Mortal Kombat 3 Gets Official Status Update From Director After Breaking Multiple Franchise Records

Though he’s been on a roll with the franchise, Simon McQuid says Mortal Kombat 3 isn’t happening yet.

McQuoid made his feature debut with the 2021 reboot of the film series based on Ed Boon and John Tobias’ iconic fighting game franchise, returning for the recently released Mortal Kombat II. The sequel saw the highly-anticipated introduction of Karl Urban’s Johnny Cage as he joined the roster of Earthrealm fighters to fight against Shao Kahn and his Outworld forces. Even before its release, it was announced that New Line Cinema was developing Mortal Kombat 3.

Now, in an interview with JoBlo for the sequel’s home media release, McQuoid has offered an official status update on Mortal Kombat 3. The director/producer cautioned that audiences will have to “wait and see” on the threequel of the franchise, explaining that “the lifecycle of this film needs to totally play out” before he, the cast or the studio can offer a definitive confirmation of whether the next film will move ahead.

McQuoid has thus far proven to be the best fit for the Mortal Kombat franchise with his two outings in the series thus far. The first film may have landed a “Rotten” score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes with a 55% rating, it still became the best-reviewed live-action adaptation of the game, while also initially setting the record for HBO Max’s most successful film launch, having made a simultaneous streaming and theatrical release due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mortal Kombat II showed an even further sense of growth from its predecessor both at the box office and with critics. The 2026 sequel again claimed the record for the best-reviewed live-action installment on Rotten Tomatoes, becoming the first to secure a Fresh rating with its 64% score. It also narrowly edged out Paul W.S. Anderson’s original Mortal Kombat film to become the highest-grossing installment yet, grossing over $129 million worldwide.

Even with this successful streak, however, McQuoid’s comments that Mortal Kombat II needs to finish its lifecycle before the studio begins work on the third film may point to New Line Cinema hoping to see a little more profitability from the sequel. In spite of its record-breaking box office run, it was up against an $80 million production budget, a moderate step up from the first film’s $55 million budget.

Given movies generally need to make around 2.5 times their budgets at the box office in order to start turning a profit, Mortal Kombat II would have had to bring in $200 million, which it fell quite short of at its $129 million haul. However, as McQuoid indicates, the movie’s lifecycle isn’t entirely over in New Line’s eyes, as they now turn their attention to how it performs on home media.

Mortal Kombat II made its debut on digital platforms in early June, and is gearing up for a physical release at the end of July, both of which will be key figures in the studio’s decision about the threequel. Even more important to the next movie’s fate is how the sequel performs on streaming when it finally makes its HBO Max premiere, which doesn’t currently have a date set, though, judging from other recent releases’ gaps between digital and streaming, will likely come the week of July 22, ahead of its physical release and six weeks after its digital date.

HBO Max has given many films a second shot at being successes in streaming viewership, and considering the already positive atmosphere surrounding the sequel, it does seem likely that Mortal Kombat II will become an instant hit on the platform. Additionally, with San Diego Comic-Con right around the corner, Warner Bros. and New Line may have the official greenlight on Mortal Kombat 3 coming in the next few weeks.

Release Date: May 8, 2026
Runtime: 116 Minutes
Director: Simon McQuoid
Writers: Jeremy Slater
Producers: E. Bennett Walsh, James Wan, Simon McQuoid, Toby Emmerich, Todd Garner