Mortal Kombat II moves to May 2026

Warner Bros and New Line move Mortal Kombat II to May 15 2026 to target the summer audience.

Mortal Kombat II Shifts to May 15 2026 for Summer Box Office

Warner Bros and New Line have moved Mortal Kombat II from October 24 this year to May 15 2026. The film is directed by Simon McQuoid and stars Karl Urban as Johnny Cage with a cast that includes Adeline Rudolph, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, and Tadanobu Asano. The shift takes the blockbuster out of a crowded fall window and places it in a summer frame that often yields stronger openings for genre titles. It will face Is God Is from Amazon MGM Studios and an untitled Neon release in May.

Deadline reports strong early screenings and a red band trailer that has drawn substantial global attention. The project continues a franchise run that has produced three films with a total worldwide gross in the hundreds of millions. The screenplay is by Jeremy Slater with producers including Todd Garner and James Wan.

The move signals a confident bet on a summer audience that shows up for big spectacle. Pushing into May avoids Halloween weekend clutter while riding momentum from a high profile trailer and strong projections. If the strategy pays off Mortal Kombat II could open larger than fall rivals; if not the film risks losing some Halloween genre buzz and facing new May competition.

Highlights

The calendar for 2026 will reveal how far this gamble can go