The New 'Mortal Kombat' Movie Gets a Bloody, Ridiculous Trailer

The latest movie adaptation of the classic fighting games takes its brutality very seriously.

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One moment in the new Mortal Kombat trailer perhaps tells you all you need to know about what kind of violent, over-the-top movie this is going to be. The warrior known as Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim) stabs someone with his ice knife, and then, using his freezing powers, makes a second knife from the blood that spurts from that first wound. Yes, it's pretty gnarly. 

The latest attempt to bring the iconic video game to the big screen is directed by first time feature director Simon McQuoid, best known previously for his work on commercials. (The first adaptation, directed by Paul W. S. Anderson in 1995, remains a ridiculous, difficult to top cult classic.) The plot, as far as we can tell, centers around an MMA fighter named Cole (Lewis Tan), who assembles a team of superhumans to enter into a fighting tournament to stop an impending apocalypse. But really you're in it to see the brutal fatalities, right? Well, they are there. As is that key catchphrase, "Finish him!" 

Mortal Kombat, being a Warner Bros. release, is hitting theaters and HBO Max April 16. 

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Esther Zuckerman is a senior entertainment writer at Thrillist. Follow her on Twitter @ezwrites.