The Mortal Kombat series has become renowned in recent years for beefing up its already intimidating lineup of warriors with crossover characters from other game and movie franchises. Mortal Kombat’s gore-drenched and ultra-violent style means that the ideal cameos tend to come from horror or action movies. Players have seen the likes of Freddy Krueger, the Terminator, and even the xenomorph from Alien, all maiming and mutilating their way into the venerable fighting series in recent years.
With the series riding a wave of popularity, and following the solid box office performance of the recent movie outing, Mortal Kombat shows no sign of slowing down this trend. Despite already raiding a number of the world’s most famous franchises, there are still many as-yet-unexploited characters that fans would love to see demonstrating their grisliest Mortal Kombat fatalities on Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and the gang.
What Makes an Ideal Mortal Kombat Cameo?
Working out which characters would be ideal for a Mortal Kombat cameo is becoming increasingly tricky, as NetherRealm Studios has already worked its way through some of the most obvious movie icons. However, there are a few key attributes that are common across all of the recent crossover appearances. Firstly, the characters must be instantly recognizable, to ensure that the developer gets its money’s worth for the license in the form of additional game sales and publicity. This is why we’ve seen legends such as Jason Vorhees, Robocop, and even John Rambo joining the Mortal Kombat roster.
Secondly, the characters must also be roughly humanoid in size and shape. Godzilla might make for an amusing cameo, but watching him trample his six-foot-tall opponents to gristle in the first second of every bout would rapidly get older than Shang Tsung. This is why slasher movies, with their human(ish) antagonists, have been a popular source of guest kombatants for recent installments of the series.
The visiting personalities must also have an established fighting, and ideally a ruthless killing, pedigree. The likes of the Joker make perfect Mortal Kombat fighters because they have a long and horrific back catalogue of murder and mayhem. So long as the sight of them pummeling foes to pieces or unleashing sadistic finishing moves will neither jar with fans, nor upset their IP’s owners. Sadly, this means we’re unlikely to see a Mortal Kombat and Sesame Street crossover any time soon.
A Shortlist of Potential Mortal Kombat Crossover Characters
Mortal Kombat fans were disappointed when recent rumors of upcoming DLC cameos turned out to be false; meaning that neither Halloween's Michael Myers, nor Ash Williams from Evil Dead, debuted in Mortal Kombat 11. These instantly recognizable stars, spanning the bad guy and good guy sides of horror movies, would both be perfect additions to the game’s roster, and it would be foolish to rule out an appearance in a future installment of NetherRealm’s fighting game. It is just as easy to imagine Halloween’s antagonist slicing and dicing his opponents, as it is to imagine Ash hollering “groovy!” as he unloads both barrels of his boomstick into a faltering foe.
Other horror movie icons are surely long overdue for an appearance. The slasher genre has not yet run dry, with Scream’s Ghostface character also seeming like an ideal guest for the series; particularly after a certain fedora-wearing Wes Craven creation has already enjoyed carving up NetherRealm’s finest with his lethal claw glove. Freddy Krueger was a popular addition to the Mortal Kombat stable, and there’s no reason other slasher baddies couldn’t make an equally big impact.
Veering away from slashers, another horror megastar fans would love to see featured would be the world’s worst psychiatrist, Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Although the idea that Anthony Hopkins could be persuaded to lend his voice talents to the role seems a little too optimistic, there’s no reason to believe that NetherRealm’s couldn’t procure the license to feature the cannibal consultant in a future title.
A return to the rumor mill shows that it isn’t just silver screen stars being mooted to receive the Mortal Kombat treatment. Recent gossip has indicated that TV’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer has also been considered as an upcoming guest star, and the stake-wielding student would seem to be a perfect fit. However, reports have also circulated of a Scooby Doo crossover, but the idea of Shaggy and his cowardly canine doing anything other than flee from a fight is perhaps a reason to take such stories with a pinch of salt.
But if NetherRealm truly has its sights set on some big-name TV signings, this brings a host of other potential crossover characters within Mortal Kombat's sights. With The X-Files recently returning to screens, it isn’t difficult to imagine Mulder and Scully gracing a future release, perhaps deploying alien technology against their enemies as well as their good old-fashioned FBI-issued sidearms. Alternatively, the massive popularity of newer shows like Stranger Things could lead NetherRealm to plunder the Netflix show's cast list for viable visitors like Eleven.
Another approach NetherRealm might take is to consider characters from other video game franchises. This would not be unheard of, with Silent Hill’s Pyramid Head recently making an appearance in Dead By Daylight. The eclectic roster of titles like Super Smash Bros. has established a successful template for such a "hall of fame" approach to video game fighters. Resident Evil’s Mr. X or Lady Dimitrescu would be prime candidates, and there are a host of other video game villains and protagonists who would slot neatly into the Mortal Kombat universe.
With dozens of plausible options out there, and many franchise owners happy to make some easy money by loaning out their IPs, NetherRealm are surely considering many more crossover cameos in its future releases. This is certain to delight the devotees of these characters as much as it satisfies the bloodlust of the Mortal Kombat fanbase.
Mortal Kombat 11 is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.