Tuesday marked the nearly one year-in-the-making premiere of a brand new Mortal Kombat online web series called Mortal Kombat: Legacy. The series is co-written and directed by Kevin Tancharoen who directed Fame as well as a 2010 viral video that spawned this series. It follows Sonja Blade (Jeri Ryan), Stryker (Tahmoh Penikett) and Jax (Michael Jai White) and they try and stop an evil crime ring run by Kano (Darren Shahlavi). At least, that’s what happens in the first 10 minutes. Episode two will be out next week with several more episodes coming after that. Check out the first episode after the jump and let us know what you think. Read More »
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You might think I sound crazy, but I know I’m not the only one who gets chills when they think about the first time they saw the Mortal Kombat movie. The movie itself is largely disappointing, but after playing the games obsessively at local arcades – lining up quarters, practicing fatalities, etc. – finally sitting down in the theater and hearing the initial scream of “MORTAL KOMBAT,” over the New Line logo, followed by The Immortals techno beats, was a very exciting moment. Unfortunately, it was a little too exciting and there was no way the film could ever live up to it. Why am telling you this? Because anytime there’s a new Mortal Kombat property, I secretly hope that it’ll match the energy of those 20 seconds of pre-credit perfection.
The next chance at that kind of immortality is Mortal Kombat: Legacy, an upcoming live action web series by Kevin Tancharoen that premieres April 12 on Machinima.com, starring Jeri Ryan and Michael Jai White. You can check out the first official clip (as well as the clip I mentioned, just for the hell of it) after the jump. Read More »
Briefly: Ever since Black Dynamite hit in 2009, there have been plans for a spin-off animated series featuring the continued adventures of the former Fed and irrepressible ladykiller avenger Black Dynamite. Now Adult Swim has officially picked up the series, which is directed by Carl Jones (The Boondocks), animated by Titmouse and will feature the voices of the film’s actors Michael Jai White, Tommy Davidson, Kym Whitley and Byron Minns.
This deal has been a long time in the making. The animated series was mentioned in September and October 2009, and even then Michael Jai White was saying that Cartoon Network would be the home. When we initially covered the news I hoped and assumed that Adult Swim would be the final outlet, so it’s good to see that finally come to be. The show will bow in early 2012. See another still after the break. Read More »
Last year there was a minor flurry of interest in a new Mortal Kombat film when a spec / proof of concept short appeared online. It was a dark, violent little piece of work that featured some surprising faces like Jeri Ryan and Michael Jai White.
Now, while a new feature evidently won’t be happening soon, Kevin Tancharoen, the director of the short, is using it as a launchpad for a new Mortal Kombat web series that will also star Michael Jai White in a story where the classic Kombat characters square off against the series’ big bads, Shao Kahn and Shang Tsung. Read More »
Do you want a sequel to Salt? Opinion on the film is decidedly mixed, but without (it seems) a lot of middle ground. I’ve talked to people who like the movie a lot, and dislike it a lot, which might be good enough response to earn a sequel. The film has earned $166m worldwide so far — not a huge return on the $110m production budget, but it’s an Angelina Jolie movie. There’s still money to be made there.
The LA Times says that writer Kurt Wimmer has a sequel idea and that director Phillip Noyce is reportedly interested in a return, as is Angelina Jolie. But the talk seems pretty speculative. Jolie has possible films (Maleficent, the nascent Kay Scarpetta series) and Noyce has possibles like Wenceslas Square and Dirt Music, but nothing firmed up. So if Sony decides it really wants things to be Saltier, then don’t be surprised to see all involved take the easy plunge.
After the break, more theoretical sequel talk as Michael Jai White drops a little Black Dynamite 2 dirt. Read More »
Trailers are an under-appreciated art form insofar that many times they’re seen as vehicles for showing footage, explaining films away, or showing their hand about what moviegoers can expect. Foreign, domestic, independent, big budget: I celebrate all levels of trailers and hopefully this column will satisfactorily give you a baseline of what beta wave I’m operating on, because what better way to hone your skills as a thoughtful moviegoer than by deconstructing these little pieces of advertising? Some of the best authors will tell you that writing a short story is a lot harder than writing a long one, that you have to weigh every sentence. What better medium to see how this theory plays itself out beyond that than with movie trailers?
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Earlier this week, seven minutes of Mortal Kombat footage featuring Michael Jai White as Jax seemingly “leaked” online. Is this test footage for a new Mortal Kombat movie reboot? Who is behind this short film? We have the full details, after the jump.
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The most attention-getting thing to hit the ‘net on a very slow news day is this seven minutes of Mortal Kombat footage featuring Michael Jai White as Jax. There’s a lot going on here — introductions and backstory for antagonists like Reptile and Baraka, a fight scene featuring Johnny Cage, and even Jeri Ryan as Sonya Blade.
But what’s it for? Read More »
