A vibrant new poster for the IMAX release of Warner Bros. Pictures' Mortal Kombat movie brings together the ensemble cast of fighters, while highlighting the central battle between Hiroyuki Sanada's Scorpion and Joe Taslim's Sub-Zero. The poster, created by the artist BossLogic, is topped with the familiar Mortal Kombat catchphrase "GET OVER HERE!" and features the likes of Jax (Mehcad Brooks), Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), Kung Lao (Max Huang), Liu Kang (Ludi Lin), Kano (Josh Lawson), Raiden (Tadanobu Asano) and Kabal (Daniel Nelson).

Standing front and center is controversial new character, Cole Young, played by Lewis Tan. Cole Young is a new addition to Mortal Kombat lore and is a washed-up MMA fighter who is unaware of his hidden lineage or why he is being hunted down by Sub-Zero of the Lin-Kuei clan of assassins. Concerned for the safety of his family, Cole seeks out a team of fighters who were chosen to defend Earthrealm in a high-stakes battle against the forces of Outworld.

The introduction of a wholly new character to lead the Mortal Kombat movie has been met with some criticism, particularly considering the vast array of already established characters that could be chosen to take center stage.

According to McQuoid, Cole Young's ancestry is part of the reason he was chosen to represent Earth in Mortal Kombat, and the secrets of his lineage will be revealed in bits and pieces throughout the movie. Director Simon McQuoid, who makes his feature directorial debut with Mortal Kombat, though is confident in his decision, and has teased Cole's mysterious connection to the Mortal Kombat legacy. "This connection through the film is built, and his arcana and everything is built out of pieces and elements and ingredients from his lineage and so forth," he said. "It's really about creating someone who felt new but somehow belonged. That was sort of attempted alchemy at what we were creating there. Lewis did a fantastic job; he did a great job."

One thing that won't disappoint fans of the franchise though is McQuoid's commitment to adapting the video game's notorious violent streak. The recent footage has already teased the blood and gore that is sure to delight audiences and Mortal Kombat fans alike, with the director since assuring fans of the popular video game series that the movie will push the R-rating as far as it will go. "We wanted to push the [blood, gore and fatalities] right to the limit," McQuoid revealed regarding his approach to the violence and fight sequences. "Obviously, there's a point where the film becomes unreleasable if you push it too far, and that would be a very unwise return on investment for the studio. But from day one it's been, 'Okay, we're doing this and we're going to do it properly.'"

According to the MPAA, Mortal Kombat has been rated R for "strong bloody violence and language throughout, and some crude references," which is pretty much everything you could want in a Mortal Kombat adaptation.

Mortal Kombat was theatrically released internationally on April 8, 2021 and is scheduled to be released by Warner Bros. Pictures in the United States on April 23, 2021, in traditional and IMAX theaters. The movie will also be simultaneously released on HBO Max for a limited time. This comes to us courtesy of BossLogic's official Instagram.