Mortal Kombatis looking to have a flawless victory at the box office with an impressive $22.5 million for the weekend, dealing a fatality on its domestic competition,Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train. After a fierce battle between the two popular franchises, audiences found themselves craving blood and gore in the form of a video game adaptation.
The R-rated live-action reboot ofMortal Kombatopened domestically with the year’s second-highest numbers behind fellow Warner Bros. blockbusterGodzilla vs. Kong. If you want to be even more congratulatory,Mortal Kombat’s success also serves as the biggest opening for an R-rated film during the pandemic, which currently sees most theaters opening at limited capacity. That puts the reboot just below the cult-classic original film fromPaul W.S. Anderson, which debuted at $23.5 million in 1995, around $50 million this day and age considering inflation.
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Mortal Kombat’s note-worthy stats in the domestic market arrives a week after the film debuted internationally to equally impressive numbers. As of this writing, the film has grossed $50.1 million worldwide and looks to stay at the top spot both domestically and internationally until May comes around.Demon Slayerposed a greater threat than previously predicted by box office pundits, grossing just below $20 million during the weekend, but ultimately bowed to the bloody action flick. Both have a strong fanbase, andDemon Slayerboasted a more publicized international release. However,Mortal Kombat’s decades-long legacy pushed it over the edge to claim victory.
Mixed reactions from criticshave not deterred the video game adaptation from finding success at the box office. The red-band trailer skyrocketed in popularity and broke several viewership numbers at the time, which were topped by the highly-anticipated superhero filmThe Suicide SquadfromJames Gunn. If the pandemic wasn’t a factor and the film wasn’t available at no extra cost on HBO Max, maybe the fan-oriented audience could have pushed the video game movie towards greater numbers. Still, the R-rated reboot found itself relatively thriving in a market attempting to make a comeback.
TheSimon McQuoid-directed film sees experienced action starJoe Taslimhunt down earth’s greatest champions as Sub-Zero, going head-to-head withHiroyuki Sanada’s Scorpion. Headlining the ensemble isLewis Tanas Cole Young, who leads a diverse cast of actors includingJessica McNamee(Sonya Blade),Tadanobu Asano(Raiden),Mehcad Brooks(Jax),Ludi Lin(Liu Kang) andChin Han(Shang Tsung), among others.
Mortal Kombatis currently playing in theaters as well as streaming on HBO Max.
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