortal Kombat: The Journey Begins (1995) – 3.5/10
• Mortal Kombat (1995) – 5.8/10
• Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (1997) – 3.6/10
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion’s Revenge (2020) – 7.4/10
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (2021) – 6.5/10
• Mortal Kombat (2021) – 6.1/10
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Snow Blind (2022) – 6.7/10
• Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (2023) – 5.9/10
• Mortal Kombat II (2025) – Not yet rated

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Editor/Writer/Fighter

Alex Wiggan

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I hope this information on the Mortal Kombat movie series has proved useful. For more movie posts on It’s A Stampede! check out the recommended reads below.