MORTAL KOMBAT Finds Sonya Blade And Kano In Jessica McNamee And Josh Lawson, Lewis Tan Also Cast With Mystery Role
Actress Jessica McNamee, and actors Josh Lawson and Lewis Tan will be joining the opposing forces of Earthrealm and Netherrealm in Simon McQuoid’s Mortal Kombat, due out in theaters March 5, 2021.
As The Hollywood Reporter notes, McNamee and Lawson will tackle the roles of warring archrivals, Sonya Blade and Kano, while details on Tan’s role currently remain locked behind the Outworld portal away from prying eyes.
Sonya Blade and Kano came into the original game franchise as archenemies with Blade seeking vengeance for the vicious murder of her partner at the hands of the latter, an elusive crimeboss and megainfluencer of the criminal underworld.
During her trials with her Earthrealm allies in the games against the forces of Shang Tsung, the Emperor himself, Shao Khan’s and the manipulative gods overseeing the titular tournament, Blade would eventually ascend to the rank of General.
Sal DiVita attributed his iconic playable incarnation of the unstoppable cycloptic villain with the notorious red-eye implant prior to the filmic incarnations of late actor Trevor Goddard’s portrayal in 1995. Actor and martial arts star Darren Shahlavi revived the character for two episodes opposite Jeri Ryan in Machinima’s first season of Mortal Kombat Legacy from Kevin Tancharoen.
Elizabeth Malecki and Kerri Hoskins took on the motion capture performances for Blade in the original Midway games. Actresses Bridgette Riley and Sandra Hess would go on to carry the role into big screen fruition in 1995 and 1998 respectively. Former UFC champion, actress Ronda Rousey currently voices her role in Mortal Kombat 11 from Nether Realm Studios and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
McNamee’s recent credits include Battle Of The Sexes and The Meg while Lawson (upcoming Bombshell) is best known for the role of the vexatious Doug Guggenheim next to Don Cheadle in Showtime series, House Of Lies.
Iron Fist and Deadpool 2 co-star Tan is coming off of a winning season after his action-packed role in AMC’s Into The Badlands, having just conquered the world of SVOD as Lu Xin Lee in the Iko Uwais-led martial arts fantasy drama, Wu Assassins.
With McNamee, Lawson and Tan, the Kombatant roster now totals to eight following the casting of Warrior series actor Joe Taslim for Sub-Zero, Saban’s Power Rangers star Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Supergirl series actor Mechad Brooks as Jax, Tadanobu Asano as Raiden, and newcomer Sisi Stringer as Mileena.
Production is just a few weeks away on Mortal Kombat which hails from Warner Bros. Pictures and New Line Cinema, and with locations slated for South Australia. McQuoid will debut feature direct from a script by Greg Russo who himself has assured fans of the film’s committment to an R-rating, fitting the original tone of the games as they’re best known for their graphic imagery, brutal fight scenery and gory death scenes.
James Wan and Todd Garner are producing the game adaptation. Larry Kasanoff, E. Bennett Walsh, Michael Clear and Sean Robins are exec producing.
McNamee is repped by Atlas Artists, Independent Management Company and Stone Genow, with Lawson by UTA, Silver Lining, Lisa Mann Creative Management and Jackoway Austen, and Tan over at Gersh, Luber Roklin and attorney Patrick Knapp.
Native New Yorker. Lover of all things pizza, chocolate, pets, and good friends. Karaoke hero. Left of center. Survivor. Fond supporter of cult, obscure and independent cinema - especially fond of Asian movies and global action cinema. Author of the bi-weekly Hit List. Founder and editor of Film Combat Syndicate. Still, very much, only human.
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