The world changed in 1995. It was something that no one thought would ever happen – even to this day, many experts cannot explain the phenomenon. A live-action feature film of Mortal Kombat was released – and it was pretty good. Okay, it's not like it deserves an Oscar or anything, but judging by other video game adaptations of its time, it was like Citizen Kane. Fans cheered as Earth's greatest heroes knocked the snot out of Shang Tsung and his stooges in an epic showdown. Furthermore, the film's theme song became the greatest musical piece of our generation, proving that techno doesn't need a round two to wipe the floor with other musical genres.
For Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon, he couldn't believe the film got made in the first place. "When the movie was being discussed, I remember not taking it seriously at first," he told The Hollywood Reporter. "I thought, 'This is probably going to be talked about but not happen.' Then all of a sudden we were getting phone calls about casting and they were saying, 'What about this guy for this character? What about this guy for that character?'" The film was a hit at the box office, raking in $122 million from an $18 million budget, as well as getting a sequel. (Let's not talk about Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, though, because it'll make everyone sad.) Two decades and a bit later, it's a good time as any to relook the history of the film and some of its juiciest trivia.
20 STREET FIGHTER STOLE VAN DAMME
It's common knowledge that the Muscles from Brussels, Jean-Claude Van Damme, was the main inspiration for Johnny Cage and Mortal Kombat. In fact, Bloodsport could be considered as an origin story for the action star born as John Carlton.
While the developers had never been able to use Van Damme's likeness in the games, the filmmakers believed they could get the splits master to appear in the 1995 movie, as Cage himself. Unfortunately, Van Damme had already accepted the gig of Colonel William Guile in the Street Fighter film, so he couldn't do this one. In retrospect, he probably chose the wrong movie to do back then.
19 STEVEN SPIELBERG ALMOST CAMEOED
When we're first introduced to Johnny Cage in Mortal Kombat, it's on an action film set. There, we also meet the unnamed director of the fictional movie, portrayed by German actor Sandy Helberg who happens to bear a strong resemblance to Steven Spielberg. As it turns out, the part was actually meant for Spielberg in the first place.
Apparently, the famous director is a huge fan of the Mortal Kombat games and agreed to cameo in the film. Due to scheduling conflicts, though, he was forced to pull out. Now, this was unfortunate, because a Spielberg cameo would've made this movie even more awesome than what it already is.
18 BRANDON LEE AS JOHNNY CAGE?
It's a shame that Brandon Lee didn't get to experience the fame and acclaim that The Crow brought him. If he hadn't tragically passed away during the filming of the movie, there's no doubt that he would've been a Hollywood A-lister for years to come.
Before Linden Ashby secured the role of Johnny Cage, the filmmakers had their eyes on Lee, who possessed the natural look and martial arts ability to portray the popular character. His passing, due to a freak stunt accident, robbed him of the opportunity to immortalize the role. While it remains a big what if scenario, we do believe he would've been perfect as Cage.
17 CAMERON DIAZ AS SONYA BLADE?
While everyone recognizes Bridgette Wilson-Sampras as Mortal Kombat's Sonya Blade, she wasn't the first pick for the role. That honor belongs to Cameron Diaz. In fact, Diaz had 1994's The Mask to thank for her snagging the part – even if she had to give it up in the end.
"We originally had Cameron Diaz cast as Sonya Blade. We were at New Line when The Mask was in post-production, and Cameron Diaz was not a household name," associate producer Lauri Apelian told The Hollywood Reporter. She explained that Diaz broke her wrist before shooting and couldn't do the martial arts stunts necessary, so she was replaced. Hollywood is unforgiving, folks!
16 ROBIN SHOU FRACTURED RIBS ON SET
One of the reasons for Mortal Kombat's lasting popularity was its action scenes that stand the test of time. Most of the actors ended up taking martial arts classes and doing their own stunts, which resulted in realistic and action-packed sequences. Unfortunately, this also caused a few bruises and injuries to actors, such as Robin Shou who fractured two ribs on set.
"In one of the stunts, Reptile threw me and I hit this pillar and I actually fractured two ribs on that, because I didn't expect I'd hit the edge of the pillar," Shou revealed years later. "But I didn't tell anyone. If I told them I [had] fractured the ribs, [they would've stopped the] production."
15 REPTILE-LIU KANG FIGHT WAS LAST-MINUTE ADDITION
Despite what random Internet commenters will tell you, many films go through reshoots. It's part and parcel of the industry, as studios test what does and doesn't work. Think of it like writing a book; you'll go through numerous drafts and tweaks until you reach the final product.
Mortal Kombat wasn't immune to this, either. In fact, if it weren't for the test audiences, we wouldn't have seen as much of Reptile as we did. The feedback was that the movie was cool but could do with a little more action. So, the filmmakers got back behind the camera and one of the additions was the Reptile-Liu Kang fight on Outworld.
14 TOM CRUISE WAS BLOCKED FROM SET
Reportedly, Tom Cruise was one of the actors considered for the part of Johnny Cage. As we all know, it didn't happen. This didn't stop the Top Gun actor from being curious about what was happening on the film set, though.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Linden Ashby told the story. "Tom Cruise had a hangar nearby and came over and was like, 'Hey what are you guys shooting? Can I check it out?' And the medic goes, 'You're not in this movie. Go away!' And Tom Cruise goes, 'I just want to see,' and he goes, 'I don't care who you are, get out of here!' He turned away Tom Cruise!"
13 STEVE JAMES WAS ORIGINALLY CAST AS JAX
If you're a fan of old-school action movies, you've undoubtedly heard of Steve James who appeared in the American Ninja film series and Delta Force. He was a bona fide tough guy and someone who just screamed action star when he walked into a room.
Naturally, he was the number one pick to play Jax in Mortal Kombat – and we must admit it was an inspired casting. Sadly, James passed away from pancreatic cancer in 1993 before the film entered production. He was replaced by Gregory McKinney in the movie, who had a small role. You have to wonder, though, if Jax would've been a main character had James starred in the film.
12 SEAN CONNERY AS RAIDEN?
We must say that Hollywood has made great strides over the years. In the past, big-name actors would be cast in just about any part – even if they were completely wrong for it. Hence seeing strange decisions like Sylvester Stallone as Judge Dredd and Jamie Kennedy in any movie he appeared in.
One of the weirdest considerations for Mortal Kombat was Sean Connery as Raiden. "We also inquired about Sean Connery for the Raiden role," Lauri Apelian revealed to The Hollywood Reporter. "But we understood at that time that he really wanted to golf. He wasn't interested at that time in doing a physical role."
11 PAUL W. S. ANDERSON BLUFFED -- BIG TIME
At the time of Mortal Kombat, director Paul W. S. Anderson hadn't done a major Hollywood film. This was his shot at the big time – and he wasn't about to let his experience (or the lack thereof) get in the way of cementing himself in the industry. As such, he bluffed his way into the gig.
"I went to Samuel French's book store and I bought every single book I could find on visual effects, on matte paintings, on CGI. I had the jargon down," Anderson said to The Hollywood Reporter. "It sounded like I knew more about CG than anyone else in Hollywood, even though I'd never been into a visual effects house."
10 ACTORS AD LIBBED MANY LINES
You normally find it's comedy directors who allow their actors to ad lib and improvise. Well, Paul W. S. Anderson applied the same principle to Mortal Kombat, as he allowed the actors to chop and change what they felt was necessary. Unexpectedly, he got some comedy gold from the likes of Linden Ashby and Christopher Lambert.
"We came up with, 'Those were $500 sunglasses, a**hole,' and the silly moment in the movie, the opening when I walk in and I go, 'Let's dance,'" Ashby revealed to The Hollywood Reporter. Even so, a lot of other ad-libbed moments were removed after some studio notes commented on the excessive humor in the film.
9 GORO BROKE DOWN -- A LOT
At the time of Mortal Komabt's filming, the animatronics and puppeteering of Goro was seen as groundbreaking. Not only did the character look real, but it also employed something practical and advanced in the visual effects department. Nowadays, you know that no one would even bother and he'd be entirely CGI.
Heck, if the technology was as advanced back then, it's likely that the filmmakers would've utilized it too. As it turns out, Goro held up a lot of the production schedule as the limitations of his movement and parts breaking off resulted in multiple delays on set. In fact, the crew jokingly dubbed Goro the real diva on set because of his refusal to work.
8 ORIGINAL SCRIPT WAS EVEN MORE VIOLENT
If you think about it, Mortal Kombat should be an R-rated franchise. The violence is excessive and it's certainly not for children – despite the fact that kids played it at the arcade all the time. So, when it came down to making the film, it would've made sense to aim it at more mature audiences.
It so happens that was the plan and the original script featured much more bone-crushing scenes and violence. Unfortunately, the studio mandated it to be PG-13, so the director and his team had to keep rewriting and cutting until it could pass. Hopefully, any potential reboot down the line will be allowed to go for the jugular.
7 NOVELIZATION VERY DIFFERENT FROM MOVIE
For diehard fans, film novelizations are terrific ways of delving further into the world of your favorite movies. In many instances, they feature extra scenes that didn't make the final cut and more backstory on the characters. Sometimes, though, they do tend to differ from the final product.
In the case of Mortal Kombat, the novelization, written by Martin Deliro, changed a bit from the final product. In it, Jade makes an appearance, while she was completely absent in the film. Additionally, there's more focus on Art Lean, as well as more of Jax. The reason for these "changes" is simple: the movie's script changed so many times.
6 ROBIN SHOU AND THE FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY
Having worked as a stuntman and actor in Hong Kong, Robin Shou was adept at executing exhilarating fight scenes. In fact, he'd worked with the master of on-screen fighting, Jackie Chan, once upon a time and learned all he could from him. Due to this, he had a lot of input in the action pieces of Mortal Kombat, with the main choreographer Pat E. Johnson asking his advice and input.
In addition, Shou had his own opportunity to shine at a later point in the film's production. Paul W. S. Anderson revealed that Shou took on a bigger role and was responsible for choreographing the extra action sequences in the reshoots.
5 PRODUCERS FOUGHT FOR SOUNDTRACK
The mid-'90s was a dark period. Rather than see the evolution of grunge or other interesting musical genres, boy bands such as the Backstreet Boys took over and wouldn't quit playing games with our hearts. It was a difficult time and many teenagers got caught up in the nonsense.
In the case of the Mortal Kombat soundtrack, it was a breath of fresh air and the first platinum EDM record in history. It wasn't easy, though, as the producers had to fight for its inclusion as record companies fought against it. Many contracts were turned down, as the team stated they wanted electronic dance to be the fuel for the combat. Thankfully, they succeeded.
4 LAMBERT VOICED RAIDEN IN FRENCH DUB
There were a few raised eyebrows when French actor Christopher Lambert was cast as the thunder god Raiden, especially since the character had been depicted to be of Asian descent. Truth be told, it's unlikely that this casting would've gone down well in this current time and era. The internet would explode…
Well, Lambert's casting ended up being a blessing in disguise for a foreign dub of the film. Due to his ability to speak both English and French, he also did all the lines for Raiden in the French version. Now, isn't that a nice added bonus for Lambert's French audience? Merci beaucoup, Monsieur Lambert.
3 'STAR WARS MEETS ENTER THE DRAGON'
Look, you know that producers are always going to hype up movies – it's part of their job. In the case of Larry Kasanoff, even the Midway Games chief didn't buy into his initial hype about Mortal Kombat.
"I played the Mortal Kombat arcade game in [Midway's] office for half an hour. I turned to [former Midway Games chief] Neil D. Nicastro and I said, 'This is Star Wars meets Enter the Dragon. This is not just an arcade game. This is a whole phenomenon,'" he explained to The Hollywood Reporter. "He looked at me and said, 'You're full of crap! It's just an arcade game!'"
2 ONLY AVAILABLE BY BOAT
For Paul W. S. Anderson, it was important to get authentic locations for Mortal Kombat's scenery. As a result, the production moved to Thailand where the landscapes were to his taste. Unfortunately, it wasn't so easy to get to these remote locations and required some unusual day-to-day travel for the actors and crew.
"Going to Thailand was an important decision because I wanted to get big, real landscapes," he revealed to The Hollywood Reporter. "When we went on a location scout, the beaches I really liked were the ones you couldn't get to. We had to bring in all of the equipment on a boat every morning."
1 CHRISTOPHER LAMBERT LOVED IT
Securing Christopher Lambert for the role of Raiden was quite the coup for the filmmakers. Undoubtedly, he had the pedigree and name to attract the general audience to watch Mortal Kombat. You'd think that an actor of his caliber would regret this role, but the opposite is true.
Speaking to Loaded, Lambert said he views it as "one of the good computer game movies" and he "liked" it. "Mortal Kombat was an arcade game, a beat 'em up and because of that they were forced to create a story rather than simply relying on the game's plot," he said, while adding that he didn't return for the sequel because he disliked the script.