The upcoming Mortal Kombat reboot will feature a wealth of fighters from across the franchise's history. However, one fighter -- or rather, their actor's portrayal -- stood out to the cast and crew.
Director Simon McQuoid and producer Todd Garner discussed how Josh Lawson's portrayal of Kano was a welcome surprise, as well as Kano's major role in the movie. "There's a lot of comedy, there's a lot of laughs. Kano provides an enormous amount of comedy," McQuoid told ComicBook.com. "With him, he helps undercut sometimes, you know the canon of Mortal Kombat has a great deal of underdogs, all that's discussed with lots of dialogue that talks about that stuff, so it's nice to have Kano come in and just make sure we're not taking ourselves too seriously. So, that's a nice sort of levity. This is true entertainment in a sense, so that you really feel that mixture of emotions."
"He's killing it. He's just dogs off chains," Garner added. "We're like, 'Go ahead, say whatever you want.' And he says the craziest stuff in this movie." Garner also discussed how Lawson and Jessica McNamee, who portrays Sonya Blade, rose to the occasion having never performed in action films before.
In Mortal Kombat canon, Kano is a member of the criminal organization known as the Black Dragons. He is a constant thorn in Sonya Blade and Jax Briggs' side, having evaded the duo for years.
In "Mortal Kombat," MMA fighter Cole Young, accustomed to taking a beating for money, is unaware of his heritage -- or why Outworld's Emperor Shang Tsung has sent his best warrior, Sub-Zero, an otherworldly Cryomancer, to hunt Cole down. Fearing for his family's safety, Cole goes in search of Sonya Blade at the direction of Jax, a Special Forces Major who bears the same strange dragon marking Cole was born with. Soon, he finds himself at the temple of Lord Raiden, an Elder God and the protector of Earthrealm, who grants sanctuary to those who bear the mark. Here, Cole trains with experienced warriors Liu Kang, Kung Lao and rogue mercenary Kano, as he prepares to stand with Earth's greatest champions against the enemies of Outworld in a high stakes battle for the universe. But will Cole be pushed hard enough to unlock his arcana -- the immense power from within his soul -- in time to save not only his family, but to stop Outworld once and for all?
Directed by Simon McQuoid and produced by James Wan, Mortal Kombat stars Lewis Tan as Cole Young, Jessica McNamee as Sonya Blade, Josh Lawson as Kano, Tadanobu Asano as Lord Raiden, Mehcad Brooks as Jackson "Jax" Bridges, Ludi Lin as Liu Kang, Chin Han as Shang Tsung, Joe Taslim as Bi-Han and Sub-Zero, Hiroyuki Sanada as Hanzo Hasashi and Scorpion, Max Huang as Kung Lao, Sisi Stringer as Mileena, Matilda Kimber as Emily Young and Laura Brent as Allison Young. The film arrives in theaters and on HBO Max April 16.
Source: ComicBook.com